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Learn how to make French-inspired vegan madeleines that are buttery, tender, and simply irresistible! These madeleines are baked to a perfect golden brown and can be dipped in dark chocolate to make them even more decadent. Just 8 ingredients and 1 bowl are required!
⭐️ Why You Should Try It
- They have the perfect hump. The essence of Madeleines is their characteristic hump. Without it, it’s simply not a Madeleine. This recipe yields a beautiful hump thanks to a few secret tips that we reveal below. Say goodbye to flat Madeleines!
- Dense and tender. Just like the classic version, these madeleines have a dense and slightly firm yet tender bite. As opposed to many recipes, this one is not simply a cupcake batter baked in a Madeleine pan. We developed this recipe to get as close to the real deal as possible. Our non-vegan testers even preferred these to madeleines made using eggs!
- Infused with vanilla and lemon. In addition to their rich butter flavor, the madeleines are flavored with vanilla and lemon zest to recreate the classic flavor that our grandmothers used to make.
If you are a fan of classic French pastries such as brioche or pound cake, you are going to love these madeleines!
📘 What Are Madeleines
Madeleines are a classic French small cake that first appeared in 1755 in the North of France. The legend says that a servant called Madeleine Paulmier would have baked these little cakes for the ex-King of Poland. He liked them so much that he decided to name the buttery cakes after her. First called “Cake of Madeleine,” it later became just “Madeleines.”
The characteristic of madeleines is their shell shape and hump. They are traditionally flavored with vanilla and/or lemon zest, although many variants exist.
🧈 Ingredient Notes
Here is what you will need to make vegan madeleines:
- Flour – Use regular all-purpose flour.
- Sugar – I recommend using granulated white sugar. Other types of sugar, such as light brown sugar or coconut sugar, would alter the color and flavor of the batter.
- Plant-based milk – I went with almond milk but any unsweetened plant-based milk will work.
- Vegan butter – You can use store-bought vegan butter or homemade vegan butter.
- Vanilla extract – For optimal flavor, use high-quality vanilla extract. You can use store-bought vanilla extract or homemade vanilla extract. For gourmet madeleines, use the seeds from half of a vanilla bean.
- Lemon zest – For a subtle lemon aroma.
- Baking powder – To help the batter rise and to create the hump.
- Salt – It helps enhance the overall flavor of the madeleines.
🥣 How to Make It
Make the batter
- Whisk together the dry ingredients. Add the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and lemon zest to a mixing bowl and whisk until fully combined.
- Melt the butter. Melt the vegan butter over low heat. Once melted, remove it from the heat and let it cool for a few minutes. Note: the butter should not be hot when you incorporate it into the batter. Otherwise, it will activate the baking powder, and your madeleines won’t rise well during baking.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ones. Pour the almond milk, melted vegan butter, and vanilla extract into the mixing bowl.
- Mix until combined. Using a wooden spoon, mix until the batter is smooth and no lumps remain.
- Let it rest. Cover the mixing bowl with plastic wrap and transfer to the refrigerator. Let the batter rest overnight or for at least 8 hours.
How to Get the Hump
The secret to getting a nice hump is to create a thermal shock. This can be done by ensuring that the batter and pan are cold while the oven is hot. That is why it is important to chill the batter before baking.
Bake
- Grease a madeleine pan. Start by greasing a madeleine pan using a cube of vegan butter. Greasing with butter is much more effective than greasing with oil in my opinion. Madeleines never stick!
- Fill the pan. Next, fill each cavity to 4/5 with the batter. The batter will be quite firm. This is completely normal.
- Chill the pan. Once you have filled all of the cavities, transfer the pan to the freezer and freeze for about 15 minutes. In the meantime, preheat your oven to 400°F (200°C).
- Bake. Finally, transfer the madeleine pan to the oven and bake for 6 minutes at 400°F. Then, turn down the heat to 350°F (175°C) and bake for another 6-8 minutes or until the madeleines are golden brown.
📔 Tips
- Use the gram measurements. This recipe is given in grams for more accurate results (we are still using teaspoons for baking powder, salt, and lemon zest though). We do not recommend trying to convert the flour, sugar, and butter to cup measurements.
- Do not omit the chilling step. Baking the warm batter would result in madeleines with little to no hump. Chilling and freezing it right before baking is essential, do not skip this step.
- Adjust the temperature and baking time. Depending on the pan used and the type of oven, you might have to adjust the baking time as well as the temperature of your oven. I recommend doing a test with 2-3 madeleines before baking the whole batch.
- Make them richer. If you prefer softer madeleines, replace 1 tablespoon of the almond milk with 1 tablespoon of oil. It will give your madeleines a more tender crumb and help them stay soft longer.
🍫 Variations
You can easily customize these madeleines to your liking! Here are a few ideas:
- Use orange zest. Instead of using lemon zest, you can use finely chopped orange zest.
- Incorporate dried fruits. Add raisins, chopped dried figs, freeze-dried strawberries, or chopped dried apricots for extra texture and flavor.
- Add chocolate chips. Stir in about 1/3 cup of mini dark chocolate chips into the batter.
- Swirl in salted caramel sauce. You can either swirl caramel sauce into the batter or add a dollop of sauce into each cavity to create a heart of caramel.
- Flavor the batter. Use different extracts such as caramel, orange, or almond extract.
How to Dip Them in Chocolate
Looking to make your madeleines even more decadent? Dip them in dark chocolate to create a crispy layer of chocolate! To do so:
1. Melt the chocolate. Add about 1/2 cup of dark chocolate chips to a double boiler. Melt the chocolate chips over low-medium heat. Remove from heat once the chocolate is melted.
2. Temper it. This step is optional but helps get a chocolate shell that is shiny and snaps. To temper the chocolate, place the bowl of melted chocolate over a bowl of ice water. Stir and let the chocolate cool down to 82°F (28°C). Once it has reached that temperature, place the bowl of melted chocolate over a pot of hot water to bring it back to a higher temperature. Stir until the chocolate has reached a temperature of 88-89°F (31-32°C). Your chocolate is now tempered and ready to use.
3. Fill the madeleine pan with chocolate. Dollop about 1 and 1/2 teaspoon of melted dark chocolate into each cavity of your madeleine pan (ensure it is clean).
4. Top with the madeleines. Next, place the madeleines on top of the chocolate and slightly press to allow the chocolate to coat the bottom.
5. Allow to cool. Leave the madeleines on the pan and let cool until the chocolate has hardened. I recommend placing the madeleine pan in the freezer for about 10 minutes. This will help the chocolate shrink a little bit, and allow you to remove the coated madeleines from the pan more easily.
☕️ What to Serve It With
You can enjoy these madeleines for breakfast or as an afternoon snack with a caramel latte, taro milk tea, or iced coffee!
❄️ Storing and Freezing
- To store: The madeleines can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
- To freeze: Wrap each madeleine individually with plastic wrap and freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw for a few hours on the counter.
💬 FAQ
If you are looking for a gluten-free version, check out our vegan gluten-free madeleines recipe!
Yes, you can make the batter up to 3 days before baking.
It is normal for madeleines to have a slightly cracked top. If they cracked too much, add a splash of milk to the batter to make it slightly thinner.
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Vegan Madeleines
Equipment
Ingredients
- 150 g all-purpose flour
- 80 g granulated sugar
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp finely chopped lemon zest
- 90 ml unsweetened almond milk
- 70 g vegan butter
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Whisk together the dry ingredients. Add the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and lemon zest to a mixing bowl and whisk until fully combined.
- Melt the butter. Melt the vegan butter over low heat. Once melted, remove it from the heat and let it cool for a few minutes. Note: the butter should not be hot when you incorporate it into the batter. Otherwise, it will activate the baking powder, and your madeleines won’t rise well during baking.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ones. Pour the almond milk, melted vegan butter, and vanilla extract into the mixing bowl.
- Mix until combined. Using a wooden spoon, mix until the batter is smooth and no lumps remain.
- Let it rest. Cover the mixing bowl with plastic wrap and transfer to the refrigerator. Let the batter rest overnight or for at least 8 hours.
- Grease a madeleine pan. Start by greasing a madeleine pan using a cube of vegan butter. Greasing with butter is much more effective than greasing with oil in my opinion. Madeleines never stick!
- Fill the pan. Next, fill each cavity to 4/5 with the batter. The batter will be quite firm. This is completely normal.
- Chill the pan. Once you have filled all of the cavities, transfer the pan to the freezer and freeze for about 15 minutes. In the meantime, preheat your oven to
400 °F (200°C). - Bake. Finally, transfer the madeleine pan to the oven and bake for 6 minutes. Then, turn down the heat to350 °F (175°C) and bake for another 6-8 minutes or until the madeleines are golden brown. Let them cool completely before removing them from the pan.
- The madeleines can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Notes
- Use the gram measurements. This recipe is given in grams for more accurate results (we are still using teaspoons for baking powder, salt, and lemon zest though). We do not recommend trying to convert the flour, sugar, and butter to cup measurements.
- Do not omit the chilling step. Baking the warm batter would result in madeleines with little to no hump. Chilling and freezing it right before baking is essential, do not skip this step.
- Adjust the temperature and baking time. Depending on the pan used and the type of oven, you might have to adjust the baking time as well as the temperature of your oven. I recommend doing a test with 2-3 madeleines before baking the whole batch.
- Make them richer. If you prefer softer madeleines, replace 1 tablespoon of the almond milk with 1 tablespoon of oil. It will give your madeleines a more tender crumb and help them stay soft longer.
Nutrition
About the Author
Thomas Pagot is the founder, photographer, and recipe developer behind Full of Plants. He created the blog in 2016 as a personal cookbook for vegan recipes. Through years of recipe development, Thomas has successfully grown Full of Plants into a trusted resource for plant-based recipes.
Leave a Comment
Added fresh ginger and were raved about at an event!
Glad you liked them! Thanks for your rating 🙂
This recipe is wonderful. Love how my madeleines tasted, and the texture was amazing. So tender and buttery but not oily. The best vegan version I’ve ever tried!
Thanks for your kind words Lucy! We are glad you liked these madeleines 😉
Excellent for tea time. I loved it. Thank you for sharing.