The Home Economics Bit
Did you know?
Madeleines are mini, delicate sponge cakes with a distinctive shell shape due to being baked in a special scallop-shaped tin. Madeleines originated in the Lorraine region of France. They have a soft, light and aerated texture with a crisp edges, and are best enjoyed while they are still warm. The basic ingredients for madeleines are eggs, flour, butter and sugar; they are often lightly flavoured with a hint of zest or vanilla essence.

Gluten Free Madeleines
Delicate little gluten free sponges; airy and light inside with a contrasting crispiness around their edges.
Ingredients
- 120 g butter plus 2 tbsp extra – melted – to grease
- 120 g gluten free self raising flour
- 100 g granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs at room temp.
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tsp lemon zest
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a saucepan over a low-medium heat. Once melted, set aside to cool.
- Beat the sugar and eggs together until the mixture is pale and thick, and holds the figure of 8 when the whisk is lifted out of the batter (approx. 5-8 minutes using a handheld electric whisk/stand mixer).
- Add the vanilla extract and lemon zest and beat briefly until distributed evenly throughout the batter.
- Sieve in half of the flour and the salt. Gently fold in using a spatula or wooden spoon until combined.
- Fold in the remaining flour.
- Add one ladle of batter into the melted butter and stir until completely combined. Then add this to the rest of the batter; stir until the batter has thickened and looks smooth and shiny.
- Cover the batter and place in the fridge to chill for 40-45 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 180℃ and – using a pastry brush – grease the madeleine tin with 2 tbsp melted butter.
- Spoon 1 heaped tbsp of the cooled batter into the centre of each scalloped shape in the tin. Cover excess batter and place in the fridge if you don't have two madeleine tins to bake all of the batter at the same time.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes until risen and golden.
- Turn the madeleines out of the tin while they are still warm. Transfer onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
Best enjoyed freshly baked whilst still warm.
Can you keep the batter in the fridge overnight?
Hi Mary, I wouldn’t recommend keeping the batter in the fridge overnight as it would lose a lot of air which would affect the rise.