*crispy waffle*

Several weeks ago, we took a short trip to Lorraine, France to check out some World War II historical sites, as well as to eat some quiche lorraine at the source. One thing I hadn't realized is that in the province of Lorraine is the town of Commercy, famous for madeleines. Madeleines are, of course, the famous little cakes that triggered the memories that triggered Proust's novel A la recherche de temps perdu, (Rememberance of Things Past). (And no, I'm not the preeminent Proust scholar in the country.)

I mentioned that we were going to the region where madeleines were invented to the 10-year-old. I told her they were the cute little shell-shaped cakes. She immediately recounted her Remembrance of Madeleines Past. "Oh yeah, madeleines. I remember we were in Starbucks once and you wouldn't buy one for me." Doh! So I let her know that, "Yeah, but now you get to have madeleines that are actually good."

Although we didn't get to Commercy, she was able to have one for dessert in the town of Verdun. While we were there, I went into a hardware store to buy a couple of madeleine tins. The ones that are tinned metal rather than non-stick are actually kind of hard to find here in Holland. Some of these local little hardware stores are really weird in rural France. Right next to vacuum cleaner bags, you might find a full array of Le Creuset cookware in all colors. Anyway, I found the tins (6 euros each!) and tried to find the checkout counter. First of all, let me say that this store clearly hadn't changed since 1964. And neither had its clientele. I was the only one there under the age of, oh, 60 or so. And did I mention the lighting was like it was a garage? And there was no heat on so the proprietors were wearing their winter coats? So after waiting in line for what seemed like forever, I had to ditch the pans and leave because 1) there didn't appear to be a cash register anywhere in site, and 2) Kyle was waiting outside for me with a screaming baby.

Unfortunately, I haven't been able to find those same pans here-- only non-stick and silicone. So in the meantime, tiny tin brioche pans have had to do. So maybe these technically aren't madeleines then, but teacakes. They are a bit on the dense and slightly dry side (as true madeleines are), but I've given them a bit of an orange flavor, and they are really nice for dunking in coffee or tea, if you want to go all Proust on it.

These are really easy to make -- it is basically a standard genoise batter spooned into smaller molds. Have all ingredients at room temperature, particularly the eggs, as this is an important factor. As there is no leavener, make sure to beat the eggs until they've tripled in volume. They will give the cakes their lift. As a result, it's important to use the batter right away.

Teacakes not Madeleines
Makes 24 teacakes

Ingredients
4 large eggs, room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
zest from one orange
pinch salt
1 cup sifted all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons butter, melted then cooled to room temperature

Preheat oven to 400 F. (200 C). Butter and flour the molds, generously. This is really important if you are using standard tins, but do it anyway if you are using non-stick because it will still make removal easier.
Combine the eggs and sugar in the bowl of a standing mixer. Beat on medium-high until it has tripled in volume and a ribbon forms, about 3 minutes. Beat in the orange zest and salt.
Sprinkle one third of the flour over the egg mixture. Gently fold it in until combined. Repeat twice more, with the rest of the flour, being sure to fold as gently as possible.
Place the butter in a medium bowl. Stir in one third of the egg/flour mixture. Pour the butter/egg/flour mixture back into the rest of the batter, making sure, once again to fold as gently as possible.
Pour immediately into the molds. Bake for 10 minutes. Let the cakes cool in the molds for 5 minutes then remove to a rack. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve immediately.

Labels: recipes, the sweet, travel

posted by sheryl | 3:26 PM | comments (1)