Why financiers are a natural fit for gluten-free baking

Financiers are the quiet heroes of the French pâtisserie counter: small, dense, moist almond cakes with a burnished crust and a soft, almost custardy crumb. They were supposedly invented by a Parisian pastry chef for the financiers who worked near the Bourse, who wanted something they could eat without soiling their frock coats. Whatever the truth of it, the recipe has always been built on ground almonds, egg whites, sugar and browned butter, with only a token spoonful of flour to hold things together.

That makes them one of the most rewarding bakes for anyone avoiding gluten. The almonds do the structural work, the brown butter does the flavouring, and the small amount of flour can be swapped for cornflour or a gluten-free plain blend without anyone at the table noticing. If you have ever felt that gluten-free baking means settling for second best, this is the recipe that will change your mind.

What you will need

This makes twelve small financiers, or about eight if you use a deeper muffin tin. Scales are essential here; almond batters are forgiving of technique but not of guesswork.

• 115g unsalted butter, browned (you will end up with roughly 90g of usable beurre noisette)
• 100g ground almonds, ideally finely ground rather than coarse almond meal
• 100g icing sugar, sifted
• 30g cornflour or gluten-free plain flour blend
• 4 large egg whites, about 120g, at room temperature
• A good pinch of fine sea salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or the finely grated zest of half a lemon
• Soft butter and extra ground almonds for preparing the tin

You will also want a proper financier tin if you have one, though a mini muffin tin works perfectly well. Silicone moulds are fine too, but they give a softer edge rather than the traditional crisp one.

Step one: brown the butter properly

This is the step that separates a good financier from a bland one, so do not rush it. Put the butter in a light-coloured saucepan over a medium heat and let it melt, foam and then settle. After four to six minutes the milk solids will sink and begin to colour, and the smell will turn distinctly nutty and toasty. Swirl the pan and watch closely; the window between hazelnut-brown and burnt is only about twenty seconds.

As soon as the solids are a deep amber, pull the pan off the heat and pour the butter into a heatproof bowl, scraping in every browned speck. Leave it to cool for ten minutes. It should be warm and still liquid when it goes into the batter, not hot, or it will cook the egg whites.

Step two: mix the batter and let it rest

Whisk the egg whites briefly with a fork, just to break them up. Do not whip them to a foam; financiers get their texture from the almonds, and aerating the whites gives a lighter, cakier result that loses the characteristic density.

In a large bowl, combine the ground almonds, icing sugar, cornflour and salt. Pour in the egg whites and stir with a spatula until you have a smooth, thick paste. Add the vanilla or zest, then the warm brown butter in two additions, mixing until the batter is glossy and evenly coloured. It will look looser than you expect.

Now cover the bowl and rest the batter. One hour at room temperature is the minimum; overnight in the fridge is better. The almonds hydrate, the flour softens and the flavour deepens noticeably. Cold batter also gives a better rise in a hot oven.

Baking: heat, timing and the tell-tale signs

Heat the oven to 190°C (170°C fan, gas mark 5) and place a shelf in the middle. Grease your tin generously with soft butter, then dust with ground almonds and tap out the excess. If you are using a metal tin, put it in the freezer for ten minutes while the oven comes up to temperature; the contrast helps the edges set crisply.

Fill each mould about two-thirds full. Bake for twelve to fourteen minutes. The financiers are ready when the edges are dark golden and firm and the centre springs back when pressed lightly with a fingertip. If the centres still wobble, give them two more minutes, but no longer, or they will dry out.

Leave them in the tin for five minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack. They are at their best about an hour after baking, when the crust has crisped and the middle has settled.

Variations, troubleshooting and storage

Once you have the base recipe, it takes kindly to changes. Swap twenty grams of the ground almonds for finely chopped pistachios, add a teaspoon of espresso powder to the dry ingredients, or press a raspberry into the centre of each before baking. A few flakes of sea salt on top before they go in the oven is never a bad idea.

• Dry and crumbly? Usually overbaked. Reduce the time by two minutes and check early.
• Greasy or sunken? The butter was too hot when it went in, or the batter was not rested.
• No crisp edge? The tin was not greased well enough, or a silicone mould was used.

Stored in an airtight tin, they keep for three days, though they soften after the first. To bring them back, warm them in a 150°C oven for four minutes. They also freeze beautifully for up to two months; thaw at room temperature and refresh briefly before serving.