Blog•July 30, 2020
EARL GREY MADELEINES
The Madeleine and French novelist Marcel Proust, and the Theory of Memory is when a sensory stimuli unintentionally brings back an experience, especially with desserts! A good Madeleine can do just that. Skip the ones you see at the grocery stores and make these instead. The cookie is so soft and full of flavor, and yes, it’s great with tea!
EARL GREY MADELEINES
Yield: 24 Madeleines
Ingredients :
Zest of 2 lemons
3/4 Cup + 1 Tbsp Granulated Sugar
1 1/2 + 1 Tbsp Cups Cake Flour
2 tsps Baking Powder
1 stick/ 1/2 cup Butter
4 Eggs
2 Tbsps Honey
2 Sachets of Earl Grey Tea
Procedure:
- You will need the following – a Madeleine mould or cupcake pan as substitute and a small sauce pan.
- In a small sauce pan, melt the butter on very low heat and add the tea bags while the butter is warm. Set aside and cover. Allow to infuse the butter with the tea for about 5 – 10 mins. Keep the melted butter warm and fluid.
- Sift flour and baking powder in the bowl. In another bowl combine eggs, lemon zest, honey and sugar.
- Beat the egg mixture until it forms a thick foam, about 6-8 minutes. With a spatula, fold the flour mixture in 3 parts until combined. Remove the tea sachets from the butter and add the melted butter to the egg/flour mixture. Fold gently until combined. Cover the mixture in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight or at least 8 hours. This process is important to create that distinctive bump on the madeleines.
- Next Day: prepare the Madeleine moulds by first smearing a layer of butter on the mould, then refrigerate for a few minutes to allow the butter to set. Take the mould out of the fridge and smear another thin layer of butter. This ensures that the cookie will not stick to the mould when baking. After the second smearing of butter, dusk the mould with flour very lightly and tap out the excess flour.
- Time to Bake: preheat the over to 375’F. Take the mixture from the fridge and spoon a dollop of the cake batter into the mould, at least 2/3s full for standard Madeleine mould (or 2-3 tablespoons or so for cupcake mould, making sure that the bottom of the cupcake mould is covered with batter about 1/4 of an inch thick). Bake the sponge for the 8-10 minutes until the cookies are golden brown and the hump that form is firm to the touch.
- Allow the cookies to cool slightly before removing from the mold. Serve warm with tea. To store, keep the cakes in airtight container and kept at room temperature. Freeze the dough about 30 mins to 1 hour.