Today I wish I was in France….on a sunny beach in Cannes, drinking French wine and tanning on the golden sands…..Damn I am in cold England revising for some pretty impossible approaching university finals with no current future job prospects lined up and ready….anyone looking for a keen foodie employee? I can make a good cuppa….???
That leads me onto these madeleines which are the perfect match to a comforting brew. The French atmosphere was easy to implicate by the simple addition of a batch of these light and sweetly spiced French madeleines (However you will need a madeleine tray mould experience France this way…). And to add another shine to my day, my mum’s return from the supermarket with a bulging bag of obese and bearded mussels and some skinny frites was enough to satisfy my French envie. After recently making some ’Carrot Cake Ice Cream’, I was inspired to make something to pair with its creamy flavour which resulted in these spiced madeleines coated in a crunchy cinnamon sugar. Ok so I’ve probably created an American ‘doughnut-style’ finish to what is essentially a classic French treat which I’m sure any Parisian would never admit to approving of. However, revision depression called for it…..icing sugar is your nest best thing….
Makes about 12
- 100g unsalted butter, melted
- 100g caster sugar
- 100g plain flour
- 1 level tsp baking powder
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp mixed spice
- Grated zest 1 orange
- 50-100g cinnamon sugar (made with a ratio of 1 large tbsp: 300g golden granulate sugar)
- Whisk the eggs and the caster sugar together until pale and creamy.
- Add the flour, baking powder, spices and orange zest and lightly whisk in with the melted butter to prevent overdeveloping the gluten.
- Set aside in the fridge for anywhere up to 3 hours. Apparently, the longer you leave the batter to chill the better as it chills and hydrates the flour. This helps to give you that bump on the back that is characteristic of a madeleine.
- When ready to cook, preheat the oven to 200°C. Grease your madeleine tray with a little melted butter and a dusting of flour if it is liable to sticking..
- Fill the moulds making sure you don’t overfill. The mixture will settle into place in the oven so don’t worry about smoothing them out.
- Bake for 8-12 minutes depending on how big you made them and how large your madeleine pan is.
- Once golden and cooked, remove from the oven and, while warm, coat in a generous blanket of cinnamon sugar and then leave to cool on a wire rack before eating.
In case anyone was wondering where the cake stands were from (from recent photos) I make them…..if anyone wants one, let me know and I can make them to order.
Serve with a strong cuppa or with some carrot cake ice cream