Citron-Semoule de Maïs Madeleines

Okay, so I got a little fancy with the name. I just thought "Lemon-Cornmeal Madeleines" sounded so boring and thought French would spice it up a bit. I found this recipe in a Weight Watchers cookbook and made a few changes. Anyway, this is my new favorite recipe! It is easy, delicious, refreshing and low fat. I think these would be perfect for a wedding reception or a tea. These madeleines are basically a cross between a mini muffin and a cookie and go perfectly with a cup of your favorite warm beverage or a bowl of strawberry ice cream.

Citron-Semoule de Maïs Madeleines

1 lemon
1 egg white
2 Tbsp. water
4 Tbsp. powdered sugar, sifted
1 (8 1/2-ounce) package corn muffin mix (dry)
2 Tbsp. butter, melted

1. Preheat the oven to 375ºF. Spray 48 mini-madeleine molds, 2 (12-cup) mini-muffin pans, OR 2 (12-cup) regular-sized muffin pans with non stick spray. (I used the regular muffin pans and it worked great.)

2. Grate 1 tsp. of the zest from the lemon; squeeze 3 Tbsp. of juice, set aside. Combine the egg white and 2 Tbsp. water in a medium bowl, beating with a whisk until blended. Stir in the lemon zest, lemon juice, and 2 Tbsp. of the powdered sugar. Add the melted butter and the muffin mix; stir just until blended. (I found that using a whisk to stir gave the muffins a finer crumb.)

3. Spoon the batter into the muffin cups. (I used a tablespoon measuring spoon, filling it 3/4 full for each muffin cup to be sure the batter would stretch for all 24 muffin cups.) Bake until the edges are golden and the tops spring back when lightly pressed in the center, about 8 minutes. Immediately invert the madeleines on racks and let cool. Using a seive, sprinkle the remaining 2 Tbsp. of powdered sugar onto the tops of the madeleines just before serving.

Makes 12, 2-madeleine servings.

**Note: These are great fresh. I put the leftovers in a sealed plastic container on the counter and they lost their crunchy edge, making them taste more like muffins. I didn't like them too much that way, but they were still good. So, for an experiment I left the rest of them out on the counter for about 2 days with the lid off and they dried out, becoming a lemony, crunchy cookie. I think they tasted great! You might want to experiment to see how you like them best.

**Another note: An idea I had was instead of sprinkling them with just powdered sugar, mix some of the extra lemon juice with the powdered sugar and use it as a glaze.... Yum! I think I'll try this next time.