Pear Friands

Friends are delicious little French cakes made with ground nuts. I mainly use almonds but hazelnuts also work well. You can also try different fruits, as always it is best to use seasonal varieties; for example summer berries or for christmas Cointreau soaked cranberries.

Australian will know just how nice these little cakes are to eat and they are very popular, being sold at most cafés and coffee shops. One of the best things about Friands is how amazingly easy they're to make.

Portions: 8 - 10 Friands

Preparation: 10 minutes

Cooking: 25-30 minutes

Ingredients

  • 175 melted butter
  • 6 egg whites, lightly beaten
  • 2 tsp vanilla essence
  • 250g icing sugar
  • 75g plain flour
  • 125g ground almonds
  • 1 pear, cored and finely sliced

Method

  1. Preheat an oven to 180c. Grease 8-10 capacity friand, cake or muffin tins.
  2. Place all the ingredients in a bowl except the pear. Mix together until well combined.
  3. Spoon the mixture into the prepared tins, filling them halfway up. Place the pear slices on top.
  4. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until cooked through.
  5. Remove from the oven and leave for 5 minutes before turning out on a cooling rack.
  6. Dust with icing sugar (optional) and serve.