We call this madeleine cake at my house because it is reminiscent of the little French shell-shaped cakes. It’s the base recipe I used to create orange and strawberry-rhubarb versions, the strawberry one featured in the Spring 2024 issue of Edible Bozeman. All of these are really good pound cakes based on Dorie Greenspan’s quatre-quarts. If you’re not at high-altitude (we’re at 5,000 feet in Bozeman and this recipe is built for that) reduce oven temp to 350° and use the same baking times as specified in the recipe.
This cake is baked in the Lotus bundt pan by Nordic Ware. It holds 6-cups of batter vs. the 10–12 cups of a standard bundt pan. An 8-inch square or round makes a fine substitute, just bake it about 5 minutes less.
Edited original post, January 6, 2015
Madeleine Cake
makes one 6-cup bundt (or 6- or 8-inch round or square); adapted from Dorie Greenspan's Quatre-Quarts
Ingredients
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 cup all-purpose flour Wheat Montana blue bag
- ¾ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon Kosher salt
- 3 large eggs, separated and at room temperature
- ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar for sprinkling on top optional best for layer cake pan vs. bundt
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 375°F. Butter a 6-cup Lotus bundt (or 6- or 8-inch round or square) and dust with flour (or use baking spray). Melt butter and set aside to cool.
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Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside. Using an electric mixer with whisk attachment, beat egg whites until foamy, sprinkle in cream of tartar, and continue to beat until they hold firm peaks. Transfer to another bowl and set aside.
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Using whisk or paddle attachment, beat egg yolks, sugar, vanilla, and cooled, melted butter until thick and pale yellow. Sprinkle in flour and mix just until combined. Fold one quarter of the egg whites into the batter. Gently fold in the remainder, scoop batter into prepared pan, and smooth the surface. If using a layer cake pan, optionally sprinkle top with brown sugar.
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Bake for 35–40 minutes (slightly less for a layer cake pan, 5 minutes), until top is golden brown. Let cool 10 minutes in pan then, if desired, invert onto a cooling rack. Keep loosely covered to preserve the crust.
