Freshly baked madeleines are magic. Always a crowdpleaser, they take minutes to bake once the batter is made. I used to think that the only way to enjoy a madeleine was warm, but have since grown to appreciate how soft and buttery they remain once cool. They can easily be embellished, too. I’ve had citrussy madeleines served with lemon icing for dipping, while at Maison François in London they feature on the dessert trolley, piped with a pistachio ganache centre and dipped in a delicate white-chocolate shell. Here, I’ve put coffee grounds in the batter and recommend serving them with bowls of chocolate spread and jersey cream.
Coffee madeleines
Prep 15 min
Rest 1 hr
Cook 10 min
Makes 30 madeleines
150g unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing
160g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
2 tbsp golden syrup
1 tsp coffee grounds
3 large eggs
160g golden caster sugar
1½ tsp baking powder
Salt
1 tbsp camp coffee extract
Chocolate spread, to serve
Jersey cream, to serve
Heat the oven to 200C (180C fan)/390F/gas 6, and liberally grease and flour the madeleine moulds; if you have only one tray, don’t worry – the batter mix will keep for up to three days in the fridge, so you can bake a fresh batch as and when you want.
In a small saucepan set over a low heat, warm the golden syrup, butter and coffee grounds, stirring until just melted. Take off the heat and leave to cool slightly.
In a large bowl, whisk the eggs and sugar together until the mixture is pale and thick. In another bowl, sift the plain flour, baking powder and a pinch of salt.
Slowly combine the cooled melted butter mixture and the camp coffee extract, gently fold in the sifted dry ingredients, taking care not to overmix, then fold all this into the eggs and sugar mixture. Cover the bowl and leave the batter to rest in the fridge for at least an hour.
Once the batter has rested, spoon it into the prepared madeleine moulds, filling each mould about three-quarters full, then bake for eight to 10 minutes, or until the madeleines are golden and spring back when pressed lightly.
Remove the madeleines from the oven, leave them to cool in their moulds for a few minutes. Serve with a bowl each of your favourite chocolate spread and jersey cream, and dip them while they’re still warm.
• This article was amended on 4 March 2024 because an earlier version omitted to mention when to add the whisked eggs and sugar mixture to the rest of the ingredients.
