These buttery Orange Madeleine Cookies are flavored with the perfect amount of orange citrus and just a splash of orange liqueur to make them a special treat at any time.
Orange flavoring is welcome at any time of the year and pairing them with a simple drizzle of chocolate is a perfect marriage of flavors. Not wanting the chocolate? Then a simple dusting of icing sugar also makes these French Madeleines elegant too. Perfect with a cup of tea for an afternoon treat.
For more classic European cookies try these Cherry Almond Florentine Cookies, Italian Anise Cookies, or Speculoos Cookies. Or another orange liqueur treat with these Chocolate Dipped Grand Marnier Cherries.
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2 Pack Nonstick Madeleine Pan, 12-cup Heavy-Duty Shell Shape Baking Cake Mold Pan
Silicone Madeleine Pan 20 Cavity Shell Shaped Baking Mold Non-Stick Rectangular Cake Tray
What is a Madeleine Cookie?
Are Madeleine Cookies or Cake? French Madeleines are very small cakes but are often considered a cookie because of their size. They have a distinct shell shape by using the classic madeleine pan. That is all that these little spongy cakes need, no other special equipment, and in saying that you can make them in tiny muffin pans too.
The flavor is similar to a sponge cake but often like we have today other ingredients are added. Most commonly are lemon zest, coconut, vanilla extract, or ground almonds to impart other flavors to them. Sometimes in Europe, they are served with jam at afternoon tea. They are very popular all through Europe and the United Kingdom.
What are Madeleine Cookies Made of?
Simple ingredients that you should be able to find in any grocery store and liquor store. The only item that may cause you a slight hunt would be castor sugar which is what it is called in England. In Canada, we call it berry sugar. In the US it is called superfine sugar.
Castor sugar is a sugar that has a texture that is in between granulated sugar and confectioners sugar (powdered sugar or icing sugar). Castor sugar got its name from being served in a caster shaker for fresh fruit. I am sure that is why we call it berry sugar in Canada.
Ingredients
Butter, room temperature
Large eggs
Castor (berry) sugar
All-purpose flour (plus extra for dusting the pan)
Fresh squeezed orange juice
Orange liqueur (like Grand Marnier)
Baking powder
Salt
Orange
Finishing touches:
Powdered sugar (Confectioners sugar, or icing sugar) to dust on top
Or
Bittersweet chocolate
Orange liqueur (Like Grand Marnier)
Madeleine Cookies are simple to make, just follow our easy steps for a great result.
Melt the butter in a microwave-safe bowl, then set aside to cool slightly.
In a bowl of a stand mixer add the eggs and sugar and whisk together on high speed until foamy.
Add the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a small bowl. Then add the flour mixture along with the orange juice, orange liqueur, orange zest, and melted butter to the egg/sugar mixture.
Slowly whisk until everything is fully mixed together.
Place the Madeleine batter in the fridge for 30 minutes to chill.
Preheat your oven to 400 F.
Once the batter has sufficiently chilled and the oven is preheated remove the batter from the refrigerator.
Brush the Madeleine pan with more melted butter and dust lightly with flour, shake off any excess flour from the pan. This will help to prevent the madeleines from sticking too much.
Spoon the batter into your madeleine tray, filling each shell about ¾ full. The batter will not spread too much in the oven, only rise upward into a classic hump.
Baking the Madeleines
Bake for 10-12 minutes until golden brown. The top should be springy to the touch and a toothpick or cake tester inserted into the middle should come out clean.
You can see the traditional hump that makes a great madeleine! This is created because the batter is chilled and a burst of steam creates the must-needed hump in a well-baked madeleine recipe. Also, note the crispy delightful edges these cookies have. I bet you can’t wait to try to make your own.
Remove the pan from the oven and as soon as possible loosen the Madeleines from the pan using a fork. Gently remove the madeleines and place them on a cooling rack. Note: if you leave the Madeleines in the pan to cool, they will stick! If using a silicone pan they come out very easily.
Repeat the baking process by buttering and flouring the pan between each baking until the batter is used.
Once the Madeleines have cooled place them on a sheet of wax paper.
You can dust them with powdered sugar or melt the chocolate mixing in the orange liquor and drizzling the tops of the madeleines with the chocolate. (I use a zipper bag to drizzle the chocolate. Fill the bag with the melted chocolate and seal, then snip the corner of the bag to create a very small hole.)
Drizzle the chocolate over the Madeleines and allow the chocolate to set.
Can you Freeze Madeleine Cookies?
The Madeleines will stay fresh for 2-3 days if stored in an airtight container. You can also freeze them for up to 3 months.
It is better to thaw them and decorate than to try to freeze them with icing sugar or the chocolate drizzle as both will not look good after thawing.
The little Madeleine cookie if wrapped properly can easily withstand freezing and still be delightful. Ours simply disappear quickly though but they will store for a great make-ahead cookie/cake for the holidays too. Plus orange and chocolate work so nicely for the holiday season too. Also, try making some of our very popular Freezable Christmas Cookie Recipes.
Who Invented Madeleine Cookies?
Like many other recipes, there are several paths or claims to fame that you can take to learn where the invention of the madeleine came from. All of them coming through France with Nobel distinction right down to a pilgrim named Madeleine from Spain (my favorite version). You can read more of the interesting history of the madeleine here at Wikipedia.
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Orange Madeleine Cookies
Ingredients
- 2/3 cup butter plus extra for greasing the pan
- 4 large eggs
- 3/4 cup castor berry sugar
- 1 cup plus 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour plus extra for dusting the pan
- 1 Tbsp fresh squeezed orange juice
- 1 Tbsp orange liqueur like Grand Marnier
- 3/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/8 tsp salt
- Zest from 1 large orange
Finishing touches:
- ½ cup powdered sugar to dust on top
- Or
- ½ cup bitter sweet chocolate with a 2 tsp of orange liquor to drizzle over top.
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a microwave-safe bowl, then set aside to cool slightly.
- In a bowl of a stand mixer add the eggs and sugar and whisk together on high speed until foamy.
- Add the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a small bowl. Then add the flour mixture along with the orange juice, orange liqueur, orange zest, and melted butter to the egg/sugar mixture.
- Slowly whisk until everything is fully mixed together.
- Place the Madeleine batter in the fridge for 30 minutes to chill.
- Preheat your oven to 400 F.
- Once the batter has sufficiently chilled and the oven is preheated remove the batter from the refrigerator.
- Brush the Madeleine pan with more melted butter and dust lightly with flour, shake off any excess flour from the pan. This will help to prevent the madeleines from sticking too much.
- Spoon the batter into your madeleine tray, filling each shell about ¾ full. The batter will not spread too much in the oven, only rise upward into a classic hump.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes until golden brown. The top should be springy to the touch and a toothpick or cake tester inserted into the middle should come out clean.
- You can see the traditional hump that makes a great madeleine! This is created because the batter is chilled and a burst of steam creates the must-needed hump in a well-baked madeleine recipe. Also, note the crispy delightful edges these cookies have. I bet you can’t wait to try to make your own.
- Remove the pan from the oven and as soon as possible loosen the Madeleines from the pan using a fork. Gently remove the madeleines and place them on a cooling rack. Note: if you leave the Madeleines in the pan to cool, they will stick! If using a silicone pan they come out very easily.
- Repeat the baking process by buttering and flouring the pan between each baking until the batter is used.
- Once the Madeleines have cooled place them on a sheet of wax paper.
- You can dust them with powdered sugar or melt the chocolate mixing in the orange liquor and drizzling the tops of the madeleines with the chocolate. (I use a zipper bag to drizzle the chocolate. Fill the bag with the melted chocolate and seal, then snip the corner of the bag to create a very small hole.)
- Drizzle the chocolate over the Madeleines and allow the chocolate to set.
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