Petits fours are dainty little finger cakes. Covered in fondant icing, they are the perfect canvas for the artist who has all the time in the world to make them beautiful with little silver balls or piped icing. If you are not so inclined, just dunk them head-first in the fondant and enjoy. Petits fours are lovely to serve with tea or on a buffet.
The cake itself is like a wedding cake with a very fine texture and crumb. It’s texture and flavor comes from thrice sifted ingredients, egg whites, lemon zest, and almond extract. Baked in one pan, the cake is sliced into little squares, rectangles or cut out with cookie cutters. Liquid fondant icing, a sugar and water paste, covers the cake pieces. When the fondant cools, it hardens into a sugary shell.
The cake is fairly simple to make. The fondant isn’t hard either. It is the merging of the two that is tricky. I tried spooning the fondant over the cakes but wound up with lumps and naked spots. It was easier to turn them upside-down and dunk them. Dunking didn’t cover the whole cake, but the tops looked good.
I debated whether or not my petits fours foray was worthy of sharing. Really, what should be dainty and elegant turned out looking like rectangular pieces of sliced watermelon. Ultimately, it was the recipe that won out. The cakes are spot on delicious. If you are able, make them beautiful. Really, go to town. If you are not, just dunk them as I did and feel good about it. They taste exquisite.
Note: The fondant can be made up to 1 week ahead and refrigerated.
This is what proper petits fours look like. In Houston, Moeller’s Bakery is the go-to spot for petits fours. Special order them for baby or wedding showers or just wander in and buy a few from the case. FYI: petits fours are not available until the afternoons because they take longer to make than the other cakes…now I know why.
For the fondant:
2 cups sugar
1 cup water
2 Tbsp corn syrup
1 tsp lemon extract
food coloring, enough to reach your desired shade
For the cake: Lady Cake from The Joy of Cooking
1 3/4 cup sifted cake flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup butter, at room temperature
1 cup sifted sugar
1/2 cup whole milk
1 tsp almond extract
zest of 1 lemon
3 egg whites, whipped until stiff but not dry
1. BEGIN THE FONDANT: FIRST BOIL THE SUGAR It is best to make this at least a day ahead. In a saucepan, combine sugar and water. Stir over MEDIUM heat until the sugar dissolves. Stir in the corn syrup, and then raise the heat to HIGH. Bring the mixture to a boil. Using a candy thermometer as your guide, boil the mixture until it reaches 235-240 degrees, also known as the soft-ball stage. Remove from heat and let it sit 2-3 minutes.
2. KNEAD THE FONDANT UNTIL ALMOST SOLID: If you do not have a mixer with a dough hook, you are going to have to be extremely careful this step. You will be working with liquid sugar and it can stick to your skin and burn it. Pour the hot sugar onto a marble slab that has been sprinkled with water. Using a scraper, work the syrup by flipping the edges into the center. Continue until the syrup is almost solid. This is easier with a mixer. All you have to do is pour the syrup into your mixer and attach the dough hook. On LOW speed, work the syrup until it is almost solid. At this point, add the lemon extract and food coloring. Work the fondant until it is evenly mixed. Pack fondant into an air-tight container and refrigerate until ready to use.
3. MAKE THE CAKE: SIFT, SIFT, SIFT The fine texture of this cake comes from sifting the dry ingredients three times. Take your already-sifted cake flour and sift it again with the baking powder and salt. Do it again. Now your flour has been thrice sifted.
4. CREAM BUTTER AND SUGAR: In a large bowl, cream the butter until soft. Add the sifted sugar and beat until very light.
5. ADD FLOUR AND MILK TO BUTTER MIXTURE: In 3 parts, add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, alternating with the milk. (Mix 1/3 of flour into the butter. When incorporated, mix 1/3 of the milk. When incorporated, mix 1/3 flour, etc., etc.)
6. ADD WHIPPED EGG WHITES AND BAKE: Gently fold the egg whites into the batter. Pour cake batter into a greased 9-inch square pan and bake until the top is golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 30-35 minutes. Let the cake cool for 5 minutes and then turn it out onto a wire rack to cool it completely.
7. PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER: HOW IS YOUR HAND-EYE COORDINATION? When the cake has cooled completely, cut it into small squares, rectangles, and/or circles using cookie cutters if necessary. Now, you will warm the fondant back into liquid and then pour it over the cakes. Place the solid fondant in a heat-proof bowl. Place the heat-proof bowl over a large saucepan of boiling water. As the fondant melts, stir. If it looks to thick when melted, add warm water until you achieve a good consistency. One at a time, place a cake on a slotted spatula and then hold the spatula over the bowl of warm fondant. Using a spoon, pour the fondant over each individual cake until the top and sides are covered. This is the point where I got frustrated and ended up dipping the little cakes into the bowl of fondant. The sides didn’t get covered, but the tops looked great. Let the cakes dry and then decorate to your heart’s content….or not.
Peace and love from my kitchen to yours,
Waverly
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