I love baked goods with delightful little surprises inside – puddings oozing with lemon curd, cookies dripping with melted chocolate chunks and madeleines with a creamy custard filling. These exquisite gluten free madeleines are elevated to the next level with an injection of creamy homemade vanilla bean custard. These classic buttery French scallop shells never tasted so good. You could say they are truly ‘magnifique’!
You can start this recipe the day prior by resting the batter in the fridge. Resting the batter helps the madeleines puff into a light, fluffy cake. The custard should also be prepared in advance because it needs to cool prior to filling. If you inject warm custard into warm madeleines the sponge will absorb the custard so ensure your custard is chilled. Zesty lemon curd is also a beautiful filling in these madeleines. The citrus notes cut beautifully through the buttery sponge.
Don’t overfill the madeleine moulds as the batter will rise and spread. Simply spoon the batter into the centre of each shell allowing room for the cakes to rise.
- Madeleines
- 3 eggs room temperature
- 120g or ½ cup caster sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla bean extract
- 130g or 1 cup plain gluten free flour, sifted
- ½ tsp baking powder
- Pinch of salt
- 120g unsalted butter, melted
- Cinnamon icing sugar for dusting
- Vanilla Bean Custard
- 40g caster sugar
- 250g full cream milk
- 25g cornflour, sifted
- 2 eggs
- Vanilla bean pod, seeds scraped
- To make custard place the milk and vanilla in a saucepan over med heat and simmer. Whisk the eggs, sugar and cornflour in a separate bowl. Slowly stir the warm milk into the egg mixture. Return to the saucepan and stir over low heat for a few minutes until custard thickens and coats the back of a wooden spoon. Pour custard into a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate to cool.
- To make madeleines combine eggs, sugar and vanilla in mixing bowl and beat for 3-4 minutes.
- Fold in flour, baking powder and salt. Fold in cooled butter.
- Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 min or overnight to firm the mixture.
- Preheat oven to 180C. Grease a madeleine pan with butter and lightly dust with flour to prevent cakes from sticking. Tap out the excess. Spoon in cake mixture with the batter mounded in the centre of each shell.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes or until skewer comes out clean. Release the madeleines onto a wire rack. Whilst madeleines are still warm inject sponge on flat side with cold custard using a piping bag. Twist madeleine as you inject the custard to prevent it from bursting.
- Dust with cinnamon icing sugar and serve warm.
- To make custard, place sugar in mixing bowl and mill 10 sec/speed 9. Add vanilla beans, eggs, cornflour, sugar, milk and cook 6 min/90C/speed 4. Pour custard into a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate to cool.
- To make madeleines add eggs, sugar and vanilla to clean Thermomix bowl and mix speed 6/2 min.
- Add flour, baking powder and salt to mixing bowl and mix 10 sec/speed 3. Slowly pour in cooled butter mixing speed 3 until incorporated.
- Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 min or overnight to firm the mixture.
- Preheat oven to 180C. Grease a madeleine pan with butter and lightly dust with flour to prevent cakes from sticking. Tap out the excess. Spoon in cake mixture with the batter mounded in the centre of each shell.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes or until skewer comes out clean. Release the madeleines onto a wire rack.
- Whilst madeleines are still warm inject sponge on flat side with cold custard using a piping bag. Twist madeleine as you inject the custard to prevent it from bursting.
- Dust with cinnamon icing sugar and serve warm.
Hey Helen, just came across your blog and have to say that these madeleines look incredibly good. Your photographs are gorgeous (love the little hands!) and that injectable vanilla custard is genius, must try it! <3
Thanks Claudia. They are quite easy to make and everyone loves them.
I just checked out your blog it’s gorgeous. Happy baking!
Hi Helen. I have just come across your website. I am so pleased that you have taken an interest in cooking G.F. I have been on a G.F. diet for over 40yrs. I am new to this world of modern communication. I would like to ask you a question about your madeleines recipes, can you change the corn flour to coconut flour. I like working with different types of flour from all over the world. Once I found out what was a heavy flour (plain flour) was, and what could be used for a self raising flour, I just go for it. I have many flops. I do have a nice who has an allergy to corn as well as gluten, so I would like to be able to present home made yummies like yours so she can eat them as well. Thankyou for sharing your knowledge and gifts. Regards Catherine.
Hi Catherine,
Welcome to my site. My recipe specifies gluten free flour not corn flour. Not all gluten free flours contain corn so as a first step I would look for a brand that doesn’t list corn in the ingredient list. Be wary when baking with coconut flour as it absorbs alot of moisture leading to a gluggy dense texture, I have never been a fan to be honest. You could also try rice flour, a combination of rice flour and tapioca or even rice flour combined with some nut meal. Good luck!
Hi Helen, what implement do you use to inject the custard into the madeleines?
You can either use a piping bag with thin nozzle or a fat plastic syringe