Madeleines are just one of a number of new snacks we’ve tried out with the boys over the summer. They’re sweet, but not crazy sweet. And the batter rests overnight so it’s a great snack to prep in advance (you can keep the batter on hand for several days). What is a madeleine? It is a small, delicate sponge cake known for its shell-shaped mold. It is light, airy and typically has a slight lemon flavour. When baked properly, it should have a pronounced bump. Our favourite one comes from Roselle, friends of ours who own an amazing bakery in Downtown Toronto. Unfortunately, it is too far of a drive for us on a regular basis. They also posted the recipe online. So why did I spend all this time trying to make our own when theirs works? I guess I just can’t help myself! lol

Megan and I like madeleines. I think it’s one of those small pastry items that I can eat a few of in one sitting. Last summer was the summer of Basque cheesecake, this summer was madeleines and Japanese cheesecake. There are so many variations and possible tweaks, like method of mixing (whisk vs. spatula), weight of the batter in the mould, temperature and time of the bake, 375F, 390F, 400F, 425F. 25g, 30g, scoop vs. piped, … There was so much testing that Nicholas still asks for these on a regular basis. In the end, this recipe led to the best results for us. Something so simple but done right is very rewarding. I hope you enjoy these as much as I do!

Yield 15 (25g each)

Ingredients:

• 100g butter
• 1/2 lemon zest
• 2 eggs, room temperature
• 90g white sugar
• 10g brown sugar
• 100g cake flour
• 15g honey
• 10g lemon juice
• 1g salt (1/4 tsp)
• 3.33g baking powder

Tools Required:

• small pot (2L), mixing bowls
• whisk/ spatula
• madeleine pan

Instructions:

1. In a sauce pan or a bowl over a double boiler, melt your butter with lemon zest and set it aside to cool.
2. In a stainless steel bowl, sift flour, baking powder and salt together.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk in eggs, both sugars, honey, and lemon juice.
4. Pour flour mixture into egg mixture and gently incorporate the flour using a whisk.
5. Pour in butter and whisk until the mixture is homogeneous.
6. Place batter in the fridge for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight, the mixture can be kept in the fridge for a few days or in the freezer for a few weeks (just make sure it’s nicely wrapped).
7. Bake at 425°F for 12-13 minutes (for a traditional oven), 375°F for 10-12 minutes (convection) or 340°F with 4 fans for 9 minutes (Rationale).
8. Once baked, remove from pan and brush the bump side (I have made my mistakes too many times brushing the other side) with glaze and they are ready to serve. They can be frozen if wrapped properly, but are best enjoyed fresh.

Variations:

• Vanilla, lemon zest and a lemon glaze is pretty traditional
• You can easily substitute the lemon flavour for different extracts and teas
• With newer versions of madeleine, people like to put chocolate in the moulds and push the finished product in for an added extra flavour, crunch/snap and mouthfeel.
• I have some thoughts on doing a mini pastry that looks like a madeleine, more to come…

FAQs, Tips, Troubleshooting:

• Make sure that all ingredients are around the same temperature for a better emulsion that leads to a more stable batter and a better crumb.
• Folding the dry ingredients vs. mixing: We used a whisk since it’s a wet batter, but to avoid overmixing, just whisk until it comes together.
• Let the batter rest in the fridge for a minimum of 4 hours allowing for the moisture to distribute, butter to solidify again/ firm up and the gluten to relax (this is important to get a good bump).
• Non-stick madeleine pans vs stainless steel. We found based on the material, the baking temperatures and times are different. For non-stick, we typically bake them at a lower temperature and for less time. Our non-stick pans also gave us less definition for the shell shape.
• For a consistent madeleine, we piped the batter over a scale, with each mould filled with a weight of 25g. We tried a range of 25-30g and 25 works (of course, this may vary depending on the size of the cavities in the pan). Using a purple scoop also works pretty well.
• For the bump (cold pan, hot oven) – freeze moulds for a big temperature contrast when it gets into the oven. Make sure your prep your pans ahead of time. If you are using non-stick, just a oil spray is sufficient, but if you are using stainless steel, then oil and a light dusting of flour
• From my experience with our specific recipe, creaming the butter and beating the egg mixture to a ribbon stage yields a softer cake crumb but does not help with the bump.