Financier (pastry), the small french cakes . . .

Financier (pastry), the small french cakes . . .
A financier is a small French cake, often mistaken for a pastry. The financier is a light, moist teacake, similar to sponge cake, and usually contains almond flour, crushed or ground almonds,or almond flavoring.
The basis of the cake itself is beurre noisette
(brown butter), egg whites, powdered sugar and flour. Financiers are often baked in shaped molds.
Financiers are often served topped with whipped cream, berries, or other fruit, and served accompanied by ice cream or other frozen confections.
Financiers are a delectable French cake that were originally a favorite of the bankers in the Paris financial district, partly because they were baked in small tins the shape of a gold bar. It’s a small buttery, moist but chewy almond cake, often topped with fruit jam or dark chocolate squares.
There are a lot of recipes out there for making the financiers. For the most part they are pretty similar.
A bit of flour, ground almonds, brown butter and confectioners or regular sugar and egg whites. Although the proportions may vary a bit.
The French make incredible sweets. One popular French sweet is the financier, little tea-cakes so named because the 19th century pastry chef’s shop was in the financial district of Paris and the traditional cakes were shaped like gold bars.
However, financiers can be found in all kinds of shapes and flavors, including different spices, fruit or nuts.
They are crunchy on the outside and soft and buttery on the inside.