Cinnamon sugar madeleines.
My first memory of eating Madeleines was when I was about 17, Mum and I went for a coffee at the Grosvenor hotel in Chester. The coffee was masterfully poured from beautiful sterling silver coffee pots, and served with rich jersey milk. As if that wasn’t grand enough, the waitress then presented us with a plate of ornate looking, scallop-shaped warm sponge cakes. Unaware of just how good these humble morsels would be, I naively wolfed one down; I can still remember the moment now, it was the lightest and most beguiling mouthful of cake that I had ever eaten. They served four and I swear Mum and I hoovered them up in about 60 seconds. Needless to say, I’m a Madeleine FAN!
I’ve tried a number of madeleine recipes over the years, and in all honesty, I’ve never been disappointed, they’re just a great concept and, in my opinion, quite adaptable in terms of ingredient ratios.
Below though, is my (current) favourite – you know me, I’m always open to improving on recipes, but I could happily inhale a plate of these, so until I find an upgrade, these are my #1. It’s loosely based on a recipe by legendary chef, Justin Gellatly. His version of this French classic comprises a considerable amount of honey which yields a wonderful tender, soft crumb with a robust flavour and beautiful yellow-y hue, they also tend to caramelise more readily on the outside due to the higher proportion of sugar in the batter. Whisking the eggs and sugar until pale and fluffy incorporates more air into the mix for a wonderful light and bouncy texture once baked, meanwhile resting the batter allows the flour to hydrate, thickening the mixture and thus contributing to the madeleines characteristic hump.
This recipe is really adaptable, you can use an alternative sugar, brown the butter, caramelise the honey, add your favourite citrus zest, chuck in some rum soaked raisins, use coffee extract over vanilla, or you could incorporate any manner of spices – you really can go wild with it.
And the possibilities don’t end with flavouring the cake batter, once baked, you can do as I have done and roll the madeleines in flavoured caster sugar – cinnamon sugar being the OG of course. Alternatively, you can douse them in your choice of sugar syrup or dunk/drizzle them in chocolate, caramel or even custard –drool!
These little morsels are best eaten warm, straight from the oven, which makes them a great instant pudding. If you don’t see yourself eating them all in one go – you’re an amateur – then save the batter in the fridge for up to 48 hours.
Let me know if you try them… oh and I’m intrigued to hear about any adaptations you try!
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