Chef Joël Robuchon's Chocolate Madeleines

Makes 10-12 large madeleines

Equipment: Large madeleine tray

To prepare the madeleine trays
Use a pastry brush to generously coat the hollows within the madeleine tray with the very soft butter. Now give the buttered moulds a good dusting of flour, then invert the moulds and give the tin a strong tap against your work counter. This move helps remove excess flour, leaving behind just a fine, even coating of flour.

To prepare & bake the madeleines
In a large bowl, mix together the 30g flour and icing sugar.

Add the ground almonds and whisk the dry ingredients together to combine evenly and aerate.

Beat the egg whites just long enough to become fluid and loose. Add this to the dry ingredients, whisking until completely combined.

Stir in the 70g melted butter and honey, whisking until you have a homogeneous batter. Follow with the melted chocolate, mixing to incorporate completely.

Spoon the batter into the prepared madeleine moulds so that they almost reach the top edge. Refrigerate approximately 1 hour to firm up before baking. A chilled batter will help give the madeleine a more defined texture and shape.

Preheat the oven to 200C, 180C Fan, 400F, Gas 6

Bake the madeleines for around 12-15 minutes or until the madeleines are firm to the touch along the edges but still somewhat tender, especially in the middle.

When ready, remove the madeleine trays from the oven and immediately invert each tray, giving the tin a strong tap against your work counter to detach the little cakes from the mould. This must be done as soon as the madeleines come out of the oven for the cleanest result!

Tip! If you have any reluctant madeleines still sticking to the baking tray, use a spoon to help gently release.