My first madeleine!

Remember I mentioned how excited I was about my new madeleine pan yesterday? Well, I forgot to tell you that I had whipped up a batch of madeleine at midnight too.



OCT went back to work after dinner and I suddenly had a few hours to kill. After I made a batch of lemon poppy seed muffins for his lab meeting, I decided that I had to make madeleines. Nevermind that it was almost 10p.m and the batter had to be chilled for at least 3 hours, and the author strongly advises consuming the madeleine on the same day that it is baked. I am an impulsive baker, and I know when I want something done, I want it done now. Housework however, is exception, which I always find excuses to do it later.



I chose the traditional madeleine from Dorie Greenspan's Baking: From My Home to Yours to commemorate my foray in madeleine baking. It was a wise choice! Eventhough I had never tasted the real thing before, but I must say mine was pretty decent.



The adorable madeleines were tender, fluffy and light, with a hint of lemon flavor. They were really delicious while eaten warm. The originally plan was to let OCT brought some for the lab meeting. But the glutton promptly gobbled a few pieces when he learnt that it was best eaten fresh. There were very few left over after that, and we decided it would be best for us to keep them for our own consumptions.



I ate some this morning after the photo shoot, and I think they still taste reasonably good. Strictly speaking, I am still eating these madeleines on the day they are baked. So there should not be any surprise here. I wonder how they will taste tomorrow. For the interest of experiment, I keep some aside for tomorrow. If they get too dry by then, I can always soak them in my coffee. That's another way of eating madeleine according to Dorie Greenspan!


I think I may even bake a batch this Sunday for breakfast and tea!

Traditional Madeleines
adapted fromDorie Greenspan's Baking: From my home to yours

2/3 cup all purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
pinch of salt
1/2 cup sugar
grated zest of 1 lemon
2 large eggs. at room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
3/4 stick (6 tbsp)unsalted butter, melted and cooled
confectioner sugar, for dusting

Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.

working in a mixer bowl, rub the sugar and lemon zest together with your fingertips until the sugar is moist and fragrant. Add the eggs to the bowl. Working with the whisk attachment, beat the sugar and eggs together on medium high speed until pale, thick and light, 2 to 3 minutes. Beat in the vanilla. With a rubber spatula, very gently fold in the dry ingredients, followed by the melted butter. Press a piece of plastic wrap against the surface of the batter and refrigerate it for at least 3 hours, or for up to 2 days. (You can also spoon the batter into the greased and floured madeleine molds, cover and refrigerate, then bake the madeleines directly from the fridge.)

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 400F. Butter and flour the madeleine mold and place the pan on a baking sheet.

Spoon the batter into the molds, filling each one almost to the top. Don't worry about spreading the batter evenly, the oven's heat will take care of that. Bake the madeleines for 11-13 mins, or until they are golden and the tops spring back when touched. Remove the pan from the oven and release the madeleines from the mold by rapping the edge of the pan using your fingers or a butter knife. Transfer the madeleines to a rack to cool to just warm or to room temperature.

If you are making minis and have more batter, bake the next batch, make certain that you cool, then properly prepare the pan before baking.

Just before serving, dust the madeleines with confectioners' sugar.

makes 12 large or 36 mini madeleines

note: although the batter can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 2 days, the madeleines should be eaten soon after they are made. You can keep them overnight in a sealed container, but they are better on day1. If you must store them, wrap them airtight and freeze them; they will keep for 2 months.