Saturday 19 September 2009

St Clements Friands

In England, desserts are described as "St Clements" flavoured when it is orange & lemon, because of the old rhyme/song, which contains the line "Oranges and lemons say the bells of St Clements". I just thought I'd point that out in case people didn't know.

In our house, discovering that I have 6 eggwhites in the freezer is my cue to make friands. These delicious little buttery almond cakes are one of the few baked goods that Paul will happily eat, so I might as well indulge him.

They are normally made in little oval tins, where they rise to a very appetising slightly cracked peak, but I decided that this very obedient batter would be the last chance saloon for my silicon rose moulds. And indeed, they justified their continued existence in my home by turning out beautifully. Of course, now I am tempted to buy some red sanding sugar, or pink edible glitter.

St Clements Friands

75g plain flour
240g icing sugar
125g ground almonds
grated zest of 1 orange
grated zest of 1 lemon
6 eggwhites, beaten until frothy
180g butter, melted and slightly cooled
flesh of the orange, segmented and chopped

Preheat oven to 210C.

Sift the dry ingredients into a large bowl. Add the zests, then stir the eggwhites and butter into the mixtures. Gently fold through the chopped orange.

Spoon the mixture into greased tins, to fill about 2/3 of the way up.

Bake 15 minutes at 210C then reduce to 200C and bake another 10 minutes.

Allow to cool in the tin for a few minutes before turning them out onto a wire rack.

Makes 8-12, depending on tin size. Don't even think about frosting these - they are utterly perfect as they are.

18 comments:

maybelle's mom said...

I bet you could take frozen raspberries and confectionary sugar and make a glaze for them if you didn't want to buy the sugar.

Suelle said...

They look gorgeous - if it's the only thing you ever use the silicon mould for, it's still worth keeping it!

Alicia Foodycat said...

MM - but I want to buy edible glitter! Look at these pretties http://store.splatcooking.net/sprinkles-sugars-and-glitters/glitters-edable-art

Sue - Or all my friends good have baby girls and keep it in use.

Teresa Cordero Cordell said...

Foodycat, these look absolutely delightful. I love the flavor of orange in pastry, so this recipe is a keeper for me. Thanks. Have a great weekend.

Heather S-G said...

Well aren't those absolutely gorgeous!! Sanding sugar would be all twinkly and wonderful atop these :)

HH said...

Oh FC!! They are gorgeous!! The moulds worked beautifully!! I shall have to get some now!! The friands sound lovely too, yum!!

Karine said...

I love the flavors of your friands! Thanks for sharing :)

mscrankypants said...

They are exquisite.

Where's Fat Couriers when I need a delivery?

Alicia Foodycat said...

Teresa - citrus is so good in desserts, isn't it? Glad you liked it.

Girli - I really have to get some, don't I? Please say yes...

HH - I ordered mine from an Italian site. Which was a bit fraught because my Italian isn't very good.

Karine - thanks for visiting!

Cranky - they let us down every time.

Arlene Delloro said...

Thank you for the lesson on St. Clement's as a descriptor.
These look delicious; since I don't use the metric system much, I can't tell how fattening they are. Probably for the best!

kat said...

I've never had these. They look so cute from that rose mold

Alicia Foodycat said...

Arlene - much wiser not to know!

Kat - they are so delicious. Definitely should be known outside Australia!

Deb in Hawaii said...

These are such pretty little cakes. I love friands.

Unknown said...

I also have 6 egg whites sitting in the fridge and this looks like a great way to use them up. They sound like cakey macarons actually. We have similar desserts in Greece, lightly flavoured with orange blossom water.

Alicia Foodycat said...

Deb - I know what to bake if you ever find your way to my house!

Johanna - oh yes, a bit of orange flower water would have been perfect!

George Gaston said...

Foodycat... I have guests coming for the weekend and plan to make these incredibly delectable treats tomorrow morning to go with our morning cup. Can't wait!

Now I just have to dig deep into my brain cells and convert metric over to U.S. measurements…. “I can do this. I know I can!”

George Gaston said...

Rave reviews for these delectable cakes. Everyone loved them and wanted the recipe. Many thanks for posting this great recipe!

Oh! I found a cooking/measurement conversion site - I added it to my blog, so I will be able to use it on your next great recipe.

Alicia Foodycat said...

George I am so happy they worked out for you!

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