Step 1

Place the dark chocolate pieces in a glass or metal bowl. In a small sauce pot, scald the cream until the edges of the pot are just starting to bubble. Do not boil! Pour over the chocolate and let sit for a moment, to melt the chocolate. Stir slowly to incorporate the cream and chocolate together. It should start to thicken up as the chocolate gets melted completely and incorporated into the cream. Set in the fridge to chill and thicken even more. You are aiming for the consistency of peanut butter. Meanwhile, make the financiers.

Step 2

Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. In a small pot, heat the ¾ cup of butter over medium-high heat, occasionally swirling the pan until the butter begins to bubble and turn brown. Set aside to cool.

Step 3

Using a pastry brush, spread the 3 tablespoons of melted butter into 30 cavities of the mini muffin tins. Set aside.

Step 4

Whisk together the hazelnut meal, powdered sugar, potato starch, tapioca starch and salt. Add the egg whites and whisk to combine. While whisking vigorously, pour the browned butter into the batter and blend to a uniform texture. Using a small food scoop, fill each of the prepared muffin cavities 2/3 full. Bake 4 minutes to begin to set the financiers.

Step 5

While the little cakes are baking, fill a small pastry bag with chilled chocolate ganache. Pull the cakes from the oven, squeeze a small dollop of ganache into the center of each cake, and return the cakes to the oven. Drop the oven temperature to 350 degrees and finish baking until lightly golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 8-10 minutes.

Step 6

Remove onto cooling racks and let cool at least 10 minutes before you eat them (so the ganache doesn’t burn your mouth!). Enjoy!