Best Friands Recipes

BLUEBERRY & LEMON FRIANDS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to fan 180C/conventional 200C/gas 6. Generously butter six non-stick friand or muffin tins. Melt the butter and set aside to cool.
• Sift the icing sugar and flour into a bowl. Add the almonds and mix everything between your fingers.
• Whisk the egg whites in another bowl until they form a light, floppy foam. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients, tip in the egg whites and lemon rind, then lightly stir in the butter to form a soft batter.
• Divide the batter among the tins, a large serving spoon is perfect for this job. Sprinkle a handful of blueberries over each cake and bake for 15-20 minutes until just firm to the touch and golden brown.
• Cool in the tins for 5 minutes, then turn out and cool on a wire rack. To serve, dust lightly with icing sugar.

RASPBERRY AND PISTACHIO FRIANDS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C/160°C fan/gas 4. Melt the butter in a small pan, then remove from the heat and leave to cool a little. Grease eight holes of the friand (or muffin) tin with a little bit of butter.
• Blitz 85g (2/3 cup) of the pistachio nuts in a food processor with the confectioners' sugar until very finely chopped. Tip into a bowl with the ground almonds and flour and mix together. Roughly chop the remaining pistachio nuts and set aside.
• Froth the egg whites lightly with a fork, then pour into the nuts and flour mixture with the melted butter and mix well.
• Pour the mixture into the friand tin holes, add a few raspberries to each one, then scatter with the chopped pistachios. Bake for 20-25 minutes until the friands are risen and springy to the touch and a skewer inserted comes out clean.
• Serve warm or at room temperature. Dust with a little confectioners' sugar if you like. They should be light and chewy!
• Twist:
• Pecan Pie Friands: Make the friand recipe above, swapping pistachios for 100g (1 cup) pecans and the raspberries for 75g (2.6 oz) chewy toffee, chopped into small pieces. Sprinkle the toffee over the friand batter before baking.

FRIANDS

Steps:

• Pre-heat oven to 200deg.
• C.
• Lightly grease 12 friand moulds.
• If friand moulds are not available, muffin tins can be used.
• Place dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl and stir to combine.
• Add egg whites and butter and stir again until the mixture is smooth.
• Spoon evenly into friand moulds and bake in the oven for about 20 minutes or until the tops have started to crack and the edges are golden brown.
• Remove from oven and allow to rest in moulds for 5 minutes before turning out onto a wire cake rack to cool completely.
• Dust friands with icing sugar before serving.
• Variations: Before baking, friands can be topped with raspberries, rhubarb or blueberries.
• 2 tablespoons poppy seeds and the grated rind of 2 lemons, oranges or mandarins can be added to the dry ingredients.
• If using citrus in the mixture, a glaze of melted marmalade can be brushed on the cooked friands whilst they are cooling.
• Friands are best eaten on the day they are made.

BERRY FRIANDS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
• Melt the butter either in the microwave or in a saucepan over low heat on the stove. Set aside.
• Sift the icing sugar, flour and baking powder together into a large bowl. Add the almond meal and stir to combine.
• Add the egg whites and stir to combine.
• Add the butter and stir to combine. Don't worry if there are a few lumps, just make sure there aren't too many. Mixture should be medium thick.
• Lightly grease 10 muffin cups of about 1/2-cup capacity. If your tray has 12, grease 10 and fill the remaining cups with water.
• Spoon 2 tablespoons into each cup, then sprinkle 2-4 blueberries on top.
• Bake for 15-25 minutes, or until they spring back lightly when touched.

PISTACHIO-CHOCOLATE FRIANDS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 320 degrees F (160 degrees C). Grease 12 small cake moulds well with butter.
• Melt 10 tablespoons butter in a saucepan until it becomes golden over medium-low heat. Remove from heat and let cool.
• Combine almond flour, all-purpose flour, confectioners' sugar, demerara sugar, cocoa powder, and baking powder in a bowl; stir together until well combined. Add unwhipped egg whites and mix until well combined. Add melted butter and pistachios. Pour batter into the prepared moulds.
• Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center of the friands comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes. Bon appetit!

CHOCOLATE HAZELNUT FRIANDS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 180C (160C fan forced).
• Lightly grease 9 x 1/2 cup friand pans.
• Sift flour, cocoa powder and icing sugar into a medium bowl and stir in hazelnut meal and chocolate, make a well at centre.
• Add butter and egg white to dry ingredients, mix until well combined.
• Pour mixture evenly into prepared pans.
• Bake for 20 minutes or until a skewer inserted at centre comes out clean.
• Cool in pans for 5 minutes, transfer to a wire rack to cool.
• Serve dusted with extra icing sugar.

LIME AND LEMON FRIANDS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°F. Brush twelve 1/3-cup muffin cups with 1 tablespoon melted butter. Place almonds and flour in processor and pulse until almonds are finely ground. Beat egg whites in large bowl until frothy. Sift 2 cups sugar over egg whites. Add ground almond mixture and remaining 13 tablespoons melted butter; fold just to blend. Divide batter among muffin cups. Sprinkle tops with lemon peel and lime peel.
• Bake cakes until golden and centers spring back when touched, about 20 minutes. Cool 5 minutes. Run thin knife around molds and invert cakes onto rack. DO AHEAD Can be made 8 hours ahead. Cool; cover and store at room temperature.
• Sprinkle tops of cakes with powdered sugar. Serve warm or at room temperature.

MINI CHOCOLATE FRIANDS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to moderate (180 degrees C/160 if fan forced). grease 2 x 12 hole mini muffin pans.
• Place egg whites in a medium bowl; whisk lightly with a fork until combined.
• Add butter, almond meal, sifted icing sugar and flour to bowl; using a wooden spoon, stir until just combined.
• Stir in the chocolate.
• Spoon tablespoons of mixture into pan holes.
• Bake friands for about 15 minutes or until lightly browned and cooked through, turn onto wire racks to cool and sprinkle with some extra icing sugar if dersired.

CHRISTMAS CRUMBLE FRIANDS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5. Make the crumble top first. Rub the butter and flour together until they look like rough breadcrumbs. Stir in the almonds, demerara sugar, cinnamon and a pinch of the cardamom, saving the rest for the friand batter.
• Melt the butter, then let it cool for 5 mins. Meanwhile, generously grease the wells of a 12-hole friand tin (we used a Master Class non-stick friand tin, or you can use a deep non-stick muffin tin). Sift the dry ingredients for the friands, including the remaining ground cardamom, into a large bowl. Also add the rougher bits of almond that collect in the sieve.
• Cut 12 thin half-moons from 1 apple, then peel and chop the rest of the fruit into small pieces. Put the egg whites in a separate bowl and whisk until thick, foamy and doubled in size, but not stiff.
• Using a spatula or large metal spoon,fold thewhitesintothedryingredients,thenfold in the melted butter until even, followed by the chopped apple. Divide the batter between the tin and top with the crumble, then poke in the apple slices. Bake for 25 mins or until golden and risen. I find it best to let the friands cool in the tin, then carefully ease them out with a palette knife. Best on the day they are made, but will keep in an airtight tin for 2 days, or freeze for 1 month.

COCONUT AND MANGO FRIANDS

Steps:

• Pre-heat the oven to 350°F
• Combine castor sugar, flour, almond meal and coconut in a large mixing bowl.
• Add the egg whites and stir well with a wooden spoon.
• Add the melted butter and stir well to combine all the ingredients.
• Spoon the mixture into silicone or greased mini loaf pans so that it reaches 3/4 of the way up the side.
• Press several pieces of mango into the cake mixture in each tin. Do the same with the dried cranberries.
• Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes or until the tops are golden. Test the cake by skewering a toothpick into the center. If it comes out clean the cake is ready.
• Remove cakes from the oven and cool in pans for about 4 minutes.
• Gently turn the cakes out of the tins and cool on a wire rack.
• Sprinkle with icing sugar just before serving.
• To store, keep friands in a air-tight container for up to a week.

PISTACHIO FRIANDS WITH CHOCOLATE ICE CREAM

Steps:

• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6 for the friands. Melt the butter in a small pan, then remove from the heat and leave to cool a little. Grease 8 holes of a friand (or muffin) tin with a little bit of the butter.
• Whizz 85g of the pistachios with the icing sugar until very finely chopped. Tip into a bowl with the ground almonds and flour. Roughly chop the remaining pistachios and set aside.
• Froth the egg whites with a fork, then pour into the ground nuts and flour mixture with the melted butter and mix well. Pour into the friand tins, then scatter with the chopped pistachios and bake for 15-20 mins until the friands are risen, springy to the touch and a skewer inserted comes out clean.
• Serve the friands warm, or at room temperature, with a scoop of chocolate ice cream, topped with a scattering of extra pistachios and a little chopped white chocolate, if you like. Delicious with a cup of coffee.

LIME AND ALMOND FRIANDS

Steps:

• Grease and flour a non-stick 12 hole friand tin or 12 medium muffin holes.
• Pre-heat oven to 375F (180C).
• Melt butter gently in the microwave oven.
• Place egg whites in a medium bowl and whisk lightly until just combined.
• Add melted butter, almond meal, powdered sugar and flour, then lime zest and juice, and whisk again until just combined.
• Divide mixture evenly among the prepared pans.
• Top each friand with an almond.
• Bake in the moderately hot oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until lightly browned- the friands should spring back when touched.
• Remove from oven and let sit in the pan for around 5 minutes, before turning out onto wire racks to cool, right way up.
• Serve warm or at room temperature, dusted with a little extra sifted powdered sugar, and a dollop of cream.

BROWN BUTTER & CHERRY FRIANDS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Butter some non-stick muffin tins (or friand moulds if you have them). Melt the butter gently in a pan. Pour off 155g to cool in a bowl. Take the remaining butter to browning stage by keeping it over the heat and swirling it until it starts to caramelise and smell nutty, then take it off the heat and allow it to cool.
• Whisk the egg whites until frothy (no need for stiffness). Sieve the flour, sugar and ground almonds into a bowl with a pinch of salt, then mix. Add the two melted butters, vanilla and egg whites, and beat lightly until you have a well-combined and smooth batter. Add in ¾ of the cherries, stir to combine, then pour into the tins. Top with the remaining cherries and bake for 25-30 mins until puffed and golden, and a skewer comes out clean.

LITTLE LIME FRIANDS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 200 degrees celsius.
• Grease small cupcake pan.
• Place egg whites in a medium bowl and whisk lightly until combined.
• Add melted butter, ground almond meal, sifted icing sugar and flour.
• Add finely grated lime rind and lime juice.
• Whisk mixture until just combined.
• Divide mixture among prepared pans.
• Top with one almond per cake.
• Bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to rest for 5 minutes.
• Turn cakes onto a wire rack to cool.
• When cool, dust with sifted icing sugar.
• Variations.
• Lemon rind and lemon juice.
• Alternatively,any citrus can be used. A glaze of melted marmalade can be brushed on cooked friands whilst cooling.
• Before baking, friands can be topped with rhubard, blueberries or raspberries.
• Don't be afraid to experiment!
• Friands are best eaten on the day they are made.

FRIANDS/ ALMOND CAKES

Steps:

• -Sift icing sugar and flour in bowl and dry ingredients then mix together -break eggs up slightly -add egg whites to dry ingredients -then fold in butter and lemon zest

HAZELNUT, ORANGE AND RASPBERRY MINI-CAKES OR FRIANDS

Steps:

• Pre-heat oven to 180ºC or 160°C if using a fan-forced oven.
• Sift the flour and icing sugar into amixing bowl. Then add the hazelnut meal and the orange rind. Mix.
• In a seperate bowl, whisk the egg until lightly frothy.
• Add the egg whites to the flour blend and stir to combine.
• Fold in the melted butter and raspberries and stir well to combine.
• Spoon mix into bakeware, filling each 2/3 full. Makes 12 friands.
• Bake for 20-25 minutes or until done. Mine usualy take 20 minutes using a fan-forced oven.
• Allow to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before removing to a cooling rack.
• Dust with more icing sugar to serve or serve with cream and berries.

FRIANDS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to Gas 5, 200-210C, 400-425 degrees F.
• Grease 12 muffin cups or friand pans.
• Combine ground almonds, sieved sugar and flour in medium bowl.
• Add egg whites and cooled melted butter and mix with wooden spoon.
• Pour or spoon mixture into prepared pans.
• Bake about 25 minutes, turning pan/s during cooking.
• Friands should spring back to the touch Variations: Before baking- Scatter sliced strawberries on top.
• Add juice and grated rind of lemon to batter, top with raspberries.
• Scatter sliced plums or nectarines or peaches on top and add a tsp of almond essence to batter.
• Any flavourings work plus adding some finely chopped chocolate, white or dark works well with raspberries.