”You have to taste a culture to understand it.”

– Deborah Cater

French Madeleines

Step by step video tutorial

Madeleines or petite madeleines are delicious, small spongy French cakes, which are usually in shell like shapes and are very easy to make at home. They are perfect for tea time, dessert, or whenever you’re craving a taste of France. 

After trying several madeleines’ recipes, the one from the French Cooking Academy (Madeleines — French Cooking Academy (thefrenchcookingacademy.com)) is the one to stay in our home.

Serving Size:
–
Time:
Prep time: 20 min
Rest time: 2 h
Cook time: 10 min
Difficulty:
Easy

Ingredients

  • 100 g (3/4 cup) all-purpose flour
  • 100 g (1/2 cup) unsalted butter
  • 100 g (1/2 cup) sugar
  • 2 eggs (room temperature)
  • 20 g (1 tbsp) honey
  • 3 g (3/4 tsp) baking powder
  • 2 tsp lemon juice
  • a pinch of salt

Equipment

  • Madeleines’ pan or muffin pan as an alternative

Directions

  1. Melt the butter in a small pot on the stove on medium low.
  2. When the butter has melted, add to it a pinch of salt and the lemon juice. Stir, remove from the stove and put aside to cool a little.
  3. Break the eggs in a bowl. Add sugar and beat the eggs with the sugar a little.
  4. Add honey to the eggs and continue whisking or beating with an electric mixer till the egg/sugar batter is light, creamy and foamy.
  5. Add baking powder to the flour and sift them in the egg/sugar batter.
  6. Mix the flour in with a wooden spoon or a rubber spatula. Mix only as much as needed to incorporate the flour.
  7. Gradually add and gently mix in the melted butter.
  8. Cover the batter and put in the fridge for a few hours.
  9. When ready to bake set the oven to heat to 200° C or 430° F.
  10. Oil the madeleines’ pan.
  11. Put about a teaspoon and a half of the batter in each form, filling about 3/4ths. The batter will spread and fill the form.
  12. Bake madeleines for 3 minutes, then reduce the oven temperature to 180° C or 400° F and continue baking for about 5 to 7 minutes till madeleines look golden brown.
  13. Dust the madeleines with some powdered sugar and enjoy!

Notes

  • For best results, measure ingredients with a scale. All recipes are made with weighed ingredients using grams. Cup measurements are provided for your convenience.
  • I am at the sea level and often need to use lower oven temperatures not to burn what I’m baking. You can try to use 20 degrees more as the original recipe suggests.