Ladyfingers and Madeleines

By norsegal8

Makes 6 dozen 3-inch ladyfingers or 24 large madeleines. Although dainty ladyfingers and plump madeleines (those shell-shaped tea cakes that caused Proust to remember things past) are not often though of as cookie cousins, they can both be made from the same batter, in this case a pipeable génoise.
The ladyfingers are piped onto parchment paper that has been ruled and penciled so that you finish with perfectly proportioned pastries. The madeleines get their shape from madeleine pans, which come in regular and miniature sizes and can be purchased with a nonstick finish.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, at room temperature
• flour
• 1 1/2 cup powdered sugar in a sieve or shaker
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 3 egg yolks
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 egg whites
• pinch of salt
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, scooped and leveled, turned into a flour sifter

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Prepare the baking sheets: butter lightly, dust with flour, and knock off excess flour. Assemble the pastry bag. Prepare the powdered sugar. Measure out all the rest of the ingredients listed in the recipe.




Gradually beat the sugar into the egg yolks, add the vanilla, and continue beating for several minutes until the mixture is thick, pale yellow, and forms a ribbon.



Beat the egg whites and salt together in a separate bowl until soft peaks are formed. Sprinkle on the sugar and beat until stiff peaks are formed.




[use a spatula, not a whisk] Scoop one-fourth of the egg whites over the top of the egg yolks and sugar mixture. Sift on one-fourth of the flour, and delicately fold in until partially blended. Then add one-third of the remaining egg whites, sift on one-third of the remaining flour, fold until partially blended, and repeat with half of each, then the last of each. Do not attempt to blend the mixture too thoroughly or you will deflate the batter; it must remain light and puffy.



Forming the ladyfingers: scoop the batter into the pastry bag. Squeeze out even lines onto the prepared baking sheets, making finger shapes 4 inches long and 1 1/2 inches wide, spaced 1 inch apart. [when the whole sheet is full], sprinkle with a 1/16-inch layer of powdered sugar. To dislodge some of the excess sugar, hold baking sheet upside down and tap the back of it gently; the ladyfingers will not budge unless you are rough with them.



Baking the ladyfingers: Bake in the middle and upper third levels of preheated oven for about 20 minutes. The ladyfingers are done when they are a very pale brown underneath their sugar coating. They should be slightly crusty outside, and tender but dry inside. If they are not baked enough, they will become soggy when they cool; over-baking makes them dry. As soon as they are done, remove from baking sheets with a spatula and cool on wire racks.

Baking the cookies: Using a spoon or a pastry bag without a tip, fill the madeleine molds with the batter. Bake for about 10 minutes, until the madeleines are puffed, spring back when prodded gently and start to come away from the sides of the molds. Let the madeleines cool for a minute or two before turning them out onto a rack to cool.

Storing: Both madeleines and ladyfingers are best the day that they are made. You can keep them in an airtight container for a few days.