These adorably delicious raspberry financiers are mini almond flour cakes crowned with a tangy berry. They’re simple, elegant, and a crowd-pleasing paleo and gluten-free dessert!
Sneak peek recipe from our cookbook Nom Nom Paleo: Let’s Go!
I’m so excited to share this fabulous dessert recipe from our upcoming cookbook, Nom Nom Paleo: Let’s Go! (pub date January 18, 2022)! Like all of our recipe books, this one’s a labor of love that was developed, tested, photographed, and designed in our home by me and Henry. Because the bulk of this cookbook was written during the pandemic, its recipes truly reflect the dishes that bring me comfort and joy in challenging times.
Put another way: I made sure to include a bunch of paleo-friendly treats!
Many Nomsters have already made batch after batch of my Raspberry Financiers because they preordered our cookbook and got this recipe in the exclusive 75-page downloadable preview that I sent as a thank you gift.
If you haven’t preordered our cookbook yet, what are you waiting for? Buy it now wherever books are sold and then sign-up for the preorder thank you gifts by clicking here. That way, you can cook from Nom Nom Paleo: Let’s Go! right away!
What are French financiers?
These one-bite French-inspired almond flour mini-cakes are golden-brown on the outside and tender and moist on the inside. Traditionally, these mini pastries are made with browned butter (a.k.a beurre noisette), egg whites, and a nut flour (e.g. almond or hazelnut are popular choices). My financier recipe uses fresh raspberries, but you can use blueberries instead or even top them with chopped nuts or chocolate!
These bite-sized French cakes are called “financiers” ‘cause they’re normally baked in little rectangular molds to resemble gold bars. But let’s be honest: they taste great no matter what shape they take. They may look and taste fancy, but they’re a breeze to make!
Ingredients
- Finely ground blanched almond flour: This is what gives these tasty cakes their nutty aroma! No almond flour on hand? I haven’t tried a replacement, but I bet hazelnut or chestnut flour would work well.
- Maple sugar: To add sweetness, I like to use granulated maple sugar in place of the traditional powdered sugar. You can also use coconut sugar, but the financiers will come out a darker brown.
- Cassava flour: I use a smidge of cassava flour in place of the traditional all-purpose flour in the batter. Because the amount is so small, you can easily substitute arrowroot powder or tapioca powder with great success.
- Ghee: I use melted ghee in this recipe in place of melted butter or brown butter. My favorite brand of ghee is Ancient Organics because it smells nutty—like browned butter, but without the milk solids. You can also used melted refined coconut oil if you can’t tolerate ghee.
- Egg whites: Egg whites help bind the batter together and give the cakes structure. I don’t know of a good replacement but if you have success with a substitution, please share it in the comments below!
- Vanilla extract: Vanilla always tastes great in these cakes, but you can also experiment with other flavors, like almond extract.
- Diamond Crystal kosher salt: I always like to add a pinch of salt to balance out the sweetness in my desserts!
- Fresh raspberries: Pick smaller raspberries so they look pretty when baked. You can also use blueberries, chopped pistachios, or chocolate to top your financiers.
How to make paleo financiers
Melt the fat
Melt the ghee in a liquid measuring cup in the microwave or in a small saucepan over low heat. Cool it to room temperature.
Heat the oven and prepare the muffin tin
Heat the oven to 375°F degrees with the rack in the middle position. Lightly grease the mini muffin tin or place mini muffin liners in the pan.
Mix the dry ingredients
In a large bowl, whisk together the almond flour, maple sugar, cassava flour, and salt.
Add in the wet ingredients
Pour in lightly whisked egg whites and mix well with a spatula until well combined.
Add the melted ghee and vanilla. Then, mix until the batter is uniform.
Portion out the financiers
Use a small scooper to divide the batter into the muffin cups, about a tablespoon each.
Flatten the tops of the batter a bit. Then, gently press a raspberry, butt-end up, in the center of each blob of batter.
Bake the financiers
Pop the muffin tin into the hot oven.
Bake for 13 to 15 minutes or until the edges of the financiers are browned and the sides come away from the edges, rotating the muffin tin halfway through baking (~7 minute mark).
Cool the financiers
Take the financiers out of the oven and immediately transfer them to a wire rack. Cool the cakes on the wire rack for at least 30 minutes.
Gobble them up! If you love this recipe, buy a copy of our latest cookbook, Nom Nom Paleo: Let’s Go! today wherever books are sold! Don’t forget to grab the preorder bonuses after you buy it by clicking here.
How to store financiers
You can store these financiers in a sealed airtight container in the fridge for up to a week or frozen for up to 4 months. I like to eat one right out of the refrigerator, but you can also heat them up in the oven at 325°F for 3 to 5 minutes or until heated through.
Other paleo dessert recipes
Craving more paleo and grain-free desserts? Here are some of my faves:
Looking for more recipe ideas? Head on over to my Recipe Index. You’ll also find exclusive recipes on my iPhone and iPad app, and in my cookbooks, Nom Nom Paleo: Food for Humans (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2013), Ready or Not! (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2017), and Nom Nom Paleo: Let’s Go! (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2022).
PRINTER-FRIENDLY RECIPE CARD
Raspberry Financiers (Paleo, Gluten Free, Grain Free)
Ingredients
- 5 tablespoons ghee plus more to coat the muffin tin if not using liners
- 1 cup finely ground almond flour
- ½ cup maple sugar or coconut sugar
- 2 tablespoons cassava flour
- ¼ teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- 3 large egg whites whisked
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract or almond extract
- 24 small raspberries
Instructions
- Melt the ghee in the microwave or in a small saucepan over low heat. Transfer the ghee to a liquid measuring cup or small bowl and cool it to room temperature.
- Heat the oven to 375°F degrees with the rack in the middle position. Place muffin liners in a 24-cup mini-muffin tin or lightly grease the muffin pan.
- In a large bowl, combine the almond flour, maple sugar, cassava flour, and salt. Stir it all together.
- Pour in the egg whites and mix well with a spatula until well combined.
- Add the melted ghee and vanilla. Then, mix until the batter is uniform.
- Use a small scooper to divide the batter into the muffin cups, about a tablespoon each.
- Flatten the tops a bit. Then, gently press a raspberry, butt-end up, in the center of each blob of batter.
- Pop the muffin tin into the hot oven. Bake for 13 to 15 minutes or until the edges of the financiers are browned and the sides come away from the edges, rotating the muffin tin halfway through baking.
- Take the financiers out of the oven and immediately transfer them to a wire rack. Cool the cakes on the wire rack for at least 30 minutes. Gobble them up!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Question and idea. Question: any thoughts if I don’t have a muffin tin to make small muffins? I have a twelve.
Idea: chickpea “water” for egg whites. (Although that may not be Paleo.) Thanks! Can’t wait to try!!!
Maybe keep the volume small in the regular muffin tin and make two batches?
I have best luck replacing eggs with carbonated water in baked goods. I must give this a try! 1/4 cup carbonated water=1 large egg.
Looking forward to hearing how it turns out! My spouse and kid cannot have eggs so I’d love to hear how the aquafava works for ya!
Looking forward to hearing how it goes w the carbonate water!!!
Can I substitute ghee with something else? Can’t have dairy.
You can use refined coconut oil.
Hi,
I was thinking of using arrowroot powder instead of the cassava flour.
Is it the same amount in that case?
Thank you 😊
2 tablespoons should work!
Any substitute for Casava flour? Arrowroot starch? Tapioca starch?
Yep, as I state in the post, you can probably use arrowroot starch or tapioca in place of cassava flour.
Do you think I could substitute honey for the sugar?
I haven’t tried it! If you do, please let me know in the comments how they turn out.
Love these! Very easy. Hubby ate most of the raspberries so I made 1/2 with raspberries and 1/2 with blackberries. Worked great!
can the batter be made ahead of time?
I think it’s better to make the batter right before you bake it. If you want to prep ahead, just measure out everything in advance and you can whisk everything together in about 5 minutes.
Thank you for introducing me to an until now, uniknown but yummy-looking sweet treat.
These are wonderful little treats. The flavor is reminiscent of a Galette Des Rois (I used almond vs vanilla extract).