White chocolate madeleines are really easy to make, super duper delicious and frankly addictive! The texture of these adorable tiny cakes is light and bouncy, crispy around the edges but so fluffy at the center.
They are not overly sweet, so the vanilla comes through beautifully, as well as the taste of butter. It is impossible to eat only a couple!
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👩🏽🍳 Easy teacake
I remember a girl at school who used to bring homemade madeleines in a plastic container. She could never quite convince others that she was making them herself (I believed her, for the record!) and quickly gave up trying to explain how easy it was to make madeleines. But it sure is easy to make them and those white chocolate madeleines are no exception! You can have your batter chilling in the fridge in half an hour!
These white chocolate madeleines would be categorized as ‘cakes’ in France. It doesn’t matter if it’s a bite-size treat, as long as it’s made with cake batter, it’s cake! I always find it odd to see madeleines or brownies in the Cookies section of some baking books.
⏲️ Step by step

Melt the chocolate and butter together. Beat the eggs and sugar together in a mixing bowl for 5 min. Beat in the dry ingredients at the lowest speed. Mix in the butter mixture until just incorporated. Chill the batter overnight. Butter the pan, fill the cavities until two-thirds full, and bake the white chocolate madeleines!
Humps
I won’t lie, getting good humps can be hit-and-miss! If you want your white chocolate madeleines to get the characteristic madeleines humps, you should:
- beat the egg and sugar together for 5 min. Some recipes would have you beat them for 10 minutes (sometimes 20!) because the longer you beat them, the more air is incorporated in the batter and the higher the humps (potentially). I tried, and I didn’t see a big difference in my humps. The difference is not big enough for me to mix something by hand for 20 min. If I had a stand mixer I would consider it but I don’t. And look at the humps I get with just 5 min!
- use baking powder so the rise doesn’t solely rely on the air incorporated while beating the eggs. Some say that it’s cheating but I don’t care! It ensures a nice rise and puts my mind at rest.
- chill the batter in the fridge overnight (or at least for 4 hours), as you would do to get a dome-shaped muffin.
- preheat your oven. Heat is necessary to help the white chocolate madeleines rise well during the first minutes of baking.

💭 Storage
- room temperature: Madeleines don’t stay fresh very long. They are best eaten the day they are made but you can keep them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days.
- freezer: If you want to keep them at their best, white chocolate madeleines can be frozen. Wait until they have completely cooled down, and wrap each madeleine individually in 1 layer of plastic wrap and 1 layer of foil. Then place the madeleines in a freezing bag. Remove as much air from the freezing bag as possible before sealing it. Don’t forget to label the bag! White chocolate madeleines can be kept in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature for a couple of hours before eating.

White chocolate madeleines
- Prep Time: 30 minutes (excluding resting time)
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 22 madeleines 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: French
Description
These white chocolate madeleines are buttery tender and taste beautifully of vanilla. They are perfect for tea, elevenses, or le goûter as we would say in France!
Ingredients
- 55g white chocolate, roughly chopped (2 oz)
- 115g butter, plus extra for pan
- 105g all-purpose flour (¾ cup)
- 3g baking powder (¾ tsp)
- ¼ tsp fine sea salt
- 1 vanilla bean, or use 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 100g eggs, around 2 small eggs
- 65g caster sugar (⅓ cup), or use granulated sugar
Instructions
- Melt the chocolate and butter. Place the chocolate and butter in a saucepan and heat gently over low heat. Stir from time to time with a rubber spatula. Don’t worry if the chocolate and butter split, they will mix in the batter properly. Once completely melted, remove from the heat and leave to cool down to room temperature.
- Prepare the dry ingredients and the vanilla seeds. Mix the flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Cut the vanilla bean lengthwise and scrape the seeds out with a pointy knife.
- Make the batter. In a large bowl, beat the eggs and sugar with a hand mixer (or a whisk and some elbow grease) until pale and thick, about 5 min. Sieve the dry ingredients over the egg mixture and beat at the lowest speed until just incorporated. Add the seeds to the egg mixture (or the vanilla extract if not using the vanilla bean). Pour in the melted chocolate and butter and beat again at the lowest speed until just incorporated. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate the batter overnight.
- Fill the shells. Preheat your oven to 190°C (375F) and set the rack in the middle. Generously butter the indentations of your madeleine pan. Using a tablespoon fill each shell to two-thirds full with the batter, around 25g (1oz) of batter for each shell (you don’t have to weigh each madeleine but it’s to give you an idea). The batter should not reach the top of the hollowed shell. Don’t be tempted to fill the shells entirely or you won’t get the distinctive madeleine shapes and they might not cook properly. If you still have some batter, put it back in the fridge. Use it for another batch (or half batch) once your madeleine pan has cooled down (clean the pan, dry it, and butter it again before using).
- Bake. Place the pan in the oven and bake for 9 to 10 min, until the madeleines are golden with darker edges and the centers are cooked. They should have risen and their tops should spring back when lightly pressed. Let the madeleines cool for 5 minutes before gently nudging them with a finger or a toothpick from the pan. Transfer the white chocolate madeleines to a cooling rack and leave them to cool down a bit before eating.
Notes
You can make the batter in advance and keep it in the fridge, covered with plastic wrap, for up to 2 days before baking. Keep in mind that the longer the batter stays in the fridge, the ‘darker’ the madeleine will get while baking. They will also taste less sweet but the vanilla flavor will be stronger. I usually prefer my madeleines when the batter has only been chilled for 10 hours, but it’s up to you and your preferences.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1
- Calories: 93
Keywords: madeleine cake, french baking, white chocolate dessert, cake ideas for tea party
Are you looking for other French desserts? Here are some of my favorite recipes:
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