Charming 3-Flavour Brown Butter Madeleines that’s Good for your Soul
Brown Butter Madeleines
These charming seashell-shaped cakes are an epitome of classic French Patisserie. They taste the best eaten fresh from the oven!
First named after Madeleine Paulmier, who prepared the small cakes for Louis XV, the son-in-law of the duke, while his wife, Maria Leszczyńska then introduced the delight to the court in Versailles. Much beloved by the royal family, they have now conquered hearts all over the world!
Using brown butter in cakes adds a rich, nutty and rustic taste that complements the sponge.
Follow our recipe and make these decadent brown butter madeleines for yourself and loved ones today!
3-Flavour Brown Butter Madeleines Recipe
Makes 9 small shell cakes.
This recipe uses the Classy Seashell Madeleines Mould
INGREDIENTS
1 Egg (from large eggs ~60-64g)
63g Cake Flour
63g Caster Sugar
63g Unsalted Brown Butter (or melted unsalted butter if you do not have Brown Butter)
18ml Milk
5ml Vanilla Extract or Vanilla Essence
5g Baking Powder
Pinch of salt
5g Matcha Powder
5g Cocoa Powder
1/2tsp Instant Coffee or Espresso powder (optional)
Decoration (Optional)
25g White Chocolate Compound
25g Milk Chocolate Compound
25g Ruby Chocolate Compound
Matcha Powder – for dusting
Cocoa Powder – for dusting
Freeze-dried Raspberry Powder – for dusting
Method:
1) Crack the egg into a mixing bowl and add in the sugar. Beat it until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture turned a pale yellow and looks fluffy.
2) Add in vanilla and milk. Mix till well combined.
3) Sift in the flour, salt and baking powder, then gently fold until there are no more clumps or specks of flour.
4) Add in the brown butter and combine it gently.
5) Next, divide the mixture into three – 85g each
6) In one of the divided mixture, add in matcha powder and add cocoa + espresso/instant coffee powder to the other. The third one shall be the original flavour. Gently incorporate the powder until well combined.
7) Wrap the bowls up with food wrap and chill the batter in the fridge overnight (or minimally 1 hour). Chilling it overnight allows the batter to soak up all the flavours and makes it easier to pipe. The batter can be stored in the fridge for 2-3 days.
8) When you’re ready to bake, preheat oven at 220 degrees Celsius.
Prepare the Classy Seashell Madeleine Mould by greasing it with a thin layer of butter and dust it with some flour. This step ensures that it will be easy to unmould the cakes after baking.
9) Transfer the batter into three piping bags and fill the Classy Seashell Madeleine Mould almost to the top.
10) Return it to the fridge if you think that the batter has warmed up. Bake it cold if you’d like to achieve the famous baker’s bump. the contrast in temperature releases steam which helps the cake to rise.
11) Lower the temperature to 170 degrees Celsius and bake for 12-14 mins.
12) Once done, remove from the mould and let it cool completely. Madeleines taste the best right out of the oven and these brown butter ones are just as good on its own. You may wish to elevate it further by coating it with a thin layer of decorative chocolate.
13) Wash the mould and dry it. We will use it for the chocolate coating
14) Melt the ruby, milk & white chocolate using the bain-marie method, over some hot water and add in matcha powder to the melted white chocolate. Mix till combined.
15) Once melted, scoop some of the chocolate into the mould and spread it sideways a little. Then gently push a piece of madeleine cake (shell pattern facing down) into the chocolate. Give it a good wiggle or move it slightly around the mould to ensure that all sides of the seashell are coated. It is well coated when you can see some chocolate (not too much) being pushed out at the sides
16) Repeat for the rest of the madeleines.
17) Put it in the freezer to set for 30 minutes.
18) Remove from the mould and sprinkle or dust some matcha/ cocoa / freeze-dried raspberry powder over.
Get the Classy Seashell Madeleines Mould from our e-shop today!
Variations and Decorations.
Besides making brown butter madeleines that simply couldn’t go wrong, try adding a bit of zest and tang to the madeleines. Finely zested orange or lemon may be added to the mix before baking or a bit of matcha or cocoa powder will give it a more complex bitter note.
After baking, madeleines may be glazed. Warm-up your favourite honey and dip the top part with the bump into the honey. Pop them back into the hot oven for 1 min to create a crunchy glaze. A lemon or orange glaze may also be made by mixing fresh lemon/orange juice with double the weight of caster sugar.