The
Doristas are
dévotées of Dorie Greenspan, and
Dorie has a couple of blogger groups, namely French Fridays with Dorie, and
Tuesdays with Dorie. (Quite a few of the Doristas are in mourning, as last week was the final week for French Fridays with Dorie. But their friendships will last forever...)
Each
week, the bloggers in these groups are given their marching orders: the recipe
they are all supposed to make.
I follow
(not really stalking, is it?) several of the Doristas, and am always fascinated
to read and see how the results of a single recipe differ from one maker to another.
For
example, for the Veal Marengo one week, I saw versions that used lamb, beef,
chicken, and - surprise! - veal.
There
were a variety of reasons for the alternate choices - unavailability, political
reasons, and family preferences. It's a lot of fun to see how each Dorista
treats a recipe.
This
week, I chose to make the recipe that they all made - lemon madeleines. I was
fascinated was everyone’s results, and enjoyed their commentary. They are requested
(by Dorie) not to print the recipe but, if it has been published, they will
often include a link.
I made
the recipe as written (unglazed and dusted with confectioner's sugar) and, as
always, ask myself, "What will I do differently next time?" I'm not
saying that Dorie’s
isn't perfect, but I would make a few changes: more lemon zest and less salt.
I used
exactly the prescribed amount of
fleur de sel (from my copious
collection of salts) for my first batch, and it overwhelmed the lemon and butter - the
flavors that I love so much in a madeleine. And I always want more lemon...
And then
it occurred to me: this is exactly what many of the Doristas do on a weekly
basis. They take the master recipe and then twist and turn it to make it their
own.
They
switch out ingredients based on preference or availability, they use personal
methods (stand mixer versus whisk), and they garnish differently to add their
personal visual mark.
So today,
I join those creative Doristas and bring you my version of Dorie's Lemon
Madeleines.
~ David
Almost
Dorie's Lemon Madeleines
90 grams
all-purpose flour
1
teaspoon baking powder
pinch of
fleur de sel
67 grams
sugar
finely
grated zest of 2 lemons
2 large
eggs, at room temperature
1
tablespoon honey
1
teaspoon pure vanilla extract
8
tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and still warm
2
tablespoons whole milk
confectioners’ sugar, for dusting
Whisk
together the flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl; set aside.
Working
in the large bowl of a stand mixer, rub the sugar and lemon zest together with
your fingertips until the sugar is moist and fragrant. Add the eggs and, using
the whisk attachment, beat at high until the sugar and eggs are slightly thick
and pale. Beat in the honey and vanilla.
Gently
fold in the dry ingredients, stopping when all dry ingredients have been
moistened. Fold in the melted butter and then the milk. Press a piece of wax
paper against the surface of the batter and chill for at least 1 hour.
Using
baking spray, coat the molds of two 12-shell madeleine pans. Divide the batter
among the molds, filling them no more than two-thirds full. Refrigerate filled
pans for 1 hour longer.
Preheat
the oven to 400°F.
Place the
madeleines in the oven and bake for 11 minutes, or until the cakes are golden
and the big bumps on their tops spring back when touched. Remove the pan from
the oven and immediately turn out madeleines onto a cooling rack and allow them
to cool to room temperature. (Use a small silicone spatula to remove any
madeleines that might have stuck to the pan.)
Dust
cooled madeleines with confectioners’ sugar just before serving.
Makes 24.
