Raspberry friands
A friand is traditionally made only with egg whites, but I can never get my act together to use the egg yolks later and they end up staring at me accusingly from the fridge every time I open it. I developed this waste-free recipe using whole eggs and it’s so much easier, too – no whisking required.
The other advantage of using the yolks as well is that I've been able to eliminate the enormous quantity of butter which would be needed to keep them moist, though you won't believe they're butter-free when you taste them. Thank you, almond meal.
Nine times out of ten, I have to use frozen raspberries when I make these as the season for fresh raspberries where I live is, sadly, very short. It makes little difference. If you would like them to be more intensely flavoured, add a handful of quartered raspberries to the batter before spooning into the tin.
Raspberry friands
Makes 12.
125g (5 oz) unsalted butter
50g (2 oz) plain flour, sifted
125g (5 oz) icing sugar, sifted
100g (4 oz) almond meal (ground almonds)
2 eggs
12 whole raspberries
butter and flour, to prepare pans
Set your oven to 180°C (350°F).
Prepare 12 mini muffin pans by melting a teaspoon of butter in the microwave and brushing it into each tin. Dust with flour and tap out the excess.
Melt the larger amount of butter in the microwave and allow it to cool a little so it won’t cook the eggs when it meets them.
Sift icing sugar and flour into a bowl. Add almond meal.
Make a well in the centre. Add eggs and butter. Stir until well combined.
Divide among the prepared pans. Dot the raspberries among the centres.
Bake for 16 minutes or until light golden. Set aside in the pans for 5 minutes to cool slightly before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.
