Lavender & Lemon Madeleines

These charming dainty French Lavender & Lemon Madeleines have my heart. Beautiful, easy to make and so scrumptious!

The Lavender & Lemon Madeleines are buttery with a tender crumb, delicately flavoured and aromatic. You could not ask for a more delightful little treat!  All they need is a shower of icing sugar....and they are ready to eat.  They are best eaten fresh, still warm from the oven,  with a cup of tea and an occasional dunking in it.

Madeleines are scallop-shaped French tea cakes that are ribbed are on one side and have a characteristic hump on the other. Turns out they aren't all that difficult to make, nor do they need any fancy ingredients, with the exception of edible lavender used in this recipe.  You can easily omit it and still have a great baked good.

The Madeleine was made famous by Marcel Proust in his novel 'Remembrance of Things Past'. Their origin is said to be in the French town of Commercy, in the region of Lorraine, during the 18th century. There is a story that these cakes were served to Stanislaw Lezczynski, Duke of Lorraine, and he like them so much he named them "Madeleines" after the girl who made them. - Joy of Baking

How to Make the Lavender & Lemon Madeleines

• Melt butter in the microwave or in a small saucepan over low heat. Add lavender and let it infuse for 15 -20 minutes. Strain it in a small bowl. Discard the leaves.
• In another bowl, sift together flour and baking powder. Sifting is key for a fine crumb.
• Next, prepare the lemon & sugar mixture by rubbing lemon zest into the sugar with your fingers.
• Beat the eggs with the lemony sugar in a large bowl till pale and thick. Add the honey and vanilla and beat for another minute.
• Gently fold in the dry ingredients using a spatula.
• Then slowly fold in the butter. Cover the bowl and refrigerate the batter for a minimum of 3 hours or for up to 2 days.
• Preheat oven to 200C. Grease and flour 12 madeleine moulds. If you have a silicone pan, no prep is needed.
• Spoon the batter into the moulds, about three-quarters of the way. There is no need to level the batter.
• Bake for 12 -15 minutes or until they are golden and the tops are springy to touch.

Important recipe notes -

1. Fold the flour and melted the butter gently.  Avoid overmixing.

2. Chill the batter for at least 3 hours.  This ensures the cakes get that distinctive hump.  A lot of recipes also recommend chilling the baking pan.  I did not follow that suggestion.

3. Do grease and flour the moulds very well, if using a traditional madeleine pan.  Non-stick ones are very reliable as are the silicon ones ( these are what I have).

For more beautiful, easy madeleine recipes: 

• Cardamom Pistachio Madeleines
• Chocolate Madeleines
• Coconut Ginger Madeleines
• Coffee Hazlenut Madeleines
• Classic Lemon Madeleines

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The recipe for these Lavender & Lemon Madeleines is adapted from Dorie Greenspan's Baking From My Home to Yours