It's no secret that I am the world's least enthusiastic football fan. I don't even really know what a first down means, no matter how many times or ways it's explained. But I won't pass up the opportunity to enjoy the other aspect of football — the food we eat and the beverages we drink before it happens. Even though football is going to look a lot different this year (if it even happens, I am thinking it's going to be dead on arrival but we'll see), we can still enjoy football-team themed goodies in our own homes.
One of my favorite sub-categories of tailgate food is the team colors items! Luckily my home team has some fantastic food colors: garnet and black. One of my favorite discoveries was this garnet and black pasta I wrote about it for the Free Times several years back. This year since tailgating won't be a thing and people will be doing any semblance of it at home, why not take the time to frou-frou up our garnet and black foods this year?
Red velvet is a natural go-to for garnet desserts, with its deep red hue, often deepened by a ride in the oven at 350 degrees or more. And chocolate too, especially the extra dark chocolate that's available now. Those two concepts just go hand in hand, since red velvet is just fancier chocolate cake, amirite?
You can go as frou-frou as you want on decorating these madeleines, but don't overwhelm their delicateness with too many sprinkles or accoutrements on the end. Just a light dip of candy melt and a small smattering of sprinkles will do the trick. Or keep it even lighter with an edible glitter spray, one of my favorite ways to fancy up any dessert... or to hide any mistakes made while baking!
Red Velvet Gamecock Madeleines
Equipment
- Madeleine pan
Ingredients
- 5 eggs 3 whole, 2 yolks only
- ¾ cup white sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- red food coloring
- ¾ cup butter melted
- 1 cup plus 3 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 3 tablespoons cocoa powder divided
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon butter melted in a ramekin
- 4 ounces black candy melts
- edible spray glitter or sprinkles optional
Instructions
- Heat oven to 400 degrees F.
- Separate the yolks on two eggs. Set the whites aside.
- Mix the yolks, other 3 whole eggs, sugar, and vanilla extract together over medium speed for 4-5 minutes.
- Melt the ¾ cup butter, then add to the egg mixture, along with food coloring.
- Mix for 1 minute.
- In a separate bowl, mix together the dry ingredients: flour, cornstarch, 2 tablespoons cocoa powder (reserve the last tablespoon for later), baking powder, and salt.
- Add to mixer and mix until just combined and all ingredients are wet.
- Take the 1 tablespoon melted butter and brush the cavities of the madeleine pan with a rubber pastry brush (if using a 12 cavity pan, reserve half of this butter for the second batch). Lightly sprinkle the buttered cavities with half of the reserved cocoa powder. Use a tablespoon to fill the cavities about ¾ of the way. Do NOT fill all of the way.
- Bake for 10 minutes, and 9 minutes for the second batch.
- Remove to a wire pan in between batches and let cool.
- Once cool, melt the candy melts according to package directions.
- Use a spoon to spread the melted candy melts on the top part of each madeleine, spraying with glitter or adding sprinkles before the candy sets.
- Let dry for a few minutes and enjoy. Keeps in an airtight container for about 3 days.
This recipe requires a few special things to make it well, special.
The first and most important is a madeleine pan. Can't made the maddies without the thing in which to make them!
Second are the decorations. I used Wilton black candy melts, which are incredibly easy to use, and I usually have a hard time with tempering candy or chocolate. Use any color you like, but I went with black for these UofSC Gamecock themed treats.
Next is this edible spray glitter. I find it much easier to use than loose glitters. You can't really see it much in these pictures but it's sparkling and wonderful in person. I spray it over the sink so any loose glitter, of which there is very little, can be washed away easily. You can't taste or feel it when you're eating the treats, and it works great on a variety of desserts!
But for real everyone, please don't gather in large groups to tailgate this year. Don't even tailgate at all at games, which the university is discouraging too. Just be cool, have a fancier spread at home where it's easier to cook and serve, and watch football in the comfort of your own home. You might even find you like it more this way.