Lemon Raspberry Madeleine Cookies

I knew we would have company this afternoon so made yummy madeleines this morning.  We served them with hot tea and coffee.  I am happy to report that S. just savored the last one (apparently, he hid it in his napkin when he saw the plate rapidly emptying, lol)!

Madeleines are so elegant... and literally melt in your mouth...  Add a dollop of raspberry whipped cream and it's -- oh my!  Even more importantly, they are easy to make and don't take much time.  You only need about half an hour to whip up a batch of approximately 20-24 (depends how much batter you add to each cup).  It takes about 15 minutes to make the batter, 8-10 minutes to bake, and 2-3 minutes to cool and sprinkle with powdered sugar.  I have two pans so baked all madeleines at once.  If you only have one pan, add another 15 mins for baking the second batch.

Ingredients:

• 2/3 cup plain flour (I use pre-sifted)
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled a bit (place it in the microwave on one minute before starting to beat eggs; it will be the right temperature when you're ready to fold it into the mixture)
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 tsp lemon extract
• 1 tsp raspberry extract plus the amount needed for the whipped cream (I used another tsp)
• 1 cup powdered sugar plus the amount needed for the whipped cream (sorry, forgot to measure)
• heavy cream (sorry, forgot to measure -- approximately 1/2 of the small container)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.
2. Spray the pan with non-stick spray.
3. Sift together flour and baking powder in a small bowl, then set aside.
4. Beat eggs with lemon and raspberry extracts on high speed for 5 minutes.
5. Gradually beat in powdered sugar.
6. Beat another 5 minutes.
7. Gently fold flour mixture into the egg mixture.
8. Then gently fold the melted and cooled butter.
9. Mix until smooth.  The batter will resemble pancake batter somewhat.
10. Spoon the mixture into madeleine cups, filling almost to the top but not quite (to allow for rising).
11. Bake 8-10 minutes or until edges are golden brown.
12. Cool in the pan for a couple of minutes.
13. Loosen each cookie carefully with a plastic knife (be careful not to scratch the pan).
14. Invert pan on a cooling rack or plate.
15. Cool about 5 minutes and sprinkle cookies with powdered sugar.
16. Whip heavy cream with powdered sugar and additional raspberry extract, until thick.
17. Serve in a bowl next to a plate of madeleines.  Some people place a dollop of cream on each cookie before serving.  I let my guests decide.  Most of them do add whipped cream because it's a perfect addition to dainty madeleines.