Matcha-Honey Madeleines
Brown butter and an overnight rest do most of the work.
These are soft, buttery madeleines scented with matcha and honey, finished with a glossy white chocolate matcha shell. Browning the butter gives them a deeper, almost toasted flavour, while the overnight rest helps create that classic madeleine hump.
Matcha-Honey Madeleines
Makes 12
INGREDIENTS:
For the madeleines:
2 large eggs
60 g light or medium floral honey
30 g almond flour
70 g all-purpose flour
5 g high-quality matcha, sifted
4 g (1 tsp) baking powder
1 pinch fine salt
110 g unsalted brown butter, recipe below
1 tsp vanilla extract
Zest of ½ lemon
For the Matcha Glaze:
100 g white chocolate
10 g olive oil
4 g sifted matcha
Pinch of sea salt
Equipment:
Madeleine tray
Piping bag
Mixing bowls
Whisk
Rubber spatula
Fine mesh sieve
Digital kitchen scale
Microplane or fine grater
Cooling rack
Baking paper
METHOD
Make the brown butter (recipe below) and let it cool.
Whisk the eggs and honey until smooth and slightly frothy, but not whipped. Whisk in the vanilla and lemon zest.
Sift together the almond flour, all-purpose flour, matcha, baking powder and salt.
Fold the dry ingredients into the egg and honey mixture just until smooth.
Pour in the cooled brown butter in two additions, folding gently after each until completely incorporated and emulsified.
Cover tightly and refrigerate for 12 to 24 hours. This rest hydrates the flour, develops the flavour and helps create the characteristic madeleine hump.
Butter the madeleine tray generously, dust with flour and tap out the excess. Chill the tray until you are ready to bake.
Preheat the oven to 175 °C.
Holding the piping bag upright and close to the tray, pipe the cold batter into the centre of each mould, filling to just below the rim. Don’t spread it, it will find its own edges in the oven.
Bake for 9 to 11 minutes, until the edges are golden, the centre spring back when lightly touched and a skewer comes out clean. Do not underbake.
Leave in the tray for 5 minutes, then carefully unmould and cool completely on a rack.
For the glaze, melt the white chocolate and olive oil together in a bain-marie, stirring constantly. Take the bowl off the heat while a few small lumps remain and keep stirring until they disappear. The heat in the bowl will finish it. It’s ready when it’s smooth, glossy and runs off the spatula in a thin, even ribbon. It should feel warm on your wrist, never hot. Whisk in the sifted matcha and salt until smooth.
Dip the shell side of each cooled madeleine into the glaze and set on baking paper. Chill briefly until the chocolate sets.
Glaze, two ways
The glaze can simply be dipped, or served on the side for dipping.
For a cleaner bakery style finish with a firmer set, reduce the olive oil in the glaze to 4 to 6 g. Spoon a little glaze into each clean madeleine mould, press a cooled madeleine gently back into each cavity and refrigerate until the chocolate is completely set. Lift out carefully.
Kitchen Notes:
– These are best within 6 hours of glazing, while the crumb is still moist.
– The unglazed madeleines can be frozen for up to 1 month. Thaw at room temperature, refresh for 2 minutes at 160°C, cool and glaze before serving.
Brown Butter (Beurre Noisette)
Brown butter starts as regular melted butter, but as it cooks, the water evaporates and the milk solids at the bottom begin to toast. That’s what creates its deep, nutty, almost hazelnut-like flavor.
Makes about 120 g brown butter
Ingredients
150 g unsalted butter
Equipment:
Small saucepan, for the brown butter
Heatproof bowl
Digital kitchen scale
METHOD
Put the butter in a clean, dry pan over medium heat. It will first melt, then foam as the water cooks off. Give the pan a gentle swirl every 15 to 20 seconds.
After a few minutes, the foam will begin to thin and golden milk solids will appear on the bottom of the pan. The aroma will change from buttery to deeply nutty and toasted. This usually takes around 5 to 8 minutes, depending on the pan, heat and quantity of butter.
As soon as the butter reaches a deep golden colour, remove it from the heat and pour it immediately into a heatproof bowl to stop the cooking.
If the milk solids are golden, keep them. They hold much of the flavour. If they have burned and turned black, strain them out through a fine sieve.
Watch the colour and aroma rather than the clock. Brown butter can go from perfect to burnt very quickly.