Here is a little hors 'd oeuvre that I did a few weeks back. Financiers are traditionally a brown butter almond cake served at the end of the meal. I wanted to make it savory and serve it at the beginning of the meal. I wanted something that could be easily put together for a party I was doing. If you have the components ready ahead of time this little sweet and savory bite is a great starter to the evening. I combined miso and and a little almond butter to give the batter the saltiness. I also add a touch of sriracha just for a very subtle spice. I topped the little cake off with a date-black garlic puree and a spiced candied kumquat. This little one bite morsel is really a surprise, not what you would expect. But well worth the effort, had lots of great feedback from this appetizer. Here is the recipe, I hope you enjoy it
Financier
4 oz of sugar
6 oz of blond miso
5 oz of almond butter
6 oz of browned butter (beurre noisette)
3 eggs room temp
1 tbsp of mirin
1 1/2 tsp of sriracha
3 oz of bread flour
1/4 tsp of baking powder
Date-Black Garlic Puree
10 medjool dates seeds removed
1 whole black garlic bulb cloves removed
1 cup of water
1 tsp of ginger juice
salt to taste
Spiced candied kumquats
1 cup of kumquats sliced
1/2 cup of rice wine vinegar
1/3 cup of sugar
1 tsp of aji roja puree
snipped chives for garnish
For the Black garlic date puree,
Place black garlic cloves in a pot with water. Bring to a boil and then turn down to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes. Pour into a blender and add the rest of the ingredients. Puree until smooth and fairly thick. Strain and place in a plastic squirt bottle.
For the Spiced Candied Kumquat,
Add all the ingredients to a small pot and bring to a boil. Turn down to a simmer and cook for 10-15 minutes until only 1/3 of the liquid is left. Turn off and let it cool.
For the Financier,
Preheat Oven to 375 degrees
In a mixing bowl add sugar, miso, almond butter, mirin, and browned butter. Mix well, then add sriracha and the eggs one at a time, mixing thoroughly. In a separate bowl mix flour and baking powder. Then add the four mixture to the batter. Mix until well incorporated. Then spray a mini muffin pan with non stick spray. With a small ice cream scoop, fill each empty space with a one scoop of batter. Then place in the oven and bake for 13-15 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean. Take out and allow to cool for 5 minutes.
To finish
Take out the financier and squirt with a little black garlic date sauce on top. Take one piece of spiced kumquat and place on top. Then finish with a chive stick. Serve and Enjoy!
