Pumpkin-Vanilla Bean Madeleines for #PumpkinWeek

Hi and welcome to day 3 of #PumpkinWeek hosted by Terri of Love and Confections. We are celebrating our love of the season with a whole week of pumpkin goodies, leading up to National Pumpkin Day. 17 Food Bloggers have come together to share over 65 recipes with you. In addition to homemade pumpkin puree, pie, and cookies, we are also sharing savory pumpkin dishes like hummus, chili and pumpkin corn chowder.

Come back every day for #PumpkinWeek recipes. You can also find these great recipes and more on Love and Confections' #PumpkinWeek Pinterest Board!

On this, the third day, of #PumpkinWeek I decided to whip up a pumpkinized (yes, I'm coining that phrase this week) version of a madeleine.

I had never had a madeleine, much less baked one, before I did a cookbook review for  Quirk Books of Madeleines: Elegant French Tea Cakes to Bake and Share by Barbara Feldman Morse. Click to read those thoughts: here. But now that they are solidly in my baking repertoire, I had to make a pumpkinized (there's that word again) version. Enjoy.

Ingredients

• 3/4 C organic butter plus some for greasing pan
• 1 C organic granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• caviar from 1 vanilla pod
• 1 T pure vanilla extract
• 2 T pumpkin puree (here's how to make your own)
• 1 C flour (I used a bread flour)
• 1/2 C roasted, unsalted hazelnuts, chopped

Procedure
Before you start, chop your hazelnuts. While you might be tempted to use pre-chopped nuts - I have done it many times myself - the aroma of the freshly chopped nuts is extraordinary and well worth the effort. I promise!

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Grease, or butter, your madeleine pan and set aside.

Place your butter, sugar, vanilla caviar, and vanilla pod in a saucepan and heat, over medium heat, until the butter is melted and the sugar is blended into the butter.

Remove the vanilla pod and let the mixture cool for a few minutes, then spoon it into a large mixing bowl. Whisk in the eggs, extract, and pumpkin puree. Beat for a full three minutes to incorporate lots of air bubbles into your batter.

Fold in the flour and 1/2 C hazelnuts with a spatula, taking care not to deflate the batter too much. Using a truffle scoop, or teaspoon, fill the shell molds with batter until almost full.

Bake till the madeleines puff up and the edges are golden, mine took approximately 17 to 18 minutes.

Remove the pans from the oven and let cool on a wire rack for 3 to 5 minutes. Unmold. You may be able to tap them out; I used a small spatula to ease them out of the molds onto the cooling racks.

Check out all the Day 3 #PumpkinWeek recipes

• Pumpkin Pie Cream Cheese Truffles by Love and Confections
• Pumpkin-Vanilla Bean Madeleines by Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• White Chocolate Drizzled Pumpkin Scones by That Skinny Chick Can Bake
• S'mores Pumpkin Pie by The Spiffy Cookie
• Homemade Pumpkin Puree by Happy Food Healthy Life
• Pumpkin Mole by Curious Cuisiniere
• Drunken Pumpkin Seeds by Life Tastes Good
• Pumpkin Roll by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Pumpkin Lasagna by My Catholic Kitchen
• Cinnamon Pumpkin Bread by Making Miracles
• Pumpkin Quinoa Oatmeal Bake by The Pajama Chef
• Pumpkin Chocolate Swirl Pancakes by Dizzy Busy and Hungry

If you are interested in purchasing a madeleine pan for yourself, I have included an affiliate link on amazon for your convenience (below). If you are uncomfortable using the affiliate link, feel free to visit amazon on your own and search for "madeleine pan."