Green Tea Financiers
It was as if someone hit the switch one day and all of a sudden, a flash of electric-green took Paris by storm. You couldn’t walk past a pâtisserie without seeing something sweet and shockingly green standing out among the more traditional-looking pastries in the lavish window displays. Although the deluge of green tea desserts spread far and wide throughout the city, the best can be found at the shop of Sadaharu Aoki, a Japanese pâtissier who wows normally blasé Parisians with his classic French desserts made with a twist. He incorporates ingredients like black sesame seeds and sweet red beans into his pastries, creating a marriage of flavors that would’ve stunned Escoffier. I came up with my own recipe for these flavor-packed almond teacakes flecked with a bit of salt and sesame seeds because I was certain that the staff at his shop was tired of wiping my nose prints off the windows.
Recipe information
Yield
makes 24 bite-size cakes
Ingredients
Sesame-Salt Mixture
Financiers
Preparation
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Butter a 24-cup mini muffin tin or similar-size molds (see Tips).
Step 2
In a small bowl, mix together the 2 teaspoons sesame seeds and sea salt and sprinkle the muffin cups with two-thirds of the mixture.
Step 3
To make the financiers, in a food processor fitted with the metal blade or in a blender, pulverize the almonds, sugar, the 1 tablespoon white sesame seeds, the flour, green tea, baking powder, salt, and orange zest until the nuts are finely ground. Add the egg whites and butter and pulse until the mixture is smooth, stopping to scrape down the bowl or blender jar as needed to ensure the ingredients are thoroughly combined.
Step 4
Divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups or molds, then sprinkle the tops with the remaining sesame-salt mixture. Rap the muffin tin or molds on the counter once or twice to release any air pockets and level the batter. Bake just until the financiers feel firm when gently pressed with a finger, about 12 minutes.
Step 5
Let cool completely, then remove the financiers from the muffin cups or molds.
Storage
Step 6
The batter can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days before baking. Although financiers will keep for up to 1 week stored in a cookie tin, their crusts will soften, so I prefer to bake them on the day they’ll be served.
Variation
Step 7
For GREEN TEA MADELEINES, use 2 madeleine plaques (each with 12 shell-shaped molds) in place of the mini muffin tin and reduce the baking time to 11 minutes.
tips
Step 8
Green tea powder, or matcha, can usually be found in Asian markets, especially those that specialize in Japanese products. Freshly purchased matcha will yield the most vibrant-green financiers.
Step 9
I like the color contrast of the black and white sesame seeds. Black sesame seeds are available in Asian markets. If you can’t get them, use just white sesame seeds.
Step 10
Financiers are traditionally baked in small rectangular molds, but they’re highly adaptable to other baking pans. For this recipe, I use a mini muffin tin with cups that hold 1 1/2 tablespoons each. You can use any tiny pans or molds of a similar size made of metal or silicone; simply fill each mold three-quarters full and adjust the baking time accordingly.
