Hanaâ's Kitchen: Donsuemor Lemon Cream Cakelets

Back in July, I was contacted by a Donsuemor representative and asked if I was interested in participating in Donsuemor's "Dessert a Day" celebration in October for National Dessert Month. Of course I was interested!! :o) The dessert challenge I received was to create a recipe using one (or more) Donsuemor product(s). Donsuemor has been in business since 1976 selling madeleines and financiers, so they know what they’re doing! Through their website, you can order all of their sweet treats. They're made with all-natural ingredients and real butter!! A very big "thank you" goes out to my friend and fellow blogger, Monica of Sweetbites, for referring me to Donsuemor!!

After some deliberation, I eventually narrowed down my choice to the Lemon Zest Madeleines and the French Almond Cakes. When the sample box arrived, hubby and I couldn't wait to try them. They were all individually packed and visually they were both equally impressive. The Lemon Zest Madeleine was buttery with a wonderful lemon taste and aroma, while the French Almond Cakes were exceptionally moist and packed with lots of almond flavor.

The first recipe I developed is called: Donsuemor Almond Cake Truffles. Delicious bite-size treats that are ready to eat in no time since they don’t require any baking. The recipe I will be sharing with you today is for Lemon Cream Cakelets. They're also delicious and quick to make because they require no baking.

I just loved the scalloped edges of the Lemon Zest Madeleines. Since they looked pretty on their own already, I thought to myself, the only thing that could make them prettier is a shiny chocolate ganache glaze. That idea lead me to think about a spin on Boston Cream Pie, one of my favorite desserts. Although I love crème patisserie, aka pastry cream, it’s not something that’s quick or easy to make from scratch, so I had to think of something else.

Why not use store bought pudding? I came across lemon-flavored pudding and figured it would be perfect for highlighting the lemon flavor in the Madeleines. And since you can never have too much lemon flavor (in my book, anyway), I wanted to increase the lemon flavor a bit by adding lemon zest to the pudding. To lighten the somewhat dense texture of the pudding, I decided to use Extra Creamy Coolwhip. That’s it! Pretty easy, huh? This combination worked together beautifully: light and creamy pudding that packs a nice lemon punch, sandwiched between two rich and buttery lemon Madeleines, with a dark chocolate ganache glaze that’s not only visually appealing but also adds a nice flavor contrast.

Before I give you the recipe, I would like to take this opportunity to thank Donsuemor for the opportunity to create not only one, but two recipes for them. It was a fun and creative process, and of course, a very tasty one as well! :o)

Donsuemor Lemon Cream Cakelets
(recipe created by Hanaa of HanaasKitchen for Donsuemor)
Yields: 4 cakelets

Ingredients:

1/4 cup of heavy cream
1/3 cup of semisweet chocolate chips (I used Hershey Dark Chocolate Chips)
8 Donsuemor Lemon Zest Madeleines
One 3.25 oz cup of lemon pudding (if unavailable, use Vanilla-flavored pudding and double the amount of lemon zest)
1/2 tsp lemon zest, loosely packed
1/2 cup Coolwhip, preferably Extra Creamy

Instructions:

Remove the Lemon Zest Madeleines from their wrapper. Use a small paring knife to cut off the little hump to create a flat surface. Set aside.
Make the ganache glaze: heat the heavy cream in a pan over medium heat until bubbles form around the edges. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate chips and stir until the chocolate is completely melted. Set aside. (Note: this will make more than you need. Use leftover ganache glaze on ice cream or other desserts. It also freezes very well. Another option would be to make Donsuemor Almond Cake Truffles).
Dip the top of 4 Lemon Zest Madeleines into the warm ganache glaze using a toothpick inserted in the middle. Put the chocolate-coated Madeleines on a cooling rack for the chocolate to set (to speed up this process, refrigerate them for about 10 minutes while making the filling).
Put the content of the pudding cup into a small bowl. Add the lemon zest and Coolwhip to the pudding. Using a spatula or a whisk, gently fold the Coolwhip into the pudding.
Spoon(**) about 1-2 Tbsp of the pudding mixture onto each of the 4 remaining madeleines.
Remove the chocolate-coated Madeleines from the fridge. Place each one on top of the pudding-covered Madeleine and you’re done :o)

(**) For a fancy presentation, place the pudding in a piping bag or Ziploc bag that’s fitted with a star tip. In a zigzag motion, pipe the pudding mixture onto each of the 4 remaining madeleines before placing a chocolate-coated madeleine on top.

Note: the filling recipe can easily be doubled or tripled (you'll have enough ganache for coating the Madeleines without changing the recipe). I received 10 Lemon Zest Madeleines but after our taste test, I only had 9 left which is why I could only make 4 cakelets.

Step-by-step pictures: