I love these little dense and moist cakes - which are derived from the French 'Financier'. In the summer I like to make ice-cream, and other desserts like fruit curd or custard - so I often have egg whites left over that I need to use up. I also have a lot of summer fruits at the moment from my CSA, but these cakes could be made with all kinds of toppings. I also like the quick and easy method to make these little cakes. <br /> <br />Financiers are traditionally baked in small rectangular pans, similar in shape to a gold bar (perhaps how they go their name), but Friands are generally baked in oval shaped pans - but you could also use muffin pans. I like to use the pans without paper liners, because I find the cakes brown up more, and get a nice golden crust. Typically there is a small amount of flour used in the cakes, but I've substituted Brown Rice Flour to make these Gluten Free. Of course, you could use All Purpose Flour if you like. <br /> <br />Another variation is to substitute the lemon juice and zest for spices (I used 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon of ground ginger and 1/2 teaspoon of ground nutmeg), and then substitute the blueberries for plum wedges to make Plum spice friands. <br /> <br />I adapted this recipe from some of my favorites from the Australian Women's Weekly Cafe Cakes.

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