Matcha Financier
A classic French petit four featuring matcha powder and sweet azuki beans.
Ingredients
egg whites
120g
dessert-grade matcha powder
1tsp
sweet red beans (azuki)
1½tbsp
Material A (fine granulated sugar and honey)
to taste
Material B (flour, to be mixed and sifted)
to taste
Material B (butter)
to taste
Instructions
1
Preliminary preparation
Combine Material B and sift it through a fine sieve. Coat the inside of the mold with a thin layer of butter (amount not included in the ingredients), dust some bread flour (high-gluten flour) through a sieve, and gently tap off any excess. Preheat the oven to 180°C before baking.
2
Combine the egg whites, fine sugar, and honey
Place the egg whites in a bowl, add Material A, and gently whisk together until the mixture becomes thick and sticky. Do not whip the eggs until foamy, so the cake bakes out with a flat surface.
3
Add the flour and mix until even
Sift Material B into the mixture from Step 1 and combine evenly with a whisk.
4
Heat to melt the butter
Place the butter in a small saucepan and heat over low flame until melted, turning a pale tea-brown color and releasing a fragrant aroma. Be careful not to let it burn.
5
Remove from the heat and let the color set
Once the mixture from Step 3 turns a pale tea-brown, remove from the heat and set the pan on a damp cloth to cool. After the steam has dissipated, the color will set.
6
Add the clarified butter
Slowly drizzle the clarified butter from Step 4 into the batter from Step 2 (as if drawing a thin thread) and stir together with a whisk.
7
Pour into the mold and release air bubbles
Pour half of the batter into the prepared mold, taking care not to fill more than 9/10 of the mold. Gently tap the mold a few times on a work surface lined with a damp cloth to release any trapped air.
8
Add the matcha and sweet red beans to the remaining half of the batter
Sift the matcha into the remaining half of the batter using a tea strainer and mix evenly with a whisk, then fold in the sweet red beans. Repeat Step 6: pour into the mold and release the air bubbles.
9
Bake in a 180°C oven for about 13 minutes
Place the two prepared molds (from Steps 6 and 7) into a preheated 180°C oven and bake for about 13 minutes, until evenly colored.
10
Remove from the mold and let cool
Once baked, remove the cakes from their molds while still warm and invert them onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
