These hazelnut madeleines are soft, buttery, and loaded with toasty hazelnut flavor. A quick dunk in chocolate makes them even better. Perfect for a coffee break or just when youโre in the mood for something a little special.
chocolate hazelnut madeleines are the French bakery-inspired treat you need this fall!
These chocolate hazelnut madeleines are just so good! A little bit of finely ground toasted hazelnuts in the batter, and a final dunk in dark chocolate makes them utterly irresistible, not to mention pretty enough to bring anywhere and impress. If you need a little something special and fancy this fall, without a lot of effort or fuss, these madeleines are just the ticket!
are madeleines cookies, or cakes?
It depends! Madeleinesย are unique little shell-shaped cakes from France with a light, buttery texture, often described as somewhere between aย cookie and a sponge cake. Simple to make with everyday ingredients, they’re perfect with coffee or tea. My husband had his with a nightcap, my granddaughter washed hers down with milk. They’re sort of a universal treat!
what you’ll need to make chocolate hazelnut madeleines
- hazelnuts
- don’t skip toasting them before grinding them for this recipe – it brings out their flavor in a big way. While I love the hazelnut/chocolate combo, you could also use pecans or walnuts.
- butter
- sugar
- all purpose flour
- baking soda and salt
- eggs
- vanilla
- chocolate
- I use Ghirardelli chocolate melting wafers in the dark chocolate variety, but you could use milk or even white!
You’ll also need a MADELEINE PAN
It’s a specialized baking tray with shallow, shell-shaped molds that give madeleines their distinctive ridged appearance and help create their signature hump during baking. The slim pan is inexpensive and doesn’t take up any room in your kitchen cabinet ~ you need one, trust me.
the best melting chocolate for baking and candy making
Ghirardelli chocolate melting wafers are a new discovery for me and I’ve loaded up my pantry with the white, milk, and dark varieties. Here’s why I love them:
- They are made for melting so they melt easily in the microwave into a smooth and silky consistency every time.
- They are already tempered, so that the surface of your chocolate remains shiny and firm, and doesn’t cloud over time like regular melted chocolate can. You can see the sheen on these chocolate hazelnut madeleines.
- The flavor is fabulous, these are the best flavored chocolate wafers I’ve ever found. I can’t distinguish them from pure chocolate, the Ghirardelli quality is really good.
tips for melting chocolate for dipping
Whether you use chocolate melting wafers, chocolate chips, or bar chocolate, keep these tips in mind…
- how to melt chocolate in the microwave
- choose a microwave safe container that fits your chocolate, and ideally one that is taller than it is wide — this makes dipping easier.
- start with a minute on high, then stir. If necessary microwave for short bursts – 10-15 seconds at a time, checking and stirring between each. You can stop when there are still a few very small pieces of unmelted chocolate, just keep stirring and they will melt.
- if you need to re-melt your chocolate as you are working, follow the same steps.
- work quickly as you’re dipping your chocolate hazelnut madeleines, so that the chocolate doesn’t re-solidify as you’re working.
- I work in batches if I have a large amount of dipping to do. I divide the chocolate in half so this way the chocolate stays fresher.
- If your melted chocolate is too thick you can thin it down with a little melted butter, or coconut oil.
storing chocolate hazelnut madeleines
These madeleines keep really well at room temperature for several days or more. The chocolate coating and the ground nuts in the batter help them stay nice and moist.
Yes, they can be frozen, you can pop them in a heavy duty zip lock bag and gently force out any extra air before zipping closed. Use within 3 months.
more hazelnut recipes
Chocolate Hazelnut Madeleines
Equipment
- 1 madeleine pan buy one here
Ingredients
- 1 cup hazelnuts
- 12 Tbsp butter
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 4 eggs
- 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
- 10 ounces dark chocolate melting wafers (or chocolate chips, or chopped chocolate)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F.
- Place the hazelnuts on a baking sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes until lightly toasted. I give the sheet a shake halfway through.
- Allow to cool for a couple minutes, then add the nuts to the bowl of a small food processor. Pulse until the the nuts are finely ground, but still have texture. Set aside.
- Next, brown the butter by placing in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook, swirling the pan a few times, until the milk solids start to caramelize and turn brown. This will take a few minutes. Take care to remove the pan from the heat as soon as you start to notice the butter browning, as it can burn quickly.
- Set the butter aside to cool.
- In a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk together the sugar, flour, baking powder, salt and 2/3 cup ground hazelnuts. (Reserve the remaining 1/3 cup for decorating the finished madeleines)
- In a separate, small bowl, whisk together the eggs until smooth. Add the eggs to the flour mixture, mixing until just combined.
- Pour the melted butter into the batter, a little at a time. (If you pour it all at once it will be difficult to mix everything together. I did it in about 3 stages.) Fold everything together until just combined, don't over mix. The mixture should be fairly thick and shiny. The batter will continue to thicken as it chills.
- Cover the batter and place in the refrigerator to chill for 1 hour.
- Preheat oven to 400F. Butter or oil you madeleine pans. This recipe makes 32 madeleines, so you can use two standard madeleine pans, or bake 2 separate batches. (Keep the remaining batter in the fridge while the first batch bakes.)
- Divide the batter into the wells of your madeleine pans. You want about 1 tablespoon of batter in each well – they should look about 2/3-3/4 full.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes until risen and golden. These small cakes can burn quickly, so keep an eye on them and don't over-bake.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool just for a minute or two in the pan. Then, carefully remove them to a baking rack to cool completely.
to dip your madeleines
- Melt your chocolate for a minute on high in the microwave and then stir. If necessary microwave further using short 15 second bursts. I used Ghiradelli chocolate melting wafers. It helps to melt your chocolate in a container that is deeper than it is wide – something like a microwave safe glass measuring cup is ideal.
- Set a piece of parchment paper on a baking sheet or a baking rack. Carefully dip each madeleine about halfway into the melted chocolate, at an angle if you'd like. Place the madeleines on the parchment paper, and sprinkle with a little bit of the reserved ground hazelnuts.
- Allow the chocolate to harden and enjoy immediately! Madeleines are best enjoyed the day they are made, but will keep a few days in an airtight container at room temperature or in the refrigerator.
I made these madeleines today. I used walnuts and the dark chocolate melting wafers, and they turned out absolutely great! I shared some of them with two girlfriends who said these are their favorite of all the different madeleines I have made. I will be making these again and again! Thank you for sharing such a great recipe.
Aren’t the dark chocolate wafers amazing? I’m a chocolate snob and I really like them. I’ll be using them this holiday season when I make my food gifts, for sure.
Oh, goodness, my apologies!
No apologies, I’ve mis-read so many recipes in my day, it always amazes me how easily it can happen!
I am looking forward to making these madeleines! One item of clarification is needed. Step 1 of the instructions says to preheat the oven to 350F. Then step 10 of the instructions says to preheat the oven to 400F. I am assuming that 400F is the correct baking temperature as you wouldn’t want to preheat your oven until after the dough has cooled in the refrigerator.
I don’t have a madeleine pan; instead, I use my husband’s grandmother’s individual tart tins that she used to make Swedish Almond Tarts every year for Christmas. I have several different shapes, the sizes are similar to madeleines made using the madeleine pan, and the tart tins have worked great for making my madeleines.
Be sure to read the recipe carefully ~ the first step is to roast the nuts at 350F. Later while the dough is chilling youโll preheat to 400F.
i would LOVE to make these cookies, I have everything except the hazelnuts, turns out that is the nut I am most allergic to, sadly. I will keep this recipe, though, in 9 years I will try it.
Oh, that’s too bad, I know how difficult nut allergies can be.