An Introduction (and a Recipe for Madeleines)

Hi everybody! I’ve finally decided to take the big plunge and go from tormenting people with my food-oriented Facebook status updates to starting my own food blog. Food is one of the great passions of my life, and it’s going to be great fun for me to share my recipes and thoughts on various things with my friends out there on teh interwebs. I’m hoping I can keep a decent pace with updates, perhaps one or two a week at least. Aside from recipes, I’m also going to be blogging my thoughts on other things, like new kitchen gadgets, cookbooks, television shows, and restaurants that I’ve tried. I’m also open to suggestions for topics! Where possible, I’ll also be trying to inject a bit of history into my posts, since history is one of my other passions.

I’d like to thank my friends who have been urging me for a long time now to do something like this. Even if it falls flat, I’ll know at least I tried! Also, a big thanks goes out to my better half, Jeff, who will be taking pictures of the things I cook (and has apparently been doing so for quite some time now, without my knowledge).

On to the first recipe!

Madeleines

I first had these wonderful little seashell shaped cookies several years ago at Starbucks. Even the mass-produced versions are wonderful little buttery bites, perfect with a good strong coffee or espresso. I’m not generally a fan of Starbucks, but they were enough to keep me coming back for a while. But, horror of horrors, after a few months I was informed by a barista that they were going to stop serving them. Despite a temporary reprieve, they were discontinued shortly thereafter, and I was left madeleine-less! Quel domage! I was able to find them while on a trip to Toronto, but they were dipped in chocolate, which I regard as an affront to an already superb treat.

Unwilling to accept the loss of one of my favorite sweets, I was able to find a madeleine pan at Jill’s Table in London, Ontario. I don’t normally go in for things that require special pans, since it really can’t be used for anything else, but they’re worth the effort, and the pan was quite reasonably priced. I usually make madeleines once every week or two now, usually for a weekend breakfast. They come together in a few minutes and don’t take long to bake, which is good because I find they are at their best right out of the oven.

But where do these curious little cookies come from? A madeleine is a traditional cookie from Commercy and Liverdun, two communes of the Lorraine region in northeastern France. Madeleines are usually made with a batter resembling a genoise cake, which gives them a wonderful spongy texture. They get their name from Madeleine Paulmier, a French pastry chef whose life is the subject of some historical discussion.

Ingredients

2 eggs

3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup white sugar

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup butter

Directions

1. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease the mold with butter and flour or your cooking spray of choice, then set aside.
2. Melt butter and let cool to room temperature.
3. In a small mixing bowl, beat eggs, vanilla and salt at high until light. You can do this step with a mixer, but if you don’t have one, a whisk or a fork works too.
4. Beating constantly, gradually add sugar; and continue beating until mixture is thick and pale and ribbons form in bowl.
5. Sift flour into egg mixture a third at a time, gently folding after each addition.
6. Pour melted butter around edge of batter. Quickly but gently fold butter into batter. Spoon batter into molds; it will mound slightly above tops.
7. Bake 13 to 15 minutes, or until cakes are golden and the tops spring back when gently pressed with your fingertip.
8. Use the tip of a butter knife to loosen the madeleines from the mold; invert onto a cooling rack.

Variations on a theme: This is a recipe that is surprisingly open to editing, despite the fact consensus holds baking leaves no room for improvisation. You can make chocolate madeleines by increasing the amount of sugar to 1/2 cup and substituting 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder for 2 tablespoons of the flour, which should then be sifted into the batter with the flour. You can also add a tablespoon of grated citrus zest, which should be added just before the butter. I’ve even reduced the amount of sugar and added a tablespoon or so of blueberry syrup, which gives a wonderful light flavor, but will make them turn out a bit darker.