Easy Lemon Raspberry Friands

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These Lemon Raspberry Friands are light little cakes made with ground almonds and a little gluten-free flour (although you can pretty much use any flour). Fruity, zesty and very quick and easy to make. They are perfect to serve with afternoon tea.

this recipe

What is a friand?

Friands are small cakes known for their slightly crisp exterior and tender, melt-in-your-mouth crumb. They are made of whipped egg whites, icing sugar and ground almonds which gives them a moist texture with a rich almond flavour. They can be made with or without flour and in this recipe we do use a small amount which helps lighten the friands. However the little flour used in this version means you can very easily use gluten-free flour without any discernible difference.

Watch this video to see how to make them

Difference between friands and financiers

Friands are very similar to the French financiers. Financiers hail from France and are so-called due to their rectangular shape which was thought to resemble gold ingots (although another story is that they originated in the financial district of Paris). They are made with sugar, ground almonds, a kiss of flour and foamy egg whites, giving a lovely light and moist sponge.

The friand is made in exactly the same way, although they come by way of Australia and New Zealand. The major difference is that they are baked in oval shaped tins (friand tins) rather than rectangles. There is also a bit of debate over whether friands should include flour or not. This recipe does here as I think the addition of flour lightens the cake a little which could otherwise be a little dense purely from the ground almonds.

Do you need a friand tin?

These small almond cakes are usually baked in a special friand pan, which is oval-shaped and can be made of metal or silicone. However, if you don't have a oval friand pan, you can bake friands in a regular 12 hole standard muffin tin just as well.

Why you’ll love these delicious cakes

• These Lemon Friands are so versatile as you can swap the fruity raspberries for any berry or fresh fruit. Blueberries work particularly well. 
• You can make these friands with gluten-free flour (no xanthan gum needed) or with plain all-purpose flour. 
• They are easy to make and quick to bake.

More friand recipes you’ll love! 

• Apple Friands with Ricotta
• Buckwheat Hazelnut and Blood Orange Friands
• Gooseberry Custard Friands

Ingredients needed

• Icing sugar. (also called powdered sugar or confectioner's sugar).
• Ground almonds. You can use homemade almond meal or shop bought ground almonds or almond flour.
• All-purpose gluten-free flour. You can use your favourite brand with or without xanthan gum. I like to use either Doves or my Homemade Gluten-Free Flour Blend. You can also use all-purpose plain flour if you don't need these friands to be gluten-free..
• Lemon zest. Make sure it is unwaxed and organic otherwise you need to scrub off the wax.
• Egg whites. This recipe uses 180g which is about the size of 6 medium sized egg whites. You can use fresh egg whites or from a carton. Save the egg yolks to make this delicious Homemade Custard.
• Butter. Unsalted butter is the best choice here. You can sub for melted coconut oil if you need your friands to be dairy-free.
• Vanilla extract. Use a good quality extract, I like Nilsen Massey.
• Salt. I like to use kosher salt in my baking as it has a round gentle flavour. Using salt in your baked goods lifts and sharpens all the other flavours.
• Raspberries. Use fresh not frozen. Frozen will impart too much liquid into the friands leading to soggy cakes.

Step-by-step instructions

For full recipe instructions go to the recipe card at the end of this post. 

1. Preheat  oven to 180°C (160°C fan, gas mark 4, or 350°F) and butter a 12-hole friand tin or muffin tin.
2. In a bowl, mix ground almonds, gluten-free flour, icing sugar, lemon zest and salt.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk egg whites until it reaches soft peaks.
4. Fold the whisked egg whites into the dry ingredients, followed by melted butter and vanilla extract.
5. Divide the batter between friand moulds or muffin holes (about ⅔ full) and place 2 raspberries on top of each friand.
6. Bake for 20 minutes until golden brown, then let cool in the tins for 10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.
7. Dust with icing sugar before serving.

Expert tips

• For best results, if you are grinding the almonds yourself, add a couple of tablespoons icing sugar to the food processor as this will create a finer grind without taking the almonds too far so they start producing oils.
• To fold in the egg whites, gently add a portion to the mixture and make vertical cutting motions with a metal spoon. Bring the spoon up and over the mixture, rotating the bowl all the time. Be gentle so that the egg whites don't lose all the air you have whipped in. Although it's natural that they will deflate in the rest of the mixture.
• Allow the butter to cool completely before adding to the rest of the friand mixture.
• Greasing the tin well to help prevent the friands from sticking and ensure they come out easily once baked.

FAQs

What are some good flavour combinations for friands?

You can take the basic recipe for these friands, omit the raspberries and use it to make all kinds of additional flavourings.

• Blueberry. Sprinkle 150g blueberries, divided over each Friand, before placing in the oven.
• Pistachio. Swap the ground almonds for ground pistachios.
• Chocolate Chip. Stir in 120g chocolate chips into the friand batter before pouring into the friand tin.
• Orange Almond Friands. Switch out the zested lemon rind for orange zest instead.
• White Chocolate Friands. Omit the lemon zest. Increase the vanilla extract to 1 teaspoon and stir in diced white chocolate to the friand batter.
• Brown butter. When you are melting the butter, I urge you to take its melting a little further so it turns to brown butter. This will give the gluten free friands an incredible flavour.

✨Have you tried these Lemon Raspberry Friands? Please leave a 5-star ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ rating on the recipe card and consider leaving a comment as well! I would love to hear about how your recipe turned out and your feedback also helps other readers✨

Easy Lemon Raspberry Friands

Georgina Hartley

These Lemon Raspberry Friands are light little cakes made with ground almonds and a little gluten-free flour (although you can pretty much use any flour).Fruity, zesty and very quick and easy to make. They are perfect to serve with afternoon tea.

5 from 3 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Course Cake

Cuisine Australian

Servings 12

Calories 297 kcal

Ingredients

 

MetricUS Customary

 

1x2x3x

• ▢ 200 g icing sugar
• ▢ 160 g ground almonds
• ▢ 100 g all-purpose gluten-free flour *see notes
• ▢ 1 lemon - zested
• ▢ ½ teaspoon salt
• ▢ 180 g egg whites - about 6 medium sized
• ▢ 200 g butter - melted and cooled
• ▢ ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• ▢ 24 raspberries

Instructions

 

• Pre-heat the oven to 180°C /160°C fan /gas mark 4 /350°F.
• Grease a 12-hole friand tin or muffin tin.
• Combine the ground almonds, gluten-free flour, icing sugar, lemon zest and salt in a large mixing bowl.
• In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites with an electric whisk for about 1 minute until they become white, light, and just at the soft peak stage (or you can whisk for a couple of minutes by hand).
• Gently fold the whisked egg whites into the almond mixture, followed by the melted butter and vanilla extract.
• Divide the batter evenly between the friand moulds or muffin holes, filling them about ⅔ full. Then place 2 raspberries on top of each friand.
• Bake in the pre-heated oven for 20 minutes, then remove from the oven.
• Let them cool in the tins for 10 minutes, and then transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling.
• Before serving, dust the friands with icing sugar.

Video

Notes

Expert tips

• For best results, if you are grinding the almonds yourself, add a couple of tablespoons icing sugar to the food processor as this will create a finer grind without taking the almonds too far so they start producing oils.
• Allow the butter to cool completely before adding to the rest of the friand mixture.
• Greasing the tin well to help prevent the friands from sticking and ensure they come out easily once baked.

Ingredient substitutions

• Flour. You can use any brand of all-purpose gluten-free flour or regular all-purpose flour.
• Eggs. The eggs used in this recipe are medium size, 60g with shell and 50g without shell. If you can't get hold of medium eggs I suggest you weigh the amount.
  I don’t recommend using frozen raspberries for this recipe.

How to store

The friands can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

How to freeze

Cool the friands completely then freeze in an airtight container. You can layer them with parchment paper in between each layer. They will freeze well for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature for about 4-6 hours before serving.

US customary measurements

These US measurements for the ingredients provided are based on a conversion calculator. This recipe was tested with metric measurements and I recommend using a digital scale to weigh ingredients for the most accurate results. READ MORE >>> Why you should always weigh vs measuring with cups 

Nutrition information

Please note that the nutrition information provided below is an estimate based on an online nutrition calculator. It will vary based on the specific ingredients you use. Please seek a professional nutritionist’s advice for further clarification.

The nutrition serving is for 1 friand.

Nutrition

Calories: 297kcalCarbohydrates: 26gProtein: 6gFat: 20gSaturated Fat: 9gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 36mgSodium: 230mgPotassium: 48mgFiber: 3gSugar: 18gVitamin A: 420IUVitamin C: 6mgCalcium: 42mgIron: 1mg

Have you tried this recipe?Head to the comment section and let me know what you think!