Line 2 baking trays with edible rice
paper. Put butter, cream and sugar into a
saucepan. Stand over a low heat until butter
melts. Take pan off heat and stir in peel,
cherries, almonds, hazelnuts and lemon juice. Leave until completely cold. Spoon 6 mounds of mixture, well apart
as they spread, on to each prepared tray. Bake until pale gold, 10-12 minutes in
oven 375F, Gas 4. Lift off trays when lukewarm and trim
away excess rice paper round edges. Cool on a wire rack. Break up chocolate. Melt, with butter, in a basin over hot
water. Spread over rice paper sides of
Florentines, leave until half set then mark in wavy lines with a fork. When chocolates is firm, transfer to
an airtight container and store in the cool.
One of the most gracious of all
biscuits, very expensive to buy. Homemade, they become a realistic and
more economical proposition altogether.
