French food Friday...Chocolate Chip Madeleines

recipe and photo from here

Bonjour mes belles,

This weeks recipe is a favourite of mine and I think that these would make fabulous Christmas gifts....

Chocolate Chip Madeleines

Makes 16-18 

• 2 medium eggs
• 85g (3 ¼ oz)  golden caster sugar
• 1 tbsp runny honey
• ½ tsp vanilla extract
• a pinch of fine sea salt
• 100g (3 ½ oz) plain flour

• 1 level tsp baking powder
• 75g (3oz) unsalted butter melted
• 75g (3oz) dark chocolate chips
• unsalted butter for the moulds
• icing sugar for dusting optional

1. For the perfectly turned out madeleine, silicone moulds work well. You will need two standard nine-hole madeleine moulds, or alternatively use fairy cake tins if you wish.
2. Whisk the eggs with the sugar, honey, vanilla and salt in a large bowl for 5-8 minutes until very pale and at least doubled in volume, using an electric whisk. Sift over and fold in the flour and baking powder, then the melted butter and chocolate chips. Cover and chill for an hour or two, or overnight. 
3. Preheat the oven to 240C/220C fan/gas 9. Butter 16-18 fairy cake or silicone madeleine moulds. Give the chilled mixture a good stir and fill the moulds by three quarters with a heaped teaspoon.  (Cook’s note: placing the chilled batter in a very hot oven, then progressively reducing the temperature, helps create the typical domed top of the madeleines).

Place the cakes in the oven, immediately turn the temperature down to 220C/200C fan/gas 7 and bake for 4 minutes (in which time a dip will form initially in the centre of the cakes). Now turn the oven down to 190C/170C fan/gas 5 and continue baking for another 3-5 minutes until domed and risen in the centre, the mixture is set and the edge of each cake is golden. Run a knife around the edge of each one. These are lovely eaten slightly warm, but good for a couple of days thereafter if stored in an airtight container. Dust with icing sugar before serving if wished. 

...trés bon vendredi à tous, Leeann x