Lemon–Rosemary Madeleines
I love a fresh, buttery madeleine. While it is true that the best madeleines are found in the pâtisseries of Paris, these are an excellent homemade version if you find yourself elsewhere in the world. Many recipes call for chilling the batter, but you can skip that step if you are pressed for time. If you do chill it, though, the madeleines rise a little higher and bake up a little lighter. I add rosemary and lemon zest to mine because I love the taste and the way they make the cookies smell (especially during baking).
Makes 32 madeleines
Difficulty: Easy
Make Ahead and Storage: Madeleines are best served straight out of the oven, and they are still good when eaten within 1 day of baking. You can store them airtight for up to 3 days, but they won’t be quite the same.
- 170 g / 3 large eggs
- 198 g / 1 cup granulated sugar
- 5 g / 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 g / ¼ teaspoon almond extract
- 2 g / 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
- 181 g / 1½ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 g / ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 2 g / ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 142 g / 5 oz / 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- 2 g / 2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
- Powdered sugar, for dusting
1. Preheat the oven to 375°F / 190°C, with a rack in the upper third. Grease and flour two 16-cavity madeleine pans (see Pro Tip).
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment (or in a large bowl, using a hand mixer), whisk the eggs and sugar on low speed until combined and lightly frothy, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the extracts and lemon zest and whisk well to combine, about 30 seconds.
3. Add the flour, baking powder, and salt and mix just until incorporated, 1 to 2 minutes. With the mixer on low, add the butter in a slow, steady stream, mixing until it is fully incorporated, 1 to 2 minutes. Scrape the bowl well, then fold in the rosemary. (You can chill the batter, covered with plastic wrap, at this point. One hour is good. Overnight works too—madeleines for breakfast!)
4. Using a #30 / 2-tablespoon scoop or spoon, fill the prepared molds with the batter. Don’t spread the batter around at all—it will level out on its own as it bakes.
5. Bake until the madeleines are puffed with a small mound in the center and the edges are lightly golden, 9 to 10 minutes. Do not overbake, or the cookies will be dry. Cool the madeleines in the pans for 5 minutes, then unmold.
6. Dust the warm madeleines with powdered sugar. The quicker you eat them, the better.
✻ Why It Works
The mold is the key to madeleines’ lovely shell shape. A relatively high ratio of butter, sugar, and eggs to flour means the batter will rise, resulting in a cookie that’s more cakelike and oh-so-pretty.
★ Pro Tip
The cavities of my madeleine pans are 3¼ by 1½ inches. If the wells in your pans are larger, you may need to use slightly more batter for each cake and increase the baking time—or the opposite if your pans are smaller.