What is a Madeleine?

A madeleine (or madeleine cake) is a dainty sponge cake which is baked in individual scallop-shaped or shell-shaped moulds.

Madeleines are thought to have originated in the town of Commercy in France.

As the legend goes, a servant first baked them in real scallop shells which, at the time, were a traditional emblem for pilgrims passing through Commercy on their way to Spain. The servant’s master was so fond of these cakes that he named them after the servant, who, as it so happens, was called Madeleine.

Classic French Madeleines

Something which my children and I associate with our visits to France are homemade madeleines.

I have loved eating madeleines since I was a child, and even though I bake them quite regularly at home, my son associates madeleines with his 94 year old great-great-aunt, someone he sees only once or twice a year.

But when he does see her, she is always spoiling him with her homemade madeleines and sablé cookies, even inviting him to help her make these treats, so it is no wonder that he has such nice memories when he thinks of madeleine cakes 🙂

Why This Recipe Works

This madeleine recipe takes only about 5-10 minutes to prepare!
To produce light and fluffy madeleines, the batter should be left to rest in the fridge for at least 1 hour.
You can make this madeleine recipe up to several days in advance by simply keeping the batter in the fridge.
This is an easy and classic recipe for French madeleines. You can easily replace the lemon zest in the recipe with other flavourings, such as with vanilla, honey or chocolate chips. Please see the Kitchen Notes below.

How to Make Madeleines

There are many recipes for madeleines, and the madeleine recipe below is one which I have been faithful to for many years because, well, it produces the best madeleines.

Step 1

Whisk together the eggs and sugar until the mixture is thick and pale yellow in colour.

This step takes about 1-2 minutes using an electric stand-mixer, or longer if you are whisking by hand.

whisked eggs and sugar in white mixing bowl

Step 2

Add the dry ingredients – flour, salt and baking powder. Mix until thoroughly combined.

Then add the wet ingredients, namely the lemon zest and butter. Mix again until you have a smooth and thick batter. (For variations to this base recipe, please see the Kitchen Notes below in the recipe card.)

Leave the batter to rest for at least 1 hour in the fridge, and up to 2 days.

batter for madeleine recipe in white mixing bowl

Step 3

Prepare the madeleine pan by greasing it with butter or non-stick baking spray.

Sprinkle the moulds with flour and tap away any excess flour over the kitchen sink.

I grease and flour the madeleine pans even if they are non-stick, just to make sure that the cakes slip out of the moulds easily.

Step 4

Fill each madeleine mould with some batter. For this step, you can either use a large spoon or fill a piping bag with the batter.

Bake the madeleines in a very hot oven at 270°C (518°F) (without fan), and immediately turn the temperature down to 210°C (410°C).

The shock of the hot oven, together with the coldness of the madeleine batter, helps to create the rounded bumps on the madeleines as they bake.

In my husband’s family, the success of a batch of madeleines depends mostly on how large the bumps are!

What are Madeleine Pans?

Madeleines are baked in scallop-shaped moulds. These days, they are sold as trays with multiple moulds (usually 6 to 12). However, if you are lucky, you may also be able to find individual vintage madeleine moulds.

I have one large aluminium madeleine pan which produces 12 large madeleines, plus an assortment of vintage moulds with a similar capacity.

I also have a non-stick mini madeleine pan but, despite it being non-stick, I find I still have to grease and flour it like I would for my aluminium mould. That said, it is much easier to remove the cakes from a non-stick mould than an aluminium mould.

I recently purchased a silicone madeleine mould as I was curious to see if they were easier and better to use than aluminium. Whilst they were certainly easier to clean and the cakes popped out of the moulds very easily, I found the colouring on the cakes to be uneven. Moreover, the madeleine cakes didn’t have the same caramelisation that you can achieve with a metal mould.

Tips For Making Madeleines

Whisk the eggs and sugar until they the mixture is pale yellow and thick. This step helps to aerate the mixture to produce light and fluffy madeleine cakes.
I like to use an electric stand-mixer when making madeleines, but you could simply use a bowl and whisk, with a bit of upper-arm energy!
Madeleines are best when the batter is left to rest in the fridge for at least 1 hour and up to several days. This resting period allows the gluten in the flour to develop, which helps to make light and fluffy madeleine cakes.
The batter needs to be fridge-cold before you fill the madeleine moulds and bake them, because it is the combination of cold batter and the shock of the hot oven which helps the madeleines to achieve their characteristic bumps.
I recommend using either non-stick or aluminium madeleine pans which conduct heat better to produce a nicer crust on the madeleine cakes.
If you don’t have a madeleine pan, you can also use a muffin pan and adjust the baking time accordingly.

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