1. Cut butter into cubes, melt in a small pot over low heat until it’s brown and gives off a deliciously nutty aroma, roughly 4 ~ 5 minutes. Don’t stir during the process. Remove from heat. Pour it into a small bowl and leave the solids behind. Cool the butter to room temperature. Take 60 g and set aside.
2. Grate orange / lemon zest and set aside.
3. Put the mixing bowl over warm water. Beat the egg and salt with a electric egg whisk on high speed. Slowly add the sugar in a steady stream in 3 batches, until tripled in volume and until mixture is thick and ribbony. The eggs have been beaten long enough to produce desirable thickness and loft, so that as you allow them to drizzle back down upon the bulk, they do not disappear immediately becoming one with the rest.
4. Add vanilla extract and orange zest. Sift 1/2 flour on top of the egg batter and fold in gently with a rubber spatula until no lump left behind. Sift the remaining flour and gently fold until mix.
5. Now fold in the warm brown butter mixture in 3 batches. Only stirring enough to bring everything together.
6. Wrap the egg batter with plastic wrap and let stand in room temperature for about 1 hour.
7. Grease mold with brown butter very thinly. Chill it in refrigerator for 10 mins before flour sifted on it. Turnover the mold and pat out the excess flour.
9. Spoon the batter into the molds, no need to be full, leave some space to expansion.
10. Preheat oven to 190ºC. Bake at 180ºC the for 6 – 7 mins, when the centre part rise, take out and turn around, bake for 4 mins at 160ºC, until the edges of the Madelaine’s are golden brown. Remove from oven and un-mold immediately.
