really good madeleines

If you've ever been seduced by a madeleine, you know that the little cookie-esque cake (or is it a cake-esque cookie?) is a tender, buttery pastry that pairs particularly well with a hot beverage. We know that M. Proust waxed poetic about its ethereal qualities, but he didn't leave anyone a recipe. Funnily, people have been chasing the Proustian madeleine for quite some time. I'm not claiming to have found "the" recipe. My only claim is to have added some tweaks to classic madeleine recipes that really jack up the flavor. By using roasted almonds and browned butter, this recipe goes for the flavor jugular -- producing aromas of caramel and spices that aren't in the recipe. If you don't have a madeleine pan, you can spoon the batter out on a parchment-lined cookie sheet and bake it that way -- not quite madeleines, but tasty nonetheless.

1/3 cup whole roasted almonds*, ground fine
3 TB cake flour
3 TB all purpose flour
1 egg
2 egg yolks
1/4 c sugar
1/8 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp almond extract
5 TB butter, browned and cooled**

* you can either buy roasted, unsalted almonds or roast your own in a 375 F for 10 minutes and allow to cool before grinding.
** heat butter in a saucepan over low heat until it begins to become very aromatic and you notice it changing color to a medium-brown -- dare to go as far into brown as you want, but be careful not to go too far...you'll end up with black butter!

Preheat oven to 375 F.

Combine the ground almonds and flours in a small bowl and set aside.

With a hand mixer or stand mixer, whip eggs and yolks for 3-5 minutes, until they become very pale and begin to thicken. Add the sugar, salt, and extracts and beat for 3-5 minutes more -- the eggs should begin to form "ribbons" when you allow some to fall from the beaters back into the batter.

Gently fold the flour mixture into the eggs and follow that with the browned butter, making sure everything is incorporated but be gentle -- don't go any further than necessary.

Spoon the batter into a prepared madeleine pan (use baking spray or butter then flour) and bake for 10 minutes. Allow to cool for a couple of minutes and then gently lift each out of the pan. Enjoy with some tea or -- my favorite -- with a double shot of espresso.

Makes 12 madeleines.

great american bake sale

I can still remember enjoying a cupcake or brownie at school bake sales or church carnivals. I never could decide which one to choose -- everything looks good to a five-year-old kid! I do recall having a soft spot for yellow cake with chocolate frosting, and that soft spot lasts still :-)

Anyway, one of the things that totally breaks my heart is knowing that there are hungry children and families -- especially when I have been blessed with such bountiful plates every day. Below is a snippet from the Share our Strength website. If you feel so moved, click on the icon in the upper-right part of this website to give a little -- it can go a long way toward making a difference!

Hunger is a Reality for over 12 million children in America.

While America doesn't have the kind of starvation that plagues victims of war and famine overseas, and makes for dramatic footage on the evening news, the evidence of significant hunger in our midst could not be more pervasive.

Because of hunger, there are children in America not growing as they should be. They are underweight, and often neurologically and developmentally delayed and impaired. Children who experience hunger get sick more often and have lower academic achievement than their well-fed peers. Many of these children are helped by federal feeding programs. Unfortunately, not all eligible children currently participate in these important programs, leaving them vulnerable to hunger during the summer and after school.

Nationally, 1 in 6 American children live in homes at risk of hunger. Many of these children are helped by federal and state feeding programs, but there remains gaps in their eating during the summer and after school.

Grants from Share Our Strength's Great American Bake Sale support local organizations that provide children with the nutritious meals they need during the summer and after school.

Together We Can End This

With your help, we can end childhood hunger in America. We want to continue strengthening our communities and working to end childhood hunger in America, but we need your help.

american vs. british chocolate bars

Here's a link to an article in the NY Times about the differences between some candy bars made in the UK and the States. Having eaten a massive amount of the British version of a Cadbury Dairy Milk (thank you Ben Smith!), I can attest that it is indescribably better than its US counterpart.

My favorite chocolate is still Callebaut (from Belgium), but I can only get it in one pound bricks (or larger). This isn't so bad of a problem, save for the fact that I manage to eat the entire pound of it in a day or so. Their milk chocolate has an almost caramel-like undertone that is incredible melted into a ganache and served over vanilla ice cream.

As far as American chocolate goes, no one beats Scharffen-Berger, which has become widely available at Whole Foods or Fresh Market. If you're ever in the San Francisco area, be sure to stop by their factory for a tour and -- even better -- a chocolate tasting!

[video] my next food network star submission video

click image for high-resolution version
click here for low-resolution version

If you'd like to give the video a "thumbs-up," here is a link to the MySpace location.