This dessert is special to me in a sense, but only because of its name. Madeleines are delicious when you’re having a nice cup of coffee, sitting outside enjoying the day. Part of me was challenged from within to make these again because my last attempt, about 5 years ago, did not turn out well. First off, it was a different recipe and I must say I do like this new one much better. After I made them the first time, I instantly tried one after it came out of the oven, like any normal person would do. They tasted odd…just plain not very good. I ended up throwing out one of the pans of the Madeleines and continued baking the rest of the batter hoping it would be different. I put them in a container and then had one the next day…delicious! I dont know what it was but fresh out of the oven they really were not very good.

This time was very different. I had one right out of the oven and it was just as delicious as it was the next morning dipped in my coffee. Madeleines are little French tea cakes that have a sponge cake feel to them. They really do taste best when you are drinking tea or coffee, but of course these could be enjoyed on their own.

The pans buttered with sugar turned out with a little bit of a crystalized shell which was nice to compliment the soft spongey inside. I think for future Madeleine baking I will do sugar instead of flour. The sugar also ads another level of flavor, where as the ones coated with flour had a bit of a dull taste when you first bit into it.

My oven has been having some issues with unevenly heating so I tried using the Convection setting, but I really dont think that did anything for me. If anything it just made them cook faster but they still came out unevenly golden. Anyone have any suggestions?

This is definitely something I would make a batch of and then put into little bags and give to my friends and co workers. Even if you’re not a big dessert person, its just something to munch on with your coffee in the morning. If you don’t have a Madeleine pan, which most people probably don’t, you can pick one up from any cooking store or Bed Bath and Beyond (bring a 20% off coupon and its only about $10).

On a completely different note, I love listening to music while I bake. If you walk in on me in the kitchen, 9 times out of 10 I will be dancing around while whisking and singing to myself. I thought I would share what I was listening to while I baked these Madeleines. On this bake day, I was listening to Little Dragon’s new album Ritual Union. Check it out here and let me know what you think!

Madeleines

From Bon Appetit Magazine

Printer Friendly Version

Ingredients:

2 large eggs

2/3 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon grated lemon peel

Pinch of salt

1 cup all purpose flour

10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, melted, cooled slightly

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375°F. Generously butter and flour pan for large madeleines (about 3 x 1 1/4 inches).* Using electric mixer, beat eggs and 2/3 cup sugar in large bowl just to blend. Beat in vanilla, lemon peel and salt. Add flour; beat just until blended. Gradually add cooled melted butter in steady stream, beating just until blended.

Spoon 1 tablespoon batter into each indentation in pan. Bake until puffed and brown, about 16 minutes. Cool 5 minutes. Gently remove from pan. Repeat process, buttering and flouring pan before each batch.

Dust cookies with powdered sugar.

Enjoy!

Madeline