Raspberry-Almond Financiers

Financiers are little French cakes traditionally baked in rectangular molds to resemble gold bars.  You'd think that since my day job is in corporate finance I would have been motivated to make them before, but I never did.  That all changed when I finally bought a financier mold.  Had I known what I was missing it wouldn't have taken me so long.

These financiers are really, really good; I ate two of them minutes after they came out of the oven.  What sets them apart is the beurre noisette (a fancy name for brown butter) that's used in the batter.  I also made them gluten-free by substituting C4C flour in place of all-purpose flour - I swear you can't even tell the difference.  

Before they went in the oven I sprinkled a few fresh raspberries and sliced blanched almonds on top; such a delicious flavor combination.  The burst of tart, juicy fruit and toasted nuts were fantastic in the moist, buttery cake.

TWD Chocolate Truffle Tartlets

For any chocoholics in your life this week's TWD recipe, Chocolate Truffle Tartlets, would be right up their alley.   How could anyone resist what is essentially a dense brownie, chock full of milk and white chocolate chunks and crunchy amaretti cookies, baked in a chocolate tart shell?  I say proceed with caution - it may be death by chocolate to the extreme!

This week's hosts are A Whisk and a Spoon, Spike Bakes, Good Eats N' Sweet Treats and Cookbook Habit.  You can find the recipe on any of their blogs.

[Note: I used a food processor to make the chocolate dough and had to add an additional tablespoon of water so that it would come together.  Also, the recipe yields more than the stated six 4-inch tartlets - probably more like eight or nine.]

Macaron Favors and a Packaging Obsession

If there's one thing I love as much as baking it's packaging.   In fact, it may border on an obsession.  But I figure if you've spent all this time making your delicious treats don't they deserve a beautiful presentation? There used to be a shop in San Francisco that sold a pair of macarons in the most adorable white gift box.  I was instantly smitten and wanted to replicate it at home.

Don't you think these boxes make the perfect party favor?  You can tailor the cutout to whatever occasion you're celebrating: weddings, showers (bridal or baby), birthdays, holidays, etc.  Your guests will definitely feel special when they take one of these favors home.

Valentine Sugar Cookies

Sending hugs and kisses to all my loved ones near and far.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!