Very berry: Raspberry friands
Friands are individual oval-shaped almond cakes that are popular in Australia. They’re made with egg whites and icing sugar, which means they are super light, and they can be flavoured with any berries. You can buy special oval friand tins online or the cakes can be baked in a regular muffin tin. Whichever shape you’re using, only fill the holes about two-thirds with the batter before baking.
MAKES 12
PREPARE: 15 minutes
COOK: 30 minutes
100g unsalted butter, melted, plus extra for greasing the tin
75g plain flour, plus extra for dusting the tin
100g ground almonds
150g icing sugar, plus extra for dusting
¼ tsp fine sea salt
4 large egg whites
24 raspberries
- Preheat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Brush the holes of a friand or muffin tin with melted butter, then dust each with flour, shaking out any excess.
- Mix together the flour, ground almonds, icing sugar and salt in a bowl.
- Place the egg whites in a large mixing bowl and, using a balloon whisk or electric beaters, set to a low speed, whisk for 1-2 minutes until frothy and foamy. Sift the dry ingredients over the egg whites and fold in gently until just combined. Finally, pour in the melted butter and stir until just combined.
- Evenly spoon or pour the batter into the holes of the tin, filling them about two-thirds full. Place a couple of raspberries on top of each, then bake on the middle shelf of the oven for 25-30 minutes until golden.
- Cool in the tin for 5 minutes before lifting the friands out on to a wire rack to cool completely (you may need to use a knife to help ease them out). Dust with a little icing sugar before serving, or store at room temperature in an airtight container for 2-3 days.