Brown Butter Madeleines

More tiny cake than cookie, these Madeleines get their toasty taste from browned butter.  Sure you can skip this step but I wouldn’t.  Just take care to not burn the butter.  It’ll bubble for a minute or two before starting to brown, then take if off the heat when it starts to darken.  It will continue to color in the hot pan so pour it out before it burns.

This recipe calls for grated tonka bean, which few have ever heard of and fewer still might have at hand.  I was introduce to tonka at Paule Caillete’s Promenades Gourmandes  farmers’ market walking tours / cooking classes in Paris.  These almond-sized seeds are dark and shriveled looking, but grate into a soft powder with a heady fragrance.

Tonkas are readily available online, and while freely used in France and elsewhere, are not approved for food use in the USA due to high coumarin content.  If any of this interests or alarms you, read this. Vanilla bean seeds or extract work very nicely too.

These can’t be properly made with a madeleine baking tin. The full size pan makes 12; mini pans make 20 at a time.  If you’re serious about madeleines get a couple baking tins, it’ll be quicker.

BROWN BUTTER MADELEINES
Recipe

1 stick unsalted butter + 2 T. butter
1/2 t. baking powder
1 c. flour + 1/4 c. flour
3/4 c. sugar
3 eggs
1 egg yolk
seeds from one vanilla bean OR 1 t. vanilla extract OR or 1 t. grated tonka bean
1 t. grated lemon peel

Place 1 stick butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Melt and cook the butter until it becomes frothy.  Continue to cook, bringing it to a low boil.  Watch carefully for the butter to begin to darken.  After a cuople minutes the yellow liquid will turn a pale brownish color. Remove from heat and let cool completely, until it solidifies again.

Put the 1 cup of flour in a bowl. Add the baking powder.  Stir to blend with a fork.

Beat the cooled brown butter with 3/4 cup sugar, until creamy, 2 minutes.  With beater on slow add eggs and yolk one at a time.  Add the lemon zest and vanilla bean seeds OR vanilla extract OR grated tonka bean. Baet again for 3 minutes until fluffy.

Stir the 1 c. flour mixture into the butter mixture with a spatula. stirring as little as possible. Cover the bowl and refrigerate 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350º. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons butter.  Use a brush to coat the wells in the madeleine pan. Dust well with flour, shake out excess.

Spoon the batter into the madeleine pans, a scant tablespoon for the larger tins, a scant teaspoon for the minis.

Put the pans into the hot oven.  Bake the large tins 8 minutes ; the minis for 6 minutes.  Rotate the pans and cook 6 – 8 minutes more, until the edges of the madelines are lightly brown.  The tops of the madeleines should be springy.

Remove from the oven and let rest 2 minutes before turning out onto a cooling rack.  Cool completely.

When cool dip the madeleines into a simple lemon glaze.

SIMPLE LEMON GLAZE
Recipe

1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
2-3 T fresh lemon juice

Put the sugar in a bowl. Add 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, stir to mix to make a thick paste.  Continue to add lemon juice, 1/2 teaspoon at a time, just until the sugar is smooth and slowly drips off the tip of a spoon.

Add a speck of food color if desired.

Dip the tips of the madeleines into the glaze and return to rack to dry completely.

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MORE TONKA RECIPES:

Tonka Carrots

Tonka Macaroons

Tonka Ice Cream