Friday, February 5, 2010

Madeleines

Madeleines are one of the quintessential french tea time treats, the little shell shaped cakes are not only beautiful, but they are also utterly delicious. The wonderful sensation of tasting them, was famously described by the french writer Marcel Proust (in his novel À la recherche des temps perdu), the Madeleine/Proust connection!

They are also very popular with my family and friends, and in theory they should keep fresh for two or three days, but so far there were never any left by the end of the day. The best thing is, that they are quick and easy to make, my favorite recipe makes around 22 cakes, hope you'll enjoy!



You need
• 75 gr sugar ~ 2.65 oz
• 90 gr butter ~ 3.17 oz (melted and cooled down)
• 90 gr self raising flour ~ 3.17 oz (add 1 tsp of baking powder if using ordinary flour)
• 2 eggs
• 1 pinch of salt
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract (optional)
• 1 Tbsp liquid honey (optional)


Beat together the sugar, pinch of salt and the eggs. The key is to keep beating until the mix has thickened to the consistency of mayonnaise, like in the picture below.

Then fold in the flower and stir until just combined. Add the liquid butter (together with the vanilla extract or honey, if you are using it) and mix gently until just combined.

Pour the mix into a bowl, cover with clingfilm and leave in the fridge for a minimum of 30 min.

Grease a Madeleine pan and spoon 1 heaped teaspoon of the mix into each mould.

No need to flatten the batter, it will spread out evenly once placed into the hot oven

Bake in preheated oven (180C˚/ 350˚FH) for about 11-13 minutes..

or until the edges are golden brown

what a divine looking thing!


dust with icing sugar and enjoy!


Marcel Proust describing his first taste of a Madeleine:

..She sent out for one of those short, plump little cakes called petites madeleines, which look as though they had been moulded in the fluted scallop of a pilgrim's shell. And soon, mechanically, weary after a dull day with the prospect of a depressing morrow, I raised to my lips a spoonful of the tea in which I had soaked a morsel of the cake. No sooner had the warm liquid, and the crumbs with it, touched my palate than a shudder ran through my whole body, and I stopped, intent upon the extraordinary changes that were taking place…at once the vicissitudes of life had become indifferent to me, its disasters innocuous, its brevity illusory…
(
À la recherche des temps perdu ~ Remembrance of Things Past Vol. 1, engl. translation by C.K. Scott Moncrieff)

26 comments:

  1. Dear MaiTai

    Your Madeleines look delicious. Thank you for sharing. I can´t wait to make them myself.
    Warm regards, Manuela

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  2. Thank you Manuela, have fun! :-)

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  3. Ooh these look divine! I can just imagine the smell of freshly baked Madeleines - gorgeous MT!!

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  4. Thank you Scarf Addict, coming from an accomplished baker like yourself, this is high praise!

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  5. Ooh, yummy. Never thought about making them myself. Now with your recipe it's worth a try and to get a lost a little while (perdu). Thank you for sharing. Looking at the pictures one can smell the delicious scent in the house already.

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  6. I haven't had my madeleine pan out for quite sometime. Thank you for helping me remember how much I love these. Perfect thing to do on this snowy day!

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  7. angolfa and andiamo ~ thank you ladies <3

    angolfa, have fun baking! Re the smell.. exactly what DH said, but of course he smelled the 'real' smell at the same time, lol!

    andiamo, get that pan out quick, dear! They taste good with a glass of champagne too, by the way ;-)

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  8. Such an enticing photo! They look delicious!

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  9. lulilu and Joanne, there are still a few left, hop over gals!

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  10. Hopping on my broom now - pour the champagne!

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  11. MT, your step-by-step instruction encourage me to bake madeleine..
    Thank you for sharing with us..
    As I said, your blog is my daily tonic..

    PS. Please write a book..sort of style guide book.
    Then I could read your writing anywhere..

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  12. Oh, I love madeleines! Yours are so perfect they look like they belong in a magazine. I want to reach into my computer and have one!! I bet they are delicious with a glass of sauternes! Thanks for posting the recipe.

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  13. This looks absolutely delicious, I love Madelines. I must try this and tell my french teacher I made them! My mom are I are such admirers of you and your blog. I've been reading daily for a few months now and you are wonderful. You are truly an inspiration for young girls like myself. Thank you so much!

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  14. Oh wow they look delicious!! I can only imagine how wonderful they must smell, and with a lovely cup of tea!! Divine, thank you for sharing this :) Have a good weekend xx

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  15. wah! love the madelines... going to bake some soon:D

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  16. Yummy. I wonder if I can find the baking tray here in Australia...

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  17. Joanne, Erlina, Pauillac, class act, DD, casiewbao and She Wore It Well - thank you all for the kind compliments <3

    Joanne, hop over quick, the champagne is on ice!

    Erlina, have fun baking! So nice that you are one of the regulars, and yes, a book would probably be a fun project one day :-)

    Pauillac, bring a bottle of Sauternes and I'll make another batch of Madeleines, what a party we'll have! :D

    class act, as always, I am very much touched by your sweet and lovely words. My best to you and your mom x

    DD, you are so sweet, have a great weekend too!

    casiewbao, knowing you, you have made six batches already! :D

    She Wore It Well, I found a link for madelaine pans from an australian e-shop, good luck! http://www.myshopping.com.au/ZM--643909740_Kitchen

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  18. I love it that you are embracing thrift and baking (things I love!)

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  19. Yay to baking and thrift, FauxFuchsia! Nothing beats baking, and thrift leaves all the more for H, lol! x

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  20. Dear MaiTai, I have just finished baking two dozen of these beauties using your recipe! They have proven to be wildly popular already.

    Thanks for the great recipe, and the wonderful blog!

    From a fellow Hermès devotee xx

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  21. Merci unebellefille, great to hear the recipe was a sucess, and thank you for the lovely compliment re my blog. Vive Madeleines and Hermès! x

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  22. One variation that I could recommend to your readers is to add some Fleur d'oranger liquide in the mix (a bit less than a tea spoon). I did some madeleines yesterday and the light orange smell gave them an extra twist. The recipe is wonderful, thank you for posting.

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  23. Oh, this is a wonderful idea, Artemis, thank you for sharing! Will try it the next time I make Madeleines, mille merci :)

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