French Fridays with Dorie: madeleines

This week’s French Fridays with Dorie recipe – honey spiced madeleines – was a little too complex for this new-to-madeleines baker so I chose to try my hand at plain ones instead. On our recent trip to France, on our very last day in Burgundy as I was, ahem, in a hypermarché acquiring a (cough cough) new suitcase, I was forced to made everyone go down every aisle, including kitchenware. Because clearly I need more kitchenware! And lo-and-behold, what came home in said new suitcase but a smart silicone madeleine mold.  I am not a huge fan of silicone but I was excited to see the madeleine shape and, you know, it doesn’t weigh anything…

Dorie’s recipe is easy – though it does suggest letting the batter rest for 3 hours up to overnight in the fridge. She also suggests the “bonne idée” of filling the madeleine molds with the batter before you let it rest. I wish I had done this. The somewhat liquidy batter was fairly solid when I came to it about 5 hours later. Kind of like soft spreadable cream cheese. I found the silicone molds to be a little slippery and difficult to fill since the batter kept slipping out. I guess that’s the point.  My madeleines puffed up a lot when they baked too, meaning the batter spilled over the edges, resulting in not-so-neat edges. That got a little crispy.

But the taste?

Well these were spectacular, if I do say so myself. Perfect “crumb”, a lovely freshness from the lemon zest, nice and moist but light. Beginner’s luck? I hope not.

I’ll be making these again, making even less than half the batter to accommodate my 9-madeleine mold, filling the molds before the batter rests and not filling them nearly as much.

Did we eat all of these?

Of course we did!

Want to join French Fridays with Dorie? Join here.

French Fridays with Dorie participants do not publish the recipes on our blogs, rather, we prefer if you purchase Around My French Table for yourselves (trust me, you definitely want this book!) which you can do here on Amazon or Amazon Canada. Or for free worldwide shipping, buy from The Book Depository.

 

35 thoughts on “French Fridays with Dorie: madeleines”

  1. These madeleines look just perfect – crispy golden edges and so soft and light inside. Big time YUM.
    This sounds like a super recipe. I think we got the same molds from that hypermarché and so will be interesting to find out how you get on with them later. Mine are now beginning to smell of well, material (silicone flavour?) I wish I knew what was going on since followed manufacturer’s mode d’emploi. Perhaps I just need to buy another set!

    Reply
  2. What a coincidence, I was just on Dorie’s site reading about Madeleines. Now I came across yours in Food Buzz.

    These sound so good, and I’ve never tried them before. Definitely on my “To Try” list.

    Reply
  3. I too am a total sucker for kitchenware shops when I travel and I have purchased more than a few souvenirs that way. Just makes cooking with said souvenirs that much more exciting.

    Your madeleines look delicious. I was actually wondering if I should have given the original recipe a try first, I may still give it a whirl.

    Reply
  4. Just perfect! I actually had to take some kitchen scissors to trip up some of my edges but the crispy part is the best part of these…gives them character didn’t you think? I’ll be making the regular versions tonight.

    Reply
  5. I need to try the classic recipe. I think I’d like that one better. These look great, and it’s fun that your mold was a souvenir from France!

    Reply
  6. The crispy edges were my favorite! I loved the contrast they created with the rest of the cookie. The traditional ones are definitely on my to-try radar, although I’m still on the fence about buying a madeleine pan.

    Reply
  7. I love how you stacked them on their humps! LOL! I live in England and both my husband and I are addicted to kitchen/cookware shops! … we go in and troll the aisles to see if there is anything we want to bring home. I even stop into grocery stores abroad to see if there are any elusive ingredients I can’t get at home, or get for a smaller cost to fill my suitcases with! 🙂 Glad you enjoyed them, these are a bit of a love-affair type cake for me!

    Reply
  8. Honestly, I always head for the kitchen shops before I ever head for the shoe and clothing stores and can spend hours in one as I’m afraid to miss something I just might *have to have* for my kitchen.
    I saw an aluminum Madeleines pan in a kitchen shop a few weeks ago. It was a little pricey so I never picked it up but I’m on the look-out for a less expensive *model*. As I’ve never made Madeleines yet, this post was very helpful. For your first time out and especially with a silicon pan, I think your Madeleines look just wonderful. What matters most though is that they tasted good and I’m glad yours did.

    Reply
  9. That pile of madeleines looks fantastic. I can vouch for the fill before chill suggestion. I filled before bedtime, and baked them up in the morning. Simple! My favorite kitchenware brought home from a trip is the paella pan I bought in Spain — from the supermarket.

    Reply
  10. Your madeleines look so lovely! I have actually never made madeleines… And I’m not even sure if I have a mold. I think there may be one down in the basement with a bunch of pans that my grandmother dropped off a while ago. Now I think I am going to have to go check!!

    Reply
  11. I typically don’t like baking with silicone, but definitely agree, the weight would have been an advantage in your case! 🙂 I remember visiting E.Dehillerin on my last trip, and wanting to throw everything else out of my suitcase to accommodate the entire store. LOL!

    Your madeleines look lovely and light. Dorie’s recipes are all fabulous, aren’t they?

    Sounds like you had a wonderful holiday! 🙂

    Reply
  12. yummm! I’ve always wanted to try making these but haven’t gotten around to it yet. Yours look so good for a first try… hope mine turn out too!

    Reply
  13. Can you believe I have never made madeleines?? They always look so perfect – and yours are no exception – and I know they taste great. I just have to get the right pan… Thanks for sharing your recipe!

    Reply

Leave a Comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.