Madeleines - Chef Daniel Boulud

This has been my 6th times that i have been on this page.  Have been trying to post this but has always been interrupted by calls or whatever??  I hope i made it this time in posting this recipe. This following recipe was originally published in the cookbook “Chef Daniel Boulud – Cooking in New York City.”   I knew this recipe would produce good Madeleines, as i have good faith in Chef Daniel Boulud to publish a reliable recipe.  He did and this recipe is easy and a keeper.  I have changed the method and instead of dusting with confectioner's sugar as suggested, i hae coated one end with melted chocolate to enhance the appearance as well as improving the flavor.

Ingredients:

Makes 6 dozen small or 1 dozen large madeleines

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
Pinch of salt
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon packed light brown sugar
finely grated zest of 1 lemon
1 tsp vanilla extract
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and kept warm

Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting
or
Melted Chocolate for coating

Method:

Sift together the flour, 2 tbsp granulated sugar, salt and baking powder and set aside..

Working in a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the eggs , sugar, brown sugar and honey together on medium speed until they thicken and lighten in color,- the ribbon stage -  2 to 4 minutes. Beat in the lemon zest and vanilla.

Switch to a large rubber spatula and gently fold in the dry ingredients.  The flour has to be throughly mixed into the egg mixture before adding in the melted butter.

Cover the batter with plastic wrap, pressing the wrap against the surface to create an airtight seal, and chill for at least 1 hour, longer–chilling helps the batter develop its characteristic crown, known as the hump or the bump. (The batter can be kept tightly covered in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.)


Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). If your Madeleine pan is not nonstick, generously grease it, dust the insides with flour and tap out the excess. If the pan is nonstick, you still might want to give it an insurance coating of grease and flour. If it is silicone, do nothing. No matter what kind of pan you have, place it on a baking sheet for easy transportability.

Place the batter in a pastry bag fitted with a medium round tip. Pipe the molds, slightly toward the wider end, two-thirds full, using about 1 teaspoon of batter for the 20 mold pan and 2 tablespoons of batter for the 12 mold pan.

For the small madeleines, bake doe 8 - 10 minutes or until the centers rise and the edges are golden brown, about 4 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through the baking.

For the large madeleines, bake for 11 - 13 minutes, after  5 minutes, reduce the heat to 350°F, rotate the pan halfway, and continue baking until the centers rise and the edges are golden brown.

Remove from the oven, invert the pan and tap it against the counter to release the madeleines. Serve the madeleines warm, dusted with confectioners’ sugar or dipped in melted chocolate.

Troubleshoot:

1. Tough Madeleines:

This happened when  the batter was over-mixed after the addition of the flour. Overmixing created more gluten, toughening the madeleines. It could also be that the batter has not rested enough for the gluten to soften.

2. Humpless or No bump!

Resting the batter in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour will allow the batter to be cold.  When baked, cold batter will produce cakes with a hump or bump.  Another possiblity is that your oven may not be hot enough or the molds are filled with enough of batter. You need enough batter in each mold to fill it and push up as it bakes.