Saffron Madeleines
Makes 12 madeleines
Madeleines are made with a sponge cake batter, but they are still generally considered cookies. You can serve these dusted with icing sugar, or, if you’re feeling a little extra, you can coat them in a thin shell of chocolate. Madeleines are best served the day they’re baked since they tend to dry out quickly. To make this, you will need a 12-cavity madeleine pan. To make these eggless, use ⅓ cup (70g) aquafaba in place of the whole egg and egg yolk and add 1 teaspoon of cornstarch to the dry ingredients.
• ½ cup (60g) all-purpose flour
• ⅛ tsp kosher salt
• ¼ tsp baking powder
• ¼ cup (50g) granulated sugar
• 2 tsp honey
• 1 large egg, at room temperature
• 1 large egg yolk, at room temperature
• 4 tbsp (57g) unsalted butter, melted
• 5 or 6 saffron threads
• Melted butter, for the madeleine pan
White chocolate shell
• ½ cup (85g) white chocolate melting wafers
• powdered food colouring (orange and pink)
• gold leaf
For the saffron madeleines
In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, salt and baking powder.
In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk, beat the sugar, honey, whole egg and egg yolk until the mixture is pale, thick, and fluffy ‒ 2 to 3 minutes. Sift the dry ingredients over the mixture and then fold in until just combined. Add the melted butter and saffron and gently fold until well incorporated. Pour the batter into a piping bag and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight.
When ready to bake, brush melted butter into the cavities of the madeleine pan and freeze the pan while your oven preheats. Preheat the oven to 220°C.
Pipe 1 tablespoon of batter into each cavity (about 21g each). The batter will spread out on its own while it bakes, so there is no need to spread it.
Bake the madeleines for 2 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 200°C and bake until the edges turn golden brown, another 4-5 minutes.
Let the madeleines cool for 5 minutes in the pan before turning them out onto a wire rack.
For the white chocolate shell
In a microwave-safe bowl, microwave the chocolate in 15-second increments, stirring well after each until the chocolate has melted. (Alternatively, if you don’t have a microwave, bring a small pot of water to a boil and set a small, heatproof bowl on top of the pot, making sure the bowl does not touch the water. Add the chocolate to the bowl and stir until melted ‒ about 2 minutes.)
Wipe down the madeleine pan and pipe 2 to 3 teaspoons of white chocolate into each cavity. Gently press each madeleine shell face down into the chocolate. Refrigerate the pan for 5 to 10 minutes, or until the chocolate sets. Remove each madeleine from the pan.
Take a small fluffy brush like a blush brush and lightly dip it into the pink powdered food colouring. Brush and buff the colour onto the chocolate, leaving some white spaces. Repeat with the orange powder in the white spaces. Blend the pink and orange so that it looks seamless. Use a small brush to add gold leaf.
Orange-Pineapple Cake
This summer, I shared on my Instagram my family’s ice-cream spot in New Jersey, Applegate Farm. Turns out my family weren’t the only ones obsessed with their orange-pineapple ice cream. We always had a gallon tub of it in our freezer for when guests came over, especially around Diwali. I’m not sure what made this flavour so popular with Desis in Jersey, but it is, and it’s delicious! This cake is super fluffy, and the whipped cream topping makes it even lighter and gives it that creamy flavour and feel.
Makes one 23cm cake
• softened butter, for the pan
• 1 egg white, at room temperature
• 1 cup plus 3 tbsp (141g) cake flour
• 1½ tsp baking powder
• ¼ tsp kosher salt
• ¾ cup (150g) granulated sugar
• 1 tbsp grated orange zest
• 4 tbsps (56g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tbsp orange juice
• ½ cup (123g) crushed pineapple, fresh or canned
Topping
• 1 cup (240ml) heavy cream
• ¼ cup (28g) icing sugar, or to taste
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• orange slices and edible flowers, for decoration
For the orange-pineapple cake
Preheat the oven to 180°C. Line a 23cm round cake pan with parchment paper and grease well with softened butter.
In a small bowl, with an electric mixer, beat the egg white on high until stiff peaks form. The whipped egg white should hold a peak when a whisk is dipped into it without flopping to the side. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the granulated sugar and orange zest and use your fingers to rub the zest into the sugar until the sugar is pale orange. Snap on the paddle, add the butter, and mix at high speed for 4 minutes.
Add the vanilla, orange juice and crushed pineapple and mix well for 1 minute. It might look curdled. That’s okay – don’t stress! Add the flour mixture and mix until it is just incorporated. Fold in the whipped egg whites until there are no streaks of white or yellow batter. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and spread it into an even layer with a spatula.
Bake until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean ‒ 25 to 30 minutes.
Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
For the topping
In a bowl, whisk the heavy cream, icing sugar and vanilla until you reach stiff peaks ‒ 4 to 5 minutes. Do not overmix this; otherwise, you will end up with butter! Spoon the whipped cream onto the cake and spread it over the entirety. Decorate with orange slices and edible flowers.
Make it eggless
Use 3 tbsp (40g) of aquafaba in place of the egg whites and whip as directed.
