These Orange Madeleines dipped in chocolate are perfectly light, fluffy and packed with flavor. Ideal for enjoying with a cup of tea during these cold mornings!
The french madeleine has admittedly always intimidated me. However I was pleasantly surprised to discover that they’re actually quite easy to make. With a bit of technical skill (which I’ll cover below) and some patience, these little cakes come together quite nicely. The orange and chocolate balance the warm brown butter cakes perfectly to make one tasty treat!
Special notes before making these Orange Madeleines dipped in chocolate:
Genoise Style Sponge
This is a genoise style sponge (though we cheat with a little bit of baking powder). Therefore you must whip your eggs and sugar together for a minimum of eight minutes or until it reaches ribbon stage. The amount of air incorporated into the batter directly relates to the final texture of the cakes.
Browning Butter
You could easily use melted butter in this recipe but the browned butter adds so much flavor! When you brown the butter just be sure not to burn it as it can go from brown to burned quite quickly!
Silicone Madeleine Tins
It is important to use a silicone madeleine tin for this recipe. I’ve tried the metal tins and they just don’t work as well when you add the chocolate in the end. The silicone mats help with easy removal and the madeleines don’t fall apart when you take them out!
Can baking be therapeutic?
I often talk about baking being a therapeutic hobby but I’d like to share more about why I feel that way as well as how it can become a relaxing hobby for you!
When I bake, it’s my creative time. I may put on my favorite nostalgic movie or tv show in the background, or a Spotify playlist titled “French café” and leave my troubles behind.
Sometimes I pour myself a glass of wine and light a candle. Then, with the mood set, the mixing of batter, kneading of dough and smoothing of icing is my only care in the world.
When I say baking is therapeutic, sometimes people respond saying “not for me it isn’t!” I completely understand why someone might feel that way. There have been plenty of times where I spend hours on something only for it to fail or something breaks that shouldn’t or I forget to clean as I go and am left with a disastrous kitchen to clean.
So I should in reality, have a caveat to my “baking as therapy” claims…
Baking is therapy when you curate the experience to be relaxing.
How do you curate that relaxing experience for yourself, you ask?
How to make baking therapeutic…
- Prepare your mind–know that it’s okay if the cake doesn’t rise, or the butter wasn’t chilled enough. Shift your mindset from seeing your failures as mistakes to seeing them as opportunities for learning.
- Prepare your space–I cannot and will not bake on top of a messy kitchen. If I were to do this I would be starting from a place of stress! Take an extra 10 minutes to clean any dishes in the sink and wipe down the counters, this small effort will pay you back greatly in brain space and clarity.
- Clean as you go! I’ll tell you the one way to make baking stressful and tiresome, is to not clean as you go! After I use each ingredient that I no longer need, I put it away.
After each major step in the process, I wipe down the counters and put dishes that are no longer needed in the sink. If there is chill time or baking time I don’t sit, I do the cleaning then. Make this shift and you’ll really notice the difference!
By the way, this last tip really helped me when I was on The Great American Baking Show–and the crew that cleaned up behind us made a point to tell me that my workspace was always so clean they didn’t have much to do!
I would reply by saying “it’s how I stay sane in this tent!”
Additional suggestions:
*Maybe try printing off the recipe instead of looking at it on your phone, tablet or laptop and use this time to unplug from technology for a few hours
**Invite friends or family over to share your creation with you. Time spent with loved ones over food is a universally special experience
And that’s how I discovered baking for my mental health. If you try any of these suggestions, let me know how it went for you! I’m really invested in spreading this message to others in hopes that baking will enhance your lives more than it already does!
Orange Madeleines Dipped in Chocolate
Ingredients
For the Madeleines
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 2 tbsp orange zest
- 1 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
For the Chocolate/Topping
- 1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips melted
- 1 tbsp orange zest for sprinkling
Instructions
For the Madeleines
- Brown the ½ cup of butter on the stovetop, then pour into a heat proof bowl and allow to cool slightly while you mix the batter
- In a medium bowl, whisk together 1 cup of all purpose flour, ¼ tsp of baking powder and ¼ tsp of salt. Set aside
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, or in a large bowl using a hand mixer, beat together the 2 large room temperature eggs and ½ cup of granulated sugar for a minimum of 10 minutes. The mixture will turn light yellow and fluffy and leave a trail known as the ribbon stage.
- Add 1 tsp of vanilla, 1 tsp of lemon zest and 2 Tbsp of orange zest to the mixture and beat until combined.
- Gently pour fluffy egg mixture into the dry ingredients and fold delicately until the batter is combined. Make sure to mix well so as to not have any pockets of flour at the bottom, however do not overmix the batter.
- Pour in the cooled brown butter and mix until combined.
- Cover the batter with plastic wrap with the plastic wrap touching the top of the batter and chill in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour or overnight. This step is crucial to the bake and cannot be skipped!
- Preheat the oven to 350℉ (180℃) and spray the madeleine pan with nonstick spray generously.
- Use a small spoon or a 1” scoop to place even amounts of batter into each madeleine shell. Bake for 8-10 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely.
- Once cooled, remove from the tin, clean the silicone tin to use for the chocolate decor.
For the Decorations
- Melt 1 cup of semi sweet chocolate chips in the microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring well between each interval.
- Once melted, place a quarter sized amount of chocolate into each (clean) madeleine shell and press one madeleine into each shell so that the chocolate spreads.
- Place in the refrigerator for 10-15 min or until the chocolate hardens completely. Remove from the tin and top with fresh orange zest. Enjoy!
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