Pumpkins are everywhere! And pumpkin recipes are trending on social media – be it pumpkin soup, pumpkin cookies, pumpkin risotto, pasta – you name it. With Halloween around the corner, I wanted to share a recipe that I had first made in 2016 for my then little kids.
My inspiration for the Pumpkin Madeleine Ghosts
When my kids were little, I would make fun Halloween treats for my kids. I had made Frankenstein Matcha Bars for them, which were super cute, and they enjoyed making them with me. I have the cutest videos of them making the bars with me.
In 2016, I made these Pumpkin Madeleine Ghosts. I love madeleines and remembered their taste distinctly when I had eaten them on my first trip to Paris in 2006. They are the simplest and quickest cake recipe that you can make within a jiggy. They are so cute in shape too, and I love it especially when they are fresh out of the oven, dip it in your coffee or tea and enjoy these little bites of joy.
I adapted the recipe from the legendary David Lebovitz who has written so many wonderful cookbooks, and a great inspiration. I used his basic madeleine recipe, and added spices, orange zest, pumpkin puree to the base batter. The madeleines are perfect. To make these cute treats – a bit festive for my kids, I had decorated them as ghosts.
My recipe for Pumpkin Madeleine Ghosts published on Sunset Magazine
Sunset Magazine had contacted me a year later, and were totally intrigued by my recipe, and how cute these ghosts were. They called me to their test kitchen where they shot a video of me making the recipe, for their youtube and video presence, which was pretty cool.
I felt seen and it was the first time in my years in America that I saw brown hands in a video in 2017, in the food space, which was pretty kick-ass at that point in time – in my opinion!
Here is my recipe published in Sunset magazine, and here is the video as well, which is super cute with the music!
Ingredients for the Pumpkin Madeleine Ghosts
The ingredients for the Pumpkin Madeleine Ghosts are:
- Large eggs
- Granulated sugar
- Canned pumpkin puree : Do not use pumpkin pie puree, use pure pumpkin puree.
- Orange zest
- Vanilla extract
- All purpose flour
- Spices: cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg
- Baking powder
- Unsalted butter : should be melted and cooled
Method to make the Pumpkin Madeleine Ghosts
The madeleine recipe has been adapted from the famous David Lebovitz, who is an American chef residing in Paris. He has written several cookbooks and has a widely acclaimed blog as his namesake.
The madeleines start off with beating the eggs and sugar, until the mixture is frothy and the sugar has dissolved. Orange zest and vanilla are added at this stage and mixed until combined.
Add the dry ingredients which are essentially all purpose flour, spices and baking powder. Do not overmix. Unsalted and melted butter is added next and mixed until just combined. The batter is chilled in the fridge for up to an hour, and then placed into the crevices of the buttered madeleine pan and baked to golden perfection.
It is important to get the humps on the madeleine, and thats when you know that the madeleines have baked perfectly. The humps are its signature and what makes this tiny cake so iconic.
Tips to follow
- Do not overmix the batter, that is key. Else your little cakes will be tough and not light and airy.
- Batter is chilled for a minimum of 45 minutes to an hour. This is because the chilled batter, when it hits the heat of the oven, the butter melts, creates bubbles and helps them rise into those signature humps.
- Grease the madeleine pan with melted butter for the cakes to come out easily once baked.
- Wait for a couple minutes and then remove them from the pan onto a clean working surface or a baking sheet.
- For the best madeleine experience, I would recommend eating them on the same day. Madeleines do not keep that crispy edge until the next day. They can be eaten for a max of 2 days but best eaten the day of.
Which zester should I get for orange zest?
I have a zester which is similar to this one on Amazon and I use it for citrus zest or even grating Parmesan cheese.
What kind of canned pumpkin puree should I get?
Pumpkin puree is available at all grocery stores at this time of the year, you can also get this one from Amazon.
What madeleine pan should I get?
You can get these madeleine pans from Amazon. Do not get the silicone ones, especially if you want crispy edges. Metal conducts heat well and hence you get those beautiful crispy edges.
How do I store the Pumpkin Madeleine Ghosts and how long can I keep them?
For the best madeleine experience, I would recommend eating them on the same day. Madeleines do not keep that crispy edge until the next day. They can be eaten for a max of 2 days but best eaten the day of.
Other fun Fall recipes on my blog are:
If you make any of the recipes, please tag #thejamlab on Instagram and/or leave a comment on this blog post.
XO
Amisha
Pumpkin Madeleine Ghosts
Ingredients
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature
- 2/3 cup (130 grams) granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup canned pumpkin puree
- 1 tablespoon orange zest
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 1/4 cups (170 grams) all purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled to room temperature, plus 2 tablespoons for the molds
Decoration
- 1 1/2 cups white chocolate chips
- 1 1/2 teaspoons unrefined coconut oil
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon warm whole milk
- 1/8 tsp black food coloring
- Candy eyeballs for decoration
- edible pink glitter for blush
Get Recipe Ingredients
Method
- In the bowl of a stand mixer using the whisk attachment, beat eggs and granulated sugar until frothy and thickened, about 2 minutes. Add pumpkin, orange zest, and vanilla and beat until incorporated. Remove bowl from mixer.
- In another bowl, mix flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, cloves, and nutmeg. Using a rubber spatula, fold flour mixture into egg mixture.
- Fold ½ cup melted butter into batter. Fold just until butter is incorporated. Chill at least 1 hour and up to 4 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 400. Brush molds of 2 madeleine pans with melted butter.
- Using a one tablespoon scoop or a spoon, fill each mold about 3/4 full with batter. Bake until the edges are golden brown, about 12 to 14 minutes.
- Meanwhile, melt white chocolate and coconut oil in a bowl set over (not in) 1 in simmering water in a saucepan.
- Make icing: In a small bowl, mix 1 cup powdered sugar with milk. Add enough food coloring to make it deep black. The icing should be fluid enough to pipe, but not runny. If it’s runny, add more powdered sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time; if it’s too thick, add milk, 1 teaspoon at a time. Spoon icing into a small resealable plastic bag.
- Let madeleines cool in molds for 2 minutes. Line a baking pan with parchment. Using an offset spatula, lift madeleines out to a cooling rack. The moment they’re cool enough to handle, dip the curved top half of each in melted white chocolate and set, ridged side up, on a parchment-lined pan. Set edible eyes toward the top of the chocolate-dipped half.
- Freeze pan of madeleines for a few minutes to set chocolate. Squish icing into a corner of the bag, then cut off just a tiny tip of the corner to create a piping bag. Pipe mouths onto madeleines (practice on parchment first). Add a bit of pink edible glitter with a paint brush (not used on paints!) as blush on cheeks.
NOTE: Find black food coloring and candy eyeballs in the baking aisle of well-stocked grocery stores.
Notes
Which zester should I get for orange zest?
I have a zester which is similar to this one on Amazon and I use it for citrus zest or even grating Parmesan cheese.
What kind of canned pumpkin puree should I get?
Pumpkin puree is available at all grocery stores at this time of the year, you can also get this one from Amazon.
What madeleine pan should I get?
You can get these madeleine pans from Amazon. Do not get the silicone ones, especially if you want crispy edges. Metal conducts heat well and hence you get those beautiful crispy edges.
How do I store the Pumpkin Madeleine Ghosts and how long can I keep them?
For the best madeleine experience, I would recommend eating them on the same day. Madeleines do not keep that crispy edge until the next day. They can be eaten for a max of 2 days but best eaten the day of.
