Learn how to make pistachio financiers with this easy recipe. These little pistachio cakes are made with ground pistachio and brown butter, which create a sweet, nutty tea cake!
In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat and continue cooking it until it turns light brown in color. Remove the pan from the heat and transfer the brown butter to a small bowl to cool down sllightly. Set aside.
Using a mini food processor or coffee grinder, grind the pistachios to form pistachio flour.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the ground pistachios, sugar, flour. Set aside.
In a separate bowl, combine the egg whites and salt. Whisk them until they are very frothy and foamy.
Pour the frothy egg whites over the dry ingredients. Whisk vigorously to mix everything together, then add the cooled brown butter and whisk the batter more to completely incorporate it.
Wrap the bowl with plastic wrap and chill the batter for at least 1 hour until firm.
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175 °C). Butter and flour a 24-cup mini muffin pan.
Divide the batter among the 24 wells of the prepared pan. Sprinkle the tops of the financiers with chopped slivered pistachios to garnish them.
Bake the pistachio financiers until the edges are golden brown and the centres are set. This takes about 16 minutes. Use a cake tester inserted into the middle of one of them to verify they are baked through. Let cool slightly before using a mini offset spatula to unmould them.
Notes
For a gluten-free option, replace the all-purpose flour with white rice flour or even millet or sorghum flour. I've also tested chestnut flour with great success!
For greener pistachio financiers, you may peel the skins off of the pistachio nuts before grinding them to make these. Some people may also add a few drops of food colouring to the batter. I find this makes the cakes look fake.
Store these in an airtight container at room temperature. For longer storage, freeze them. Defrost overnight in the fridge or on the counter for an hour before serving.