Thursday, September 18, 2008

The Long Awaited Most Beloved Madeleines

I lot of you have been waited for this post. And if you haven’t, you just didn’t know you were. Too be honest, there is nothing difficult about madeleines, if anything they are pretty versatile, orange, lemon thyme, lavender honey, chocolate. You name it. What is difficult is making sure to purchase the right pan and grease the pan in a way so the madeleines don’t stick. (This way they come out looking like gorgeous shells, not mutilated cookie specimens. I mean we need to make Proust proud…)
I use the recipe off of epicurious, but I like them a tad bit more lemony, so I add just a little lemon juice, like a teaspoon. It brings out the flavor of the zest. These one’s are not too sweet, highly addictive and the perfect accompaniment with tea, or just fresh from the oven (for some reason they hardly ever make it to tea.)
As I mentioned before, the pan is important. The pan really is the reason for these cookies, they create the shape, and equally attribute for the light fluffy texture. Do not use the silicon pan; it will be hard to remove the madeleines. I used a French tin pan that I picked up from Broadway Panhandler’s. This means I had to butter and flour for each batch. But I think a non-stick pan would work quite well. Just remember: if they stick, this can be a big problem, the shell imprint will not appear and the cookie can fall apart.
Click Here for the Recipe



My Side Note of Madeleines: Oh Proust!

Proust gets a lot of credit for the success for this cookie. And to be honest, I am not sure he deserves it. Why do I say this? Because Proust divulges in many things, not just French cookies. For Proust, many seemingly insignificant objects, food items, art can “déclenche” (to spark in French) a memory. Not just madeleines. So why has the food world harped so much on these few pages? Maybe his oh-so French idealism or his page long sentences intricately weaving food, memory and perception. I would just like to say, Proust is much more than this darling edible golden clam…
But if Proust can make the Madeleine some French fantasy you want to literally eat up, I say, why not? Divulge!

9 comments:

alexandra's kitchen said...

I have been looking for a good madeleine recipe! So, I bus tables on the weekends at this restaurant in my town, and the chef recently has been putting out a plate of madeleines at the end of the day when he's working on new recipes. what I love about them most is how lemony they are. Can't wait to try these. They are so elegant with that powdered sugar on top!

Cannelle Et Vanille said...

oh les madeleines... beautiful!

grace said...

brace yourself--i've never made or eaten a madeleine. isn't that sad? i'm not sure what the hold-up is, because they sure look yummy enough. :)

Manger La Ville said...

Alex: I hope the recipe turns out right, make sure when they ask you to beat, you beat until really fluffy.
Grace: Now is the time to try them. But it sucks that you have to buy a pan to make them.

Alexa said...

J'adore les madeleines... I am with you... Any madeleine worth its salt need a strong citrus flavor. Yummy.

Jessica@Foodmayhem said...

I used to work at a restaurant where we did madeleines with silicone molds, sprayed with nonstick. It works wonderfully....they just pop right out with the shape in tact.

Lori Lynn said...

Why not indeed? And you have definitely inspired me to make the edible golden clam.
Merci.

Dee said...

Very pretty! I made my first batch not too long ago but didn't get the bump. They were scrumptious, nevertheless. Mine never made it to teatime either :)

Helene said...

Madeleines...reminds me of afternoon at grandma's with a cup of tea. Well done!