Chocolate Madelines Recipe with a Dreamy Orange Twist
Chocolate madelines with soft, buttery centers, a little orange, and the classic hump. The batter gets Dutch-process cocoa, honey, orange zest, and orange juice. It chills for 1 hour and bakes in frozen, buttered pans at 350°F for 6 to 8 minutes. You dust the cakes with confectioners' sugar and cocoa just before serving.
Equipment
- Madeleine pans
- Large sifter
- Large mixing bowl
- small bowl
- Whisk
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Wire cooling rack
- Dull knife or offset spatula
Ingredients
For the Madeleines
- 1 cup King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour (120g)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon table salt
- 2 tablespoons Dutch-process cocoa (11g)
- 2 large eggs at room temperature
- ½ cup granulated sugar (99g)
- ½ teaspoon King Arthur Pure Vanilla Extract
- 2 tablespoons honey (42g)
- ½ teaspoon orange zest
- 2 tablespoons orange juice (28g)
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter melted (113g), plus more for the pans
For the Topping
- 2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar (14g)
- 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa plus extra flour or cocoa for dusting the pans
Instructions
- Butter every well of the madeleine pans generously. Dust lightly with flour or cocoa and tap out the extra. Cocoa keeps the shells dark, with no pale floury patches. Freeze the pans for at least 10 minutes and preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Set a large sifter over a mixing bowl and sift in the flour, baking powder, salt, and Dutch-process cocoa. This keeps cocoa clumps out of the batter.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs, granulated sugar, vanilla, honey, orange zest, and orange juice.
- Pour the liquid mixture into the dry ingredients and whisk until no lumps remain. Add the melted butter and whisk until the batter is smooth and glossy.
- Cover the bowl and chill the batter for 1 hour. This rest is what gives you the plump humps.
- Fill each well of the cold pan with 1 level tablespoon of batter. Tap the pan on the counter so the batter settles into the grooves.
- Bake for 8 minutes in a light-colored pan or 6 minutes in a dark-colored pan. They're done when the edges just start to pull away from the pan and you smell chocolate strongly. Don't overbake.
- Let the madeleines cool in the pan on a rack for 5 minutes. Then nudge them out gently with a dull knife or offset spatula. Don't leave them in the pan any longer or they'll stick. Move them to the rack to finish cooling, then repeat with the remaining batter.
- Sift the confectioners' sugar and unsweetened cocoa together. Dust the tops of the madeleines right before serving so the dusting stays crisp.
Notes
The hump: Cold batter, a cold pan, and a hot oven give you a big hump. Don't skip the 1-hour chill or the 10-minute freeze. Use room-temperature eggs for a more even crumb. Watch the clock, because one extra minute can dry these out.
Cocoa: Baking powder is the only leavener here, so Dutch-process cocoa works best and gives a smoother, more mellow flavor. More on the science: Dutch-process versus natural cocoa.
History: Madeleines trace back to Commercy, France, where pastry chefs made them famous in the 18th century (Britannica's madeleine entry).
Variations: For a chocolate dipped madeleine, dip one end of each cooled cake in melted chocolate, set it on parchment paper, and let it firm up. Add sprinkles or chopped nuts if you like. Boxed up, dipped madeleines make good gifts as madelaine chocolates. You can also swap the orange zest and juice for lemon zest and juice. The method stays the same.
Troubleshooting: No hump means the batter or pan wasn't cold enough, so chill the batter the full hour and freeze the pan at least 10 minutes. If the cakes stick, butter the wells more generously and release them after the 5-minute rest. Dry or crumbly cakes were baked a minute or two too long, so pull them as soon as the edges lift.
Storage: Madeleines are best the day they're baked. Keep them in an airtight container at room temperature up to 2 days or in the refrigerator up to 4 days (good for warm kitchens or dipped madeleines). Freeze them in a freezer-safe bag up to 2 months. Dust only when you're ready to serve.
Reheating: Warm refrigerated or thawed madeleines in a 300°F oven for 3 to 5 minutes. You can also microwave them for 10 seconds, though the edges won't be as delicate.
No-waste ideas: Crumble stale madeleines over yogurt or ice cream, layer them into a trifle, or dunk them in coffee. Squeeze leftover orange into juice and save extra zest for your next batch of cookies.
FAQs: You can make the batter ahead. It needs at least 1 hour in the fridge anyway, and a longer chill is fine if the bowl stays covered. A mini muffin tin works in a pinch, but the cakes will look different and baking times may vary. To freeze, bag the cooled, undusted cakes for up to 2 months, thaw them at room temperature, warm briefly, and dust before serving.
More recipes: Milton Hershey historical caramel recipe, eggless cookies, and 4-ingredient chickpea cookies.