Pistachio and strawberry friands

Pistachio and strawberry friands are delicate pistachio cakes, usually made not with whole eggs but with egg whites alone. They require very little effort; the method is similar to making muffins, except that the egg whites are gently whisked (the cakes contain no baking powder). Full of flavour and absolutely delicious, these are lovely little pistachio cakes :).

Makes 12.

Ingredients for the pistachio and strawberry friands:

• 75 g plain flour
• 100 g ground pistachios
• 50 g ground almonds
• 140 g icing sugar
• a pinch of salt
• 6 egg whites (from large eggs)
• 100 g butter, melted and cooled
• 12 strawberries, hulled and halved

All the ingredients should be at room temperature.

In a bowl, mix together the sifted plain flour, ground pistachios, ground almonds, icing sugar and a pinch of salt. In a separate bowl, place the egg whites and gently whisk with an electric mixer (using the whisk attachment) until frothy and just beginning to become fluffy; do not whisk until stiff as you would for meringue. Add the dry ingredients from the previous bowl to the egg whites and gently fold together, just until combined. Add the melted butter and gently mix.

Grease a friand tin with butter and dust with plain flour, shaking off any excess. Fill the friand moulds to three-quarters full with the batter. Gently press half a strawberry into each friand.

Bake the pistachio and strawberry friands at 180°C for approximately 20–22 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Remove from the oven and leave to cool. You can dust with icing sugar before serving.

Enjoy!

Recipe source: Waitrose magazine.