French cuisine is considered one of the most sophisticated and sophisticated in the whole world. One can hardly argue with this: often recipes include a huge number of ingredients and complex processes. Perhaps, only those who have a huge baggage of practice and knowledge in culinary art will dare to cook on them. But be that as it may, today we will focus on the recipe of the famous French dessert Madeleine. We will prepare cookies from a gentle biscuit dough at home, right in your family kitchen! Do you think it will be difficult? Not at all! This dessert is a great example of how simple everything is ingenious. But before moving on to the recipe itself, we’ll talk a bit about how the Madeleine story began. Cookies with a female name is not just a delicious dessert, but a treat, famous all over the world.
Birth of Madeleine
Today it is difficult to say who and when came up with such a delicious treat. The story of how Madeleine (cookies) first saw the high light only reached us. It all started back in 1755. According to the custom of those times in France, balls were often arranged for a high-ranking nobility. They prepared for them in advance, purchasing the best products, and only the best masters of their craft reigned in the kitchen.
Quite unexpectedly, on the eve of the ball, it turned out that the cook was seriously ill and could not participate in the preparation of the banquet. Delicious pastries always took pride of place on the noble tables, but this time, the guests seemed to be left without dessert. Quite unexpectedly, an ordinary servant came to the rescue. She quickly made plain pastry made from flour, eggs and sugar, and soon on the dish appeared small fragrant biscuits in the shape of scallops. Everything is better than nothing. After all, the servant could not challenge the famous chef of a noble nobleman?
Surprisingly tender cookies made a splash among the guests. It turned out to be so tasty that everyone certainly wanted to know its recipe and name. What it was called, the maid did not know. The only thing the girl said was that such a dessert was often prepared by her grandmother and was loved very much in the family. Soon, the recipe scattered across all the noble houses of Paris, and even later, the dessert appeared on the table of the king of France himself. It got its beautiful name in honor of the name of the maid, who prepared the cookies - Madeleine. French food has become famous all over the world, and even today madeleines are no less popular. Surely you saw them in a candy store, and perhaps you were treated to them at a party?
Sea shell
Madeleine is a cookie that is baked in the shape of seashells. The delicate structure and sophisticated form give them sophisticated sophistication, which should be the majority of French desserts. For cooking, a specially made mold is used, before baking it is slightly greased with oil. A little dough is laid out on it, everything goes to the oven. In the process of baking, a small tubercle forms on the reverse side of the cookie, this is by no means a flaw, but, on the contrary, a distinguishing feature of real madeleines.
Today forms for such baking are produced from different materials. Often it is a familiar metal or more modern silicone products. Sizes can also be different, from the smallest, to large enough, the only thing that remains unchanged is the shell.
If it is not easy to buy such a baking dish in your city, do not deny yourself the pleasure. You can beat the situation and bake cookies on parchment paper, oiled, spreading the dough with a spoon. The shell shape will be difficult to achieve, but it will turn out no less tasty.
Famous recipe
To make Madeleine homemade cookies, you will need the simplest ingredients. Surely they can be easily found in every home. Grandma Madeleine's recipe included:
- 3 eggs;
- 130 g butter (butter);
- 150 g of flour;
- 110 g of sugar (better than icing sugar);
- ½ tsp soda or baking powder;
- zest of one lemon;
- some vanillin.
Cooking dough
The finished dough should stand a little before being sent to the oven, so try to cook it in advance. It is very convenient to make the dough on the eve of the evening, and in the morning to bake Madeleines - an excellent tasty breakfast will be ready in just a few minutes. Fresh and tasty pastries with a cup of aromatic tea are a great start to the day.
Getting started preparing the components: pre-melt the butter. Grate the eggs with sugar until white and add some vanilla. Ideally, sugar crystals should dissolve completely, and to save time, it is better to use powdered sugar.
Add butter, chopped lemon zest and sifted flour with baking powder. Mix the dough well - it should not be too thick. Then refrigerate for a couple of hours.
Bake Madeleines
Preheat the oven and the temperature is 220 degrees. Before baking, grease the butter a little, then place a little dough in them. It should occupy 2/3 of the total amount of shells. Do not overdo it; cookies will increase slightly during baking.
Place the madeleine tins in the red-hot oven for 4 minutes, then lower the temperature to 180 degrees and bake for another 4 minutes. As soon as the cookies are browned, it is ready. Carefully remove the treats from the tins while it is still warm, then let cool.
Beauty in detail
Now you know how to make Madeleine cookies. We brought a classic recipe, such cookies were served to the table, lay sprinkled with powdered sugar, less often covered with glaze. You can go much further, it remains only to connect your imagination.
Madeleine can be cooked with multi-colored or rainbow colored, just tint a little dough. Use suitable food coloring or just add a couple of spoons of cocoa to the dough. You can cook cookies with the filling: make a small spoon in the center with a teaspoon, put a little jam and connect the two cookies together. You can decorate the shells with a french jacket: melt some chocolate and dip the tips of the cookies in it, let the chocolate harden.
The beautiful and tasty cookies that were once served to the king of France will certainly appeal to you and your family, and it is prepared very simply. Good appetite.