Chocolate Orange Madeleines

These chocolate orange madeleines are classic, light & airy french madeleines. They are extremely easy to make and are ready in no time. These delicate, little sea-shell shaped sponge cakes are sweet, buttery, and so delicious. The shells are orange flavored dipped in a shiny chocolate glaze and dusted with powdered sugar. These madeleines have slightly crisp edges with a soft melt in your mouth crumb throughout. They are so fluffy & go very well with a cup of your evening tea or coffee! 

Ingredients you’ll need to make these madeleines:

• All-purpose flour: I highly recommend weighing all your ingredients using a kitchen scale for accurate recipe results. If you’re using cups, don’t scoop your cup into the flour. Spoon the flour into your cup and level it off with the back of a knife. 
• Unsalted butter: It is very important to have your butter at room temperature. You can ensure this by lightly pressing your finger on the block of butter. It should slightly leave an imprint. I also prefer to use unsalted butter because salted butters have varying amounts of salt content in them and it is always a good idea to add it on your own and avoid your bakes from being too salty.
• Brown sugar: Brown sugar adds more softness and moisture to your cake along with also helping the madeleines to hold their shape and structure. 
• Eggs: Use large eggs and bring them to room temperature before mixing in. Eggs strengthen the binding of your bakes and also add moisture. Having your eggs at room temperature makes it easier to incorporate them and allow them to mix thoroughly in your madeleine batter. A good way of doing this is by letting them sit in a bowl filled with room temperature water for around 10 minutes or until they come down to room temperature.
• Extra egg yolk: This extra egg yolk helps to add moisture and softness to achieve that soft crumb along with having slightly crisp edges. 
• Chocolate extract: You must use a pure & high quality extract in your recipes. This helps to add a rich flavor to your baked goods. I have added a chocolate extract here to complement with the chocolate glaze of the madeleines and blend well with the orange. However, feel free to substitute it with vanilla extract.
• Orange zest: Citrus zests are known to add more flavor and fragrance to your bakes. You must not leave them out.
• Orange juice: In my experience, homemade orange juice gives an incredibly better flavor than store bought orange juice. I highly recommend that you put in those few extra minutes and use homemade orange juice for a rich, preservatives-free flavor.
• Chocolate: I highly recommend using good quality baking chocolate chips or chocolate bars (I use callebaut) to ensure the best flavor. This will also help you get a very silky and shiny chocolate ganache glaze.
• Powdered sugar: You will need some for dusting on top of baked and glazed madeleines.

Some Notes:

Other Cake recipes you may like:

• Rainbow Funfetti Vanilla Layer Cake
• Single Layer Chocolate Ganache Buttermilk Cake
• Ultra Soft Brown Butter Orange & Cinnamon Layer Cake

Some other tips to make this recipe:

• You must ensure that you chill your madeleine batter for at-least 1 hour before baking them. This helps to give the madeleines the beautifully detailed texture of the sea-shell they have.
• You should always sift your dry ingredients together before making madeleines as it helps them get that light & airy texture. 
• Madeleines are best served within one hour of baking them. They lose moisture quite quickly, so you shouldn’t bake them ahead of time. But you can always make the batter ahead of time and bake off fresh batches as needed. 
• If you don’t have a chocolate extract, you can always substitute it with a pure vanilla extract instead. However I don’t recommend omitting extracts as they help a lot in enhancing the flavor of your bakes.
• I highly recommend investing in an oven thermometer and a kitchen scale. Baking at accurate temperatures and weighing your ingredients correctly ensure that you can replicate the recipes perfectly and enjoy the best flavors.

Happy Baking!

Chocolate Orange Madeleines

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• Author: Shambhavi
• Total Time: 1 hour 50 minutes (includes chilling time)
• Yield: 18 madeleines 1x

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Description

These chocolate orange madeleines are classic, light & airy french madeleines. They are extremely easy to make and are ready in no time. These delicate, little sea-shell shaped sponge cakes are sweet, buttery, and so delicious. The shells are orange flavored dipped in a shiny chocolate glaze and dusted with powdered sugar. These madeleines have slightly crisp edges with a soft melt in your mouth crumb throughout. They are so fluffy & go very well with a cup of your evening tea or coffee! 

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

Orange Madeleines

• 1 cup (125g) all-purpose flour, sifted
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ½ cup (113g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• ¼ cup (55g) brown sugar
• ¼ cup (50g) granulated sugar 
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 large egg yolk, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon pure chocolate extract, see notes for substitute
• zest of one orange
• 2 tablespoons orange juice, preferably homemade
• powdered sugar for dusting

Chocolate Glaze

• ¼ cup (56g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• ¼ cup (40g) dark chocolate chunks or chips

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Instructions

Orange Madeleines

1. In a large bowl, add the unsalted butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar. Using a hand mixer or a stand mixer, beat on medium speed until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add in the eggs, egg yolk and chocolate or vanilla extract. Beat again until combined. The mixture will now be light and fluffy. Stir in the orange zest and orange juice.
2. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt.
3. Add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients about 4-5 tablespoons at a time and beat on low speed until combined. Repeat until all dry ingredients are added. 
4. Chill the madeleine batter in the refrigerator for atleast an hour and upto 2 days. This will help result in very detailed madeleines, I do not recommend omitting this step.
5. Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Meanwhile, grease a madeleine pan with melted butter and set aside.
6. Transfer the batter to a piping bag fitted with any or no tip and pipe (or spoon) it into the pan, dividing equally in all moulds. Fill only ¾th of the mould. 
7. Bake madeleines at 350°F (177°C) for 11-13 minutes until completely set and slightly browned edges.
8. Remove the madeleine tray from the oven and place it on a wire rack. Allow to cool completely in the pan before flipping them.
9. Serve madeleines warm or within one hour of baking them. If you have to store them, however I do not recommend doing so, make sure you don’t dust them with powdered sugar or glaze them to help them retain maximum amounts of moisture. 

Chocolate Glaze

1. While the cake is baking, prepare the chocolate ganache buttercream. 
2. In a large microwaveable bowl, add the chocolate (preferably chopped). Add cubed unsalted butter to this bowl.
3. Microwave the mixture in 30 second intervals whisking vigorously in between. Repeat until the chocolate and butter are completely melted. You can also use a double boiler or follow the ‘bain-marie’ method for doing this. 
4. Let it cool down at room-temperature for about 5 minutes. It will thicken as it cools.

Assemble

1. To glaze half of the madeleines, dip them perpendicularly into the chocolate glaze so they are coated evenly. You can alternatively also dip them diagonally into the glaze. Repeat with other madeleines you want to glaze this way and transfer to chill in the refrigerator for atleast 5-10 minutes to help the glaze set.
2. To glaze the madeleines on top entirely, transfer the chocolate glaze to a piping bag fitted with any or no tip. Cut a small hole in the front if not using any tip. Pipe around 1 tablespoon of chocolate glaze into the madeleine pan spreading it evenly in the center. 
3. Place the madeleines onto the glaze sea-shell side down. Press slightly to help the glaze spread to all edges evenly.  Let the pan chill in the refrigerator for around 10-15 minutes. Take it out and flip the madeleines to get that chocolate glaze all over them.  
4. Dust all madeleines with powdered sugar and serve. 

Notes

• You must ensure that you chill your madeleine batter for at-least 1 hour before baking them. This helps to give the madeleines the beautifully detailed texture of the sea-shell they have.
• You should always sift your dry ingredients together before making madeleines as it helps them get that light & airy texture. 
• Madeleines are best served within one hour of baking them. They lose moisture quite quickly, so you shouldn’t bake them ahead of time. But you can always make the batter ahead of time and bake off fresh batches as needed. 
• If you don’t have a chocolate extract, you can always substitute it with a pure vanilla extract instead. However I don’t recommend omitting extracts as they help a lot in enhancing the flavor of your bakes.
• I highly recommend investing in an oven thermometer and a kitchen scale. Baking at accurate temperatures and weighing your ingredients correctly ensure that you can replicate the recipes perfectly and enjoy the best flavors.

• Prep Time: 30 minutes
• Cook Time: 12 minutes
• Category: Dessert
• Cuisine: French

Keywords: chocolate orange, madeleines, spring recipes, chocolate recipes, citrus season, sea-shell shaped cakes