What are madeleines?
Madeleines are distinguishable by their iconic shell shape and are most accurately described as cakes. (Montagné 642) The first recorded name of the delicacy, in 1767, points to this fact: gâteaux à la Madeleine (French for “cake in the manner of Madeleine”). (Oxford English Dictionary) They have often been erroneously described in English using the American term “cookie”, although anyone familiar with both would abhor describing madeleines as such. The ingredients used to make madeleines traditionally include sugar, flour, butter, and eggs. They may be flavored with lemon or, less commonly, orange-flower water. (Montagné 642) Variant recipes often include almonds, either pureed or as a flour. The taste of a madeleine should be light and buttery. They are “best eaten fresh from the oven, while the inside is moist and warm and the exterior exquisitely crisp.” (The New Food Lover’s Companion) British madeleines may be “baked in a dariole mould, coated with jam, dredged with desiccated
