With a lifelong passion for cooking Chris brings a unique blend of culinary expertise, creativity, and artistic flair to every dish. Driven by an insatiable curiosity and a desire to merge artistic vision with the culinary arts, Chris has found true fulfillment as a recipe developer and photographer. Through the lens of the camera, Chris skillfully captures the essence and beauty of each dish, transforming food into visual poetry. The result is a captivating fusion of flavors, textures, and aesthetics, inviting you to savor every moment. Follow Chris’s culinary adventures on Instagram at @poetic_road, or her blog poeticroad.com where the exquisite imagery and tantalizing recipes will inspire and delight your senses.
a little bit about the recipe
Cozy and lightly spiced, these madeleines capture the gentle flavors of the holiday season. The fennel brings a soft sweetness, the nutmeg adds warmth, and the vanilla bean ties everything together in a delicate, elegant way. They’re tender and comforting - perfect with a quiet coffee break or to share in a box of small seasonal treats.
SPECIAL EQUIPMENT:
Madeleine pan, Pastry brush
PREP: 1h
COOK: 20m
TOTAL: 1h 20m
PRINT RECIPE
directions
Dry Ingredients
Split the vanilla bean and scrape out the seeds.
Set seeds aside.
Prepare the madeleine pan:
Brush each mold with melted butter and dust with a little flour.
Tap out the excess.
Place the pan in the fridge while you prepare the batter.
Mix the dry ingredients:
In a small bowl, whisk together: flour, baking powder, salt, fennel, nutmeg, and white pepper.
Wet Ingredients
In a medium bowl, beat the eggs, sugar, and vanilla seeds together until pale, thick, and slightly foamy (about 2–3 minutes).
Add the maple syrup and stir to combine.
Fold in the dry ingredients gently, just until no flour remains.
Add the melted butter:
Stream it in slowly while folding, until glossy and smooth.
Add the milk (or eggnog) and fold again until just combined.
Rest the batter:
Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour, or up to overnight.
(This is what helps give the structure and the hump.)
For the Pan
Spoon or pipe the batter into the cold pan, filling each cavity about ¾ full.
Bake:
Preheat oven to 400°F (205°C).
Place the filled cold pan directly into the hot oven.
Bake at 400°F for 2 minutes.
Without opening the oven, reduce temperature to 375°F (190°C).
Continue baking 6–8 minutes, until edges are lightly golden and centers are domed.
Soft Eggnog Glaze
Cool madeleines for 5 minutes.
Brush or dip lightly with the soft eggnog glaze.
Let set briefly before serving.
expiry
Room Temperature: Store the madeleines (glazed or unglazed) in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. They are at their most tender on the day they are baked. Refreshing: If they soften or lose their light crispness, warm them without glaze in a 300°F (150°C) oven for 2–3 minutes to bring back their freshly baked texture. Glaze after refreshing, not before. Freezing: For best results, freeze the madeleines unglazed. Place cooled madeleines in an airtight container or freezer bag and freeze for up to 1 month. To serve, thaw at room temperature for 20–30 minutes, then refresh in a warm oven before adding the glaze.
tips
Chill both the batter and the pan. A cold batter going into a cold, buttered pan is what creates the classic madeleine hump. Don’t skip the rest time, it really does make the difference.
Don’t overfill the molds. Filling each cavity about three-quarters full gives the madeleines room to rise and form their characteristic dome without spilling over the edges.
