Financier Nature
3 dozens mini cake (silicone mold)

120g egg whites
125g sugar
Zest of half a lemon
30g all purpose flour
80g almond meal
150g unsalted butter, browned and strained, cooled

Cut the butter into big chunks and cook in a small saucepan over medium heat until it starts to foam and dark particles start to form on the bottom of the pan. It will smell nutty. Remove and strain the butter and let it cool.

Whisk the first five ingredients together in a bowl. Slowly add the cooled brown butter and whisk until it is incorporated. Let the batter rest in the refrigerator overnight.

Preheat oven to 375°F/185°C. Pour batter into a piping bag and pipe into silicon molds until almost full, top with either raspberries or blueberries and bake for about 10 minutes or until golden. Time will vary depending on the size of the mold.

Lavender Lemonade

* 2 cups sugar
* 5 sprigs lavender (stems and buds), plus additional for garnish
* 2 cups fresh lemon juice (from about 10 lemons)
* 1/2 cup fresh lime juice (from about 4 limes)

Directions: In a large saucepan, bring one gallon of water and the sugar to a boil. Remove from heat; add 7 lavender sprigs and lemon and lime juices. Cool to room temperature, strain, and chill. Serve on ice, with additional lavender for garnish.

DIY Instruction & Download Labels

Kuri Matcha Choco Verrines – makes six 8oz glasses

¼ recipe Matcha Génoise, diced
¼ recipe Chocolate Valentino, diced
1 recipe Kuri (chestnut) Chantilly Cream
8 whole chestnuts in syrup (available at Japanese markets)
Some cocoa powder

Matcha Génoise
100g granulated sugar
70g all purpose flour
15g matcha
20g unsalted butter, melted and cooled
3 large eggs

Prep:
- Sift together flour and matcha, set aside.
- Preheat oven to 360°F/180°C.
- Lightly butter a 12 x 9in/28 x 24cm roll cake pan and line it with parchment paper.

Brings a small pot of water to boil, set aside. Melt the butter in a microwave, set aside to cool.

Using a handheld mixer, beat the eggs together in a heatproof bowl then add sugar and beat until blended. Place the bowl over the pot of boil water and continue to beat over medium speed until it is foamy and warm to the touch. Remove from heat, continue to beat in a circular motion until it doubles in volume and soft peaks form. Gradually add in the sifted matcha flour mix using a rubber spatula and fold gently until incorporated. Add in the melted butter, quickly fold until completely incorporated.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan, spread and smooth out the batter using the spatula. Tap the pan slightly on the counter to release any air bubbles, place into the preheated oven and bake for 15 minutes. Turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Slice it into small cubes.

Kuri (chestnut) Chantilly Cream
200ml heavy cream
3tbsp chestnut cream or crème de marrons
1tbsp caster sugar
¼ vanilla bean, split open and seeds scraped out

Bring 50ml heavy cream, vanilla pod & seeds, and the chestnut cream to just simmer over medium heat; stirring occasionally to prevent from burning. Remove from heat and continue to stir until the two are fully incorporated. Remove vanilla pod and place the saucepan in an ice water bath to cool.

Place the remaining cream, sugar in a bowl and whip until stiff peaks form. Fold in the cooled chestnut cream mixture and mix until fully incorporated. Pour the whipped cream into a piping bag w/o a tip, let chill in refrigerator.

Assemble:
Spoon some Chocolate Valentino cubes into the glasses (I use champagne flutes) to ¼ height of the glasses then spoon in matcha génoise cubes next to 2/4 full. Snip off a little corner of the piping bag, and pipe the cream to ¾ full, place some candied chestnuts on top then pipe more cream until almost to the top. Sprinkle some cocoa powder and top off with a piece of candied chestnut. Voilà!

Very cute button cookies from Bakerella. You may visit their blog for the DIY instruction : )

images via: button bouquet (off beat bride), button favor box (manolo brides), button favor bag (creature comforts), button boutonniere (orange beautiful)

Mango Gelée with Mango Cubes
~ adopted from Tony Wong’s dessert series

150 grams fresh mango, diced
100 grams mango purée
25 grams granulated sugar
2 grams sheet gelatine

Warm half of the mango purée with the sugar in a medium saucepan over low heat. In the meantime, soak the sheet gelatine in ice water. Remove saucepan from heat once sugar completely dissolved. Squeeze off excess water and add the softened gelatine to the warm mango purée. Add the rest of the purée and diced mangoes and mix well. Let it cool to room temperature then spoon the mixture on top of the chilled crème fraîch panna cotta to about 2/3 of the height of the glasses/cups. Let it set in the refrigerator, about 30 minutes to 1 hour.

Mango Mousse
~ adopted from Tony Wong’s dessert series

150 grams mango purée
15 grams granulated sugar
3½ grams sheet gelatine
120 grams heavy cream, whipped to soft peaks

Warm half of the mango purée with the sugar in a medium saucepan over low heat. In the meantime, soak the sheet gelatine in ice water. Remove saucepan from heat once sugar completely dissolved. Squeeze off excess water and add the softened gelatine to the warm purée and stir until completely dissolved. Add the rest of the purée; stir to combine then let it cool to room temperature.

In a mixing bowl, whisk the heavy cream until soft peaks then using a rubber spatula; fold the whipped cream into the purée base until fully incorporated (no more white streak). Pour this mousse on top of the mango gelée, smooth it out using the back of a spoon and let it set in the refrigerator, about 1 hour.

For garnish:
Mango Coulis
100 grams mango purée
20 grams granulated sugar

Warm half of the mango purée with the sugar in a medium saucepan over low heat. Remove saucepan from heat once sugar completely dissolved. Add the rest of the purée; stir to combine then let it cool to room temperature. Pour it on top of the mango mousse layers, swirl the cup until it covers the mousse completely. Chill in the refrigerator while you prepare to torch some mango cubes – take care not to burn them! If you like, you can also add some edible flakes to dress them up.

Check it out at www.parkerscrazycookies.com