Anyone for a cup of tea?

Sorry I've been missing in action for so long. It has been two weeks since I've last baked something, so I thought it was high time that I returned to the kitchen and get to work! To transition back into the baking mode, I picked this madeleine recipe from Dorie Greenspan's Baking: From My Home to Yours.

I was very excited about this recipe because madeleines were one of my favorite things to snack on while I was in France. With their subtle sweet, lemon flavor and their cake-like texture, they perfectly complimented a cup of tea. Every Sunday, a group of friends and I would visit a small tea salon in Clermont-Ferrand for some tea, scones, and madeleines. It was truly a great way to celebrate the one day of rest.

I did not have a madeleine baking mold on hand, so I had to make due with some mini-muffin tins. They weren't as elegant as the traditional shell-shape, but I thought they still looked cute coming out of the oven with their rounded tops. While the taste of the madeleines was good, it wasn't perfect. The lemon flavor wasn't strong enough because I opted to use lemon juice rather than lemon zest. Also, I probably overmixed the batter because the madeleines had a sponge-like texture rather than a cakey one. Nevertheless, these little cookie-cakes were tasty snacks.

Madeleines
Ingredients (adapted from Dorie Greenspan's Baking: From My Home to Yours)

• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 2 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice
• 2 large eggs
• 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
• Pinch of salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled

In a medium-to-large mixing bowl, stir together the sugar and lemon juice. With a hand mixer, beat in the eggs until mixture becomes a uniform pale yellow color and slightly thickened.

Whisk together the flour, salt, and baking powder. Gently fold into the wet ingredients, followed by the melted butter. Be careful not to overmix. Cover the batter in plastic wrap by pressing the wrap against the top of the batter. Now set the batter in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours (I left mine overnight).

When you are ready to bake, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Prepare the baking pans by spraying them with baking spray or by buttering and flouring them. Spoon the batter into the molds, filling each about 3/4 full. Bake mini-madeleines for 8-10 minutes while full-sized madeleines should be left in the oven for 11-12 minutes. The tops of the madeleines should spring back slightly when pressed upon.

Cool the madeleines on a wire rack for a few minutes, and then enjoy!