Traditional madeleines require a special baking pan, however, not everyone has the room in their kitchen to store a baking pan that serves only one purpose. For these, cinnamon sugar madeleines, you can use whichever baking tin you have available. And while I used an adorable acorn baking tin, you could certainly use a cupcake tin in its place. After all, appearance isn’t everything. No matter what shape or size, I know that you’re going to just love the buttery, sweet cinnamon taste of these madeleines.
Making homemade madeleines was most definitely not on my list of things to do in life. First of all, because I’ve never even tasted one. Quite honestly, they just don’t look like my cup of tea, mainly because, to me, they appear to be highfalutin fancy-pants cakey bits. Yeah, no. I am so not that girl who gets all cuckoo for cocoa puffs over anything cake-related. And secondly, they require a specially-shaped baking pan. Um yeah, once again no. Do you have any idea how many baking pans I currently have stored in my garage? The last thing I need is another one just to make one particular type of baked good. B.O.B. Bob would most definitely give me the dreaded what the heck are you storing in my garage now look.
So, for this recipe, I decided to cheat and use this acorn baking pan which I have had for several years but never used. It just goes to show you, that you can often make do with what you have on hand. And you know what, I think these look much cuter than traditional madeleines. Now, do they taste the same? No freaking clue. Remember, I’ve never actually had one before. I guess I should put that on my list of things to do in life, right? All I know is that these were buttery, sweet, and packed with a lovely cinnamon sugar flavor. And you know what? I can live with that.
Ingredients:
Cinnamon Sugar:
- 2 Tablespoons Light Brown Sugar, Packed
- 1/2 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
Madeleines:
- 2 Eggs
- 1/2 Cup Granulated Sugar
- 1 Tablespoon Vanilla
- 1/2 Teaspoon Kosher Salt
- 1/2 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
- 1 Cup All-Purpose Flour
- 10 Tablespoon Unsalted Butter, Melted
Directions:
Cinnamon Sugar:
- In a small bowl, mix the brown sugar and cinnamon together with a fork until well combined.
- Add a healthy pinch of the cinnamon and brown sugar mixture to the bottom of each well of the baking pan mold you are using; set aside.
Madeleines:
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk the eggs and sugar together for 6 minutes with a whisk.
- Add the vanilla, salt, and cinnamon; whisk for 1 minute.
- Add the flour 1/4-cup at a time and whisk until just combined.
- Add 1/4 of the melted butter and whisk until just combined. Repeat this step three more times until all of the butter is mixed in.
- Spoon the batter into a large resealable plastic bag, snip off the corner, and then pipe the batter into the prepared baking pan.
- Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, or until cooked through.
Suggestions:
- I know, I know, whisking the eggs and sugar together for 6 minutes feels like forever, however, it is an important step to this recipe. Make it a game. Get everyone in the family involved. More hands will make the job of whisking the egg and sugar mixture almost painless.
- You don’t need a madeleine pan to make madeleines. Sure, they won’t be as pretty, however, they will still be quite delicious. Almost everyone has cupcake tins in their cabinet, and these will work quite well for this recipe. The only downside to using different baking pans is that you may not achieve the hump associated with most madeleines. I suggest using mini cupcake tins and filling them 3/4 full.
- The baking time for these madeleines will vary depending on the pan you use and the amount of batter you pour into each baking pan mold. For these acorn madeleines, I filled each mold 3/4 full and it took approximately 12 minutes for them to bake.
- The acorn pan I used for this recipe is made by Nordic Ware and makes 18 acorn-shaped madeleines. This pan is no longer available for sale in stores, however, there are several other similar pans for sale that can be used in its place. I highly encourage you to buy any baking pan made by Nordic Ware. They are far superior to other baking pans available on the market.
Improvements:
- Add very finely chopped pecans or walnuts to the cinnamon and brown sugar mixture.
- Replace half of the vanilla in this recipe with almond extract.
Ingredients:
- 2 Tablespoons Light Brown Sugar, Packed
- 1/2 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
- 2 Eggs
- 1/2 Cup Granulated Sugar
- 1 Tablespoon Vanilla
- 1/2 Teaspoon Kosher Salt
- 1/2 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
- 1 Cup All-Purpose Flour
- 10 Tablespoon Unsalted Butter, Melted
Directions:
- In a small bowl, mix the brown sugar and cinnamon together with a fork until well combined.
- Add a healthy pinch of the cinnamon and brown sugar mixture to the bottom of each well of the baking pan mold you are using; set aside.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk the eggs and sugar together for 6 minutes with a whisk.
- Add the vanilla, salt, and cinnamon; whisk for 1 minute.
- Add the flour 1/4-cup at a time and whisk until just combined.
- Add 1/4 of the melted butter and whisk until just combined. Repeat this step three more times until all of the butter is mixed in.
- Spoon the batter into a large resealable plastic bag, snip off the corner, and then pipe the batter into the prepared baking pan.
- Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, or until cooked through.
PIN THIS RECIPE
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Make sure to check out all of the other great Baking Bloggers “Madeleines” recipes below. A huge thanks to Palatable Pastime for hosting this event.
- Acorn Madeleines with Cinnamon Sugar from Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice
- Chocolate & Orange Madeleines from Making Miracles
- Chocolate Madeleines from A Day in the Life on the Farm
- Eggless Rose Madeleines from Magical Ingredients
- Green Chile Cornbread Madeleines from Culinary Adventures with Camilla
- Key Lime Madeleines from Palatable Pastime
- Lemon Madeleines from Sneha’s Recipe
- Pistachio Madeleines from Karen’s Kitchen Stories