I like small cakes. Petite, barely sweet, fruit studded, kinda dense, moist cakes. I like them with coffee, in the afternoon, at night while reading....just one, maybe two. I like the fact that one is just for me. No messy, full pan of frosting crusted, someone took a corner bite off, sort of cake. We make those too, but they don't hold the same fascination and specialness of tiny cakes for me. I'm not talking cupcakes per se... in my world that means frosting. These may be more muffin-ish, but you can be the judge!
I have a huge bowl of plump raspberries fresh from my garden and a bowl full of red currants, yet from the Farmers Market. 20 minutes from start to finish and only 6 petite cakes...enough for after supper and breakfast!
This is a French recipe that I have seen in multiple books and online that I tweaked a bit, but the measurements are odd. Each recipe called for a different pan, madelaine, large cupcake tin, even mini muffin tin, so I think you have some creative freedom on the form. I used the large muffin tin. Because the cakes should be short, the batter seems sparse, but no worries, they turn out great! Any berries you have on hand would be delightful...blueberry season is right around the corner! I also think a glob of jam or lemon curd would work well and be fabulous!
I mixed all by hand since it's a small recipe, easy clean up! The other thing I tried was a gluten free version of cakes and while more dense (barely), they were great! Enjoy!
3/4 cup + 1 Tablespoon powdered sugar
1/2 cup almond flour (put almonds in food processor and whirl until flour like consistency)
3/8 cup all purpose flour (can be replaced with spelt flour or almond flour)
3 egg whites, lightly beaten with a fork
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
2 ounces of butter, melted
Handful of fresh berries, washed and dried
Powdered sugar for dusting
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a mixing bowl, blend dry ingredients. Add egg whites and butter and stir until completely mixed and smooth. Pour into buttered muffin tin or madelaine pan and place berries on top of batter. Bake 12-15 minutes or until golden brown.
