Orange Madeleines
Where to start?! My journey to make the perfect French Madeleines started about 2 months ago. I tried a couple of recipes and found one I loved - however, they kept coming out browner than I wanted. I tried lowering the temperature and cooking a little longer - STILL brown. After doing more research, I learned that it might actually be my madeleine pan. I was using this dark, non-stick pan from Williams-Sonoma. While the madeleines tasted perfectly fine, I wanted a nice golden color instead of the dark brown I kept getting, batch after batch.
Several recipes and user comments suggested a traditional, tinned, steel pan. I found and ordered this one from The Cook's Atelier. It worked like a dream, in combination with baking them in the top third of my oven.
I threw in some orange zest since I love almost anything with orange, but you can substitute with lemon zest or nothing at all - they'll still taste pretty amazing. Enjoy!
Ingredients: (Makes about 16 Madeleines)
- 2 large eggs at room temperature
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon table salt
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 10 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon honey
- Powdered sugar for dusting
- 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate (or dark chocolate) chips for dipping (optional)
Directions:
- Place the room temperature eggs in a bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the whisk attachment. (Tip: If your eggs are cold, submerge them in a bowl of warm water for 10 minutes or so) Whip on medium-high, adding the 1/2 cup of sugar a little at a time until incorporated.
- Once sugar is incorporated, turn the mixer on high and whisk until the eggs have double in volume, about 3-5 minutes.
- Remove bowl from stand mixer and stir in flour a little at a time, followed by the baking powder, salt and vanilla extract, using a flat, silicon spatula. Stir until well combined, being careful not to over-mix.
- Cover bowl with kitchen towel and allow to rest for 1 hour.
- Meanwhile, melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat.
- Once butter is melted, reserve 2 tablespoons for brushing madeleine pan. Add tablespoon of honey to butter and cook, stirring until smooth, about another minute.
- Remove from heat and allow to cool until your batter has finished resting, about one hour.
- Stir the butter and honey mixture in (re-warm butter to liquefy if necessary) and add to batter. Stir and fold in until well combined and allow to rest for another hour.
- Use a pastry brush to coat each indentation with remaining butter. Sprinkle flour over entire pan then turn upside down to remove excess flour (I did this over my sink).
- Using a tablespoon, fill each madeleine indentation with a tablespoon of batter. (I used a 1-inch diameter ice cream/cookie scoop)
- Bake at 400 F for 8-10 minutes golden brown.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool for 30 seconds.
- Turn pan upside down and tip out onto a cooling rack.
- Dust with powdered sugar and/or dip in chocolate.
Serve with espresso and try not to eat all of them!
To melt chocolate, heat in a microwave-safe bowl for 30 seconds and stir, heat in 10 second intervals, stirring in between until completely melted.
Photos by Jonathan Stiers ©2016 | Recipe adapted from Tasting Table
