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These Matcha Financiers will make teatime even classier

These Matcha Financiers are almond cakes with the wonderful scent and flavour of matcha, topped with toasted sesame seeds to up the Asian factor. These will be a favourite at teatime!


Sometimes, friends are the antidote to stress and fatigue. Last weekend I went out with two of my close high school friends and I realized that it has been AGES since I’ve done any of that. I’ve been so drained from work lately (how many times have I mentioned this?) and this little meet-up proved to be something of an energy booster.

You guys have no idea how long it has been since I’ve met any of my friends face to face. Catching up with them made me forget completely about the time! Of course there was some ramen involved– and some Korean bingsu, with mozarella-topped tteokbokki on the side.

Right after coming home I began to imagine where and when my next reunion with a friend would be. I suddenly realized that I’ve been missing so many people. How did I stand not seeing them for so long?

Scenarios of locations in my head included my favourite dimsum place, or my new favourite sandwich shop, perhaps even an afternoon at TWG if any of my friends were feeling fancy (and were willing to shell out for high tea). That’s when I realized I had this recipe for Matcha Financiers sitting in my to-blog folder.

And then I thought, well maybe we don’t need to go to some fancy place to enjoy high tea. Maybe I can just try out some recipes and make a little menu for a makeshift fancy time with my friends one of these days. And for sure, these scrumptious Matcha Financiers from David Lebovitz will be a part of my spread!

These financiers are incredible. Moist with a solid hit of matcha, and so easy to make because you use the food processor to blitz everything together. It’s another absolute gem from David Lebovitz.

These feel like an Asian financier because of the matcha PLUS the sesame seeds. More clever is the addition of citrus zest to give it a nice refreshing scent. The original recipe uses orange zest but I went with lemon just because I’m a lemon fiend when it comes to baking. (And okay, I didn’t have oranges at the time.) 🙂

Funnily enough, I baked these on a new decorative baking pan that I got. In my excitement, I totally forgot that with financiers, it is the tops that round up nicely and are worth showing off. I had to serve them both with the decorative bottom and rounded top facing upwards.

In the future, I’d bake these in a madeleine pan, but a regular mini cupcake tin would work perfectly.

Matcha has become rather mainstream these days. I’m actually glad because they’ve become more accessible in baking supply shops. The two I’ve personally tried so far are from Top Chef in Quezon City, or Matcha King in Cebu. Both are really good! 🙂

Matcha Green Tea Financiers

Almond cakes with the wonderful scent and flavour of matcha, topped with toasted sesame seeds to up the Asian factor. These will be a favourite at teatime!

Makes 24 bite-sized cakes

Ingredients

For the Sesame-Salt Mixture

  • 2 teaspoons sesame seeds, black, white, or mixed is fine
  • 1/8 teaspoon flaky sea salt

For the Financiers

  • 2/3 cup sliced almonds
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 tablespoon white sesame seeds
  • 5 tablespoons all purpose flour
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons quality matcha green tea powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • Big pinch of salt
  • Grated zest of 1/2 orange or lemon
  • 1/2 cup egg whites, from about 4 large eggs
  • 6 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled slightly

Instructions

Make the Sesame-Salt Mixture

  • 1. Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Butter a 24-cup mini muffin tin.
  • 2. In a small bowl, mix together the 2 teaspoons sesame seeds and sea salt. Sprinkle 2/3 of the mixture into the prepared muffin tin, then set aside the last 1/3 portion for later.
  • 3. In a food processor, pulverise the almonds, sugar, the 1 tablespoon sesame seeds, flour, matcha powder, baking powder, salt, and citrus zest. Stop once the nuts are finely ground.
  • 4. Add in the egg whites and butter, then pulse until mixture is smooth. Scrape down the sides of the food processor bowl as necessary, to make sure all the ingredients are fully combined.
  • 5. Divide the batter evenly among the cups of the prepared muffin tin. Sprinkle with the reserved sesame-salt mixture. Rap the muffin tin on the countertop twice or thrice to release any air pockets in the batter and to level it.
  • 6. Bake in preheated oven for about 12 minutes, or just until the financiers feel firm when gently pressed with a finger. Let cool completely before removing from the tin.

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