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!

A shot of paleo and gluten-free raspberry financiers cooling on a wire rack.

Sneak peek recipe from our cookbook Nom Nom Paleo: Let’s Go!

I’m so excited to share this fabulous dessert recipe from our latest cookbook, Nom Nom Paleo: Let’s Go! 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!

A smiling Asian woman is holding a green cookbook titled, "Nom Nom Paleo: Let's Go!"

If you haven’t bought our cookbook yet, what are you waiting for? Buy it now wherever books are sold!

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.

A hand is holding a liquid measuring cup with melted ghee inside.

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.

A hand is using a silicone brush to add ghee to grease a mini muffin tin.

Mix the dry ingredients

In a large bowl, whisk together the almond flour, maple sugar, cassava flour, and salt.

Adding a spoonful of salt to a glass bowl filled with the dry ingredients for paleo financiers

Add in the wet ingredients

Pour in lightly whisked egg whites and mix well with a spatula until well combined.

Pouring whisked egg whites into a mixing bowl with dry ingredients for paleo and gluten free financiers

Add the melted ghee and vanilla. Then, mix until the batter is uniform.

A red spatula is mixing the financiers batter in a glass mixing bowl.

Portion out the financiers

Use a small scooper to divide the batter into the muffin cups, about a tablespoon each.

Adding a small scoop of financiers batter to a greased mini muffin pan

Flatten the tops of the batter a bit. Then, gently press a raspberry, butt-end up, in the center of each blob of batter.

A hand is placing a raspberry into financier batter in a mini muffin pan

Bake the financiers

Pop the muffin tin into the hot oven.

A mini muffin pan of raspberry financiers is being put into a 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).

Removing a paleo raspberry financier from a muffin pan.

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.

A close up of paleo and gluten free raspberry financiers on a cooling rack

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.

More 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 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)

4.89 from 27 votes
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Cooling time30 minutes
Servings 24 cakes
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!

Ingredients 
 

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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

Excerpted from Nom Nom Paleo: Let’s Go!  © 2022 written & photographed by Michelle Tam & Henry Fong.  Reproduced by permission of Andrews McMeel Publishing. All rights reserved.
Storage tips:
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.

Nutrition

Calories: 72kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 5g | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 5g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Like this? Leave a comment below!

About Michelle Tam

Hello! My name is Michelle Tam, and I love to eat. I think about food all the time. It borders on obsession. I’ve always loved the sights and smells of the kitchen. My mother was (and is) an excellent cook, and as a kid, I was her little shadow as she prepared supper each night. From her, I gained a deep, abiding love for magically transforming pantry items into mouth-watering family meals.

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Recipe Rating




30 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    These are delicious! I made most with raspberries and some with chocolate/coconut. They were all tasty but the raspberry were my favorite! Great little sweet treat!

  2. 5 stars
    Made these today and they were incredible! I substituted cassava flour with coconut flour (its what I had on hand) I also used butter instead of ghee (prob made them a bit less healthy, lol), and coconut sugar, and blackberries instead of raspberries. I feel like this is a versatile recipe that you can’t really mess up!

  3. I made this today using blueberries from our bush since I don’t have raspberries handy in the house. They are absolutely delicious and are so beautiful.

  4. 5 stars
    These are great! My whole family loved them. I’m lazy about making recipes but these were super easy

  5. 5 stars
    This was super easy to make and was a hit with everyone! Swapped a few of the ingredients for what I had (tapioca starch for cassava flour and coconut sugar for maple sugar) and still came out delicious 😋

  6. I’m always looking for ways to use leftover egg whites, so I can’t wait to try these! I don’t have a mini muffin tin though – would these work spooning tablespoons of batter onto a cookie sheet?

    1. Hmmm, you’ll probably end up with a soft cookie if you place them on a cookie sheet. The beauty of using a mini muffin tin is that the edges get nice and browned.

  7. 5 stars
    I made the financiers yesterday in a test run for Thanksgiving. Took them to a friend’s for dinner. They were delicious! They literally disappeared. Great dessert. Next time I may top some with the chocolate ganache. Raspberries and chocolate, who can ask for anything more!

  8. 5 stars
    Appreciate all the make-ahead recipes. Great for holiday baking and party planning. Will attempt to make them with sugar substitute like monk fruit brown granules.