Every time I go back to my home province Tarlac in the Philippines and visit the next door province Pampanga I yearn for these tiny Petit Fortunes, bite-sized cashew macaroons. They are about an inch wide in diameter, so tiny thus the name ‘petit’ without the “e”.
When my husband went to high school in Pampanga, he remembers going Christmas caroling every December with his classmates. They would be welcomed at many Pampanga homes. He doesn’t remember how much they earned for caroling but he does remember the luscious mini treats they were given to bring home. He recalls stuffing his pockets with handfuls of the Petit Fortunes.
We cannot always go home to Pampanga for the holidays. But what I can do is bake and recreate the easy-to-do Petit Fortunes for my family here in America. It is so easy to mix up in a bowl and bake in tiny muffin cups. Once out of the oven, the rich buttery aroma is unmistakable. Whenever we catch a whiff of the familiar toasted cashew with a sweet butter fragrance, we know for sure the holidays are not far behind.
For the complete easy recipe of my Petit Fortunes, check out my article on The Happy Home Cook of Positively Filipino, the premiere online magazine celebrating Filipinos. Or find my recipe version below.
Petit Fortunes- Bite-sized Cashew Macaroons
Equipment
- Electric cake mixer
- Mini muffin tins (1-inch diameter)
Ingredients
- 1 cup crushed roasted cashew nuts (unsalted)
- 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 3 Tablespoons heavy cream
- 2 Tablespoons caramel dulce de leche bottled, store-bought
- 4, beaten egg yolks
- 4 egg whites
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar divided, use 1 Tablespoon for egg whites granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup melted unsalted butter
- 2 Tablespoons confectioners' sugar for sprinkling top
- 2 Tablespoons candied cherries for topping (optional); or use glazed dried fruits
- 45 pieces fluted paper cup liners 1-inch in diameter
Instructions
- Preheat the oven at 350 degrees. Prepare and line a mini muffin tin with small sized fluted paper cups about one-inch in diameter.
- To crush the whole cashews, place in a resealable plastic bag and pound with a mallet. Or for fast results, use a food chopper or processor. Set the cashews aside.
- In a medium mixing bowl, mix together the dry ingredients: Cashew, flour, sugar. Set aside.
- Using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites till stiff and no bubbles are showing. Add the 1 tablespoon of sugar.
- Separately, in the mixing bowl of the dry ingredients, add the following: Melted butter, cream, dulce de leche and egg yolks. Blend and incorporate everything well.
- Using a spatula, gradually fold by hand, the dry ingredients and yolks mixture into the egg whites. Blend well.
- Pour a tablespoon of the batter into tiny fluted paper cups lining small muffin tins. Batter should fill only ¾ of the cup.
- Bake at 350 F degrees for 15 minutes or till top is golden brown.
- When done, remove from oven. If desired, sprinkle the top of the petit fortunes with confectioner’s sugar using a fine sieve or colander. Optional – top each cup with 1 or 2 pieces of candied dried fruit. Allow the Petit Fortunes to cool, wrap in colored cellophane paper and pack in pretty baskets or decorative jars for gifts.
- Storage: You can make these ahead, cool them thoroughly, and then wrap in plastic resealable freezer bags or airtight plastic containers. They can be kept frozen for 2 to 3 weeks.
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Nutrition
Nutrition Notes: The nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking or baking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Did you love this recipe? I have more Philippine dessert recipes in my popular cookbook How to Cook Philippine Desserts, Cakes and Snacks.
If you need Filipino Instant Pot recipes, find more in my newest cookbook Instant Filipino Recipes: My Mother’s Traditional Philippine Cooking in A Multicooker Pot. Buy my cookbooks and books on Amazon.com sold worldwide in paperback and Kindle format.
Hello, Friends! Please DO NOT LIFT OR PLAGIARIZE my original recipe, stories, photos or videos. All the images and content on this blog are COPYRIGHT PROTECTED and owned by my media company Besa-Quirino LLC. This means BY LAW you are NOT allowed to copy, scrape, lift, frame, plagiarize or use my photos, essays, stories and recipe content on your websites, books, films, television shows, videos, without my permission. If you wish to republish this recipe or content on media outlets mentioned above, please ASK MY PERMISSION, or re-write it in your own words and link back to my blog AsianInAmericaMag.com to give proper attribution. It is the legal thing to do. Thank you. Email me at [email protected]
My Mom was from Pampanga and would occasionally make these “Petit Fortunes”. I never could figure out why she called them that as others referred to them as macaroons. I thought she perhaps mistook Petit Fortunes for Petit Four. So now I know that they are really called Petit Fortunes!
Thanks, Bebett. These Petit Fortunes are a family favorite. Hope you enjoy these like we do 🙂
my daughter has to make a food from the Philippines for her class, this is the recipe we want to try but how long do you cook them and what temp?
sorry I found it, cant wait to try them!
Thanks, Kellie. Enjoy and let me know how your daughter’s Petit Fortunes turned out 🙂
How can you make it crunchy? Thx
Hi Carol, these Petit Fortunes are not supposed to be crunchy. The baked Macaroons are chewy and moist. Hope that helps.