Mastering the Art of Madeleines: A Sweet Journey into French Baking

I am addicted to the Great British Baking Show which airs on Netflix.  The 15 seasons, now hosted by Prue Leith and Paul Hollywood (swoon~~ah those blue eyes!), is a must see. Each season brings the best home bakers from across the country vying for a chance to be named the winner. Since this show ignites the baking desire in me, I am inspired to share how to make these delicious tea cakes, known as lemon madeleines.

Have you Watched this show?

Amateur British bakers face off in a 10-week competition whipping up their own dishes hoping to be named the best in the U.K. The show is so informative-who knew the British had so many different cakes, breads, puddings, and pastries! Even though Madeleines are French in origin, it is the Great British Baking Show that encourages me to step out of my comfort zone and try new recipes.

What are Madeleines?

Madeleines are a very traditional French breakfast or tea cake.  Perfect madeleines should have a nice hump at the top, indicating a good rise and a lightness in texture. The thinner edges should be golden brown, caramelized and crunchy. According to this recipe, a madeleine pan is nice but not necessary. You can also use a miniature muffin pan. Personally, I like the shape of this tea cake and prefer to use the correct pan.

Ingredients and Recipe

This recipe for madeleines is from Dessert University by Roland Messier, executive pastry chef at The White House for 25 years. My friend, neighbor and chef, Barb Fenzl, hosted Roland’s cooking class years ago. His cookbook is a treasure trove of delicious desserts and you can find it here.

Not only was his class informative, but he entertained us with food stories of various presidents and their families. Working at the White House for 25 years, I’m sure there are many things he cannot share.

Simple, Fresh ingredients

The ingredients are rather simple~~flour, baking powder, lemon, sugar, eggs and lots of butter!

Blend the flour and baking powder together.

Zest the lemon~~later the fruit will be juiced for the lemon glaze. Zesting is very easy if you have the right equipment. This is clearly my favorite zesting tool here.

Using the paddle attachment on your mixer, blend the sugar, butter, lemon zest and salt.

Be careful not to over beat.

With the mixer on low, add the eggs and then the egg yolk until well combined.

Stir in the flour mixture and mix until dough is smooth.

Cover the bowl and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Baking Preparation

Butter and flour the madeleine pan.  The only one I have is a Tefal silicone one with 8 cakes. Though the recipe stated there isn’t a need to butter and flour the non-stick pan, I did so to prevent any sticking. Updated note: I do not like this silicone pan. It buckles in the oven and prevents the batter from laying evenly. Maybe it works better laying on a cookie sheet? See another pan resource here.

Fill the cups 3/4 full.  The batter is almost cookie dough-like and it’s hard to tell when it’s 3/4 full. My first batch produced rather large madeleines.  I measured the batter in the second batch (a low heaping tablespoon) and the madeleines were a more normal size. Below is a picture of the first batch pre-oven.

With my convection oven so I set the temperature at 400 degrees (recipe calls for 425 degrees) and baked them for approximately 8 minutes.  That time will vary depending on the how much batter is in each hole.

Finishing Touches

After baking, remove the madeleines immediately from the pan.  Mine pop out nicely.  Brush each one with the lemon glaze. This silicone basting brush works very well with the delicate cakes (see here).

This is only the second time I’ve made madeleines and I really love this lemon recipe.

These are a big hit with my family!  I wonder what Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith would say 🙂

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