Sunday, June 9, 2013

Graham Cracker Madeleines


After the rich indulgence I posted last week, I was determined this week to make something lighter.  These cookies were a nice alternative.  Something a little sweet to have with tea or coffee.

Someone at work said that these were a pain to make, however, I beg to differ.  You can make the batter on one day and bake the next, so each process is easier to squeeze into the day. I actually made three different kinds, but this recipe turned out to be the favorite. 

Graham cracker flavored anything is hard to come by in baked goods, except for cheesecake crust and playing the part in a s'more type of treat. I did like the stand alone flavor of these, which is why they have no glaze on them.  You can take it up a notch and dip them in chocolate if you crave something a little sweeter.  As is, the cake-like, moist texture makes them perfect for dunking. The recipe makes about 2 dozen cookies.

Graham Cracker Madeleines
adapted from We Love Madeleines

Ingredients
1/2 cup or 1 stick melted butter
2 eggs (room temp)
3/4 cup flour
1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
2/3 cup of sugar
 
Place the eggs and sugar in a bowl and beat on medium high speed for about 5 minutes.  The mixture should convert to a pale yellow, shiny batter and the sugar be totally dissolved. Using a wooden spoon, fold in the graham crumbs and the flour until all is blended.  Then stir in the butter until it is completely incorporated into the batter.

Pour batter into a shallow bowl and cover the surface with plastic wrap.  Refrigerate batter for at least one hour or the maximum, which is overnight.  After the chill time, preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Also, prepare your pans by greasing the cavities with melted butter and then dusting with flour.

Spoon or pipe the batter into the pan cavities evenly.  They should be about 2/3 full.  Place pans in oven, putting one pan on a rack to the right and the other pan on the rack below it to the left.  They should be staggered to bake evenly.  Bake for about 10-12 minutes, rotating pans at the halfway mark.  Madeleines are done when tester inserted into the thickest part comes out clean.

After the pans are removed from the oven, invert cookies onto wire rack for cooling.  These can be served warm or at room temperature.

Tips and Notes:
1. Regardless of pan type (shiny, silicone or non stick) the pans need to be greased and floured for every batch baked.
2. If using a non-stick pan, take note that it is darker so the cookies will brown faster.  In the non-stick pans, mine took about 7-8 minutes.
3. if you only have 1 pan, refrigerate the batter between batches.
                                 **LAST YEAR: German Carmelite Sister Cookies**