Batter
- 1000 g organic semi-skimmed milk
- 260 g cassonade — for milk
- 260 g cassonade — for batter
- 300 g flour T80 (or T65)
- 200 g whole eggs
- 65 g unsalted butter
- 150 g dark rum (Saint James)
- 1 Madagascar vanilla pod
Mold coating
- 50/50 ghee and beeswax
The cannelé is one of the most technically demanding of the small French cakes. The shell must be deeply lacquered and almost brittle; the interior dense, custardy, and trembling. Everything depends on three things: the rest, the mold coating, and the two-phase bake. There are no shortcuts.
Method
Batter
- Heat milk, butter, and first 260 g cassonade with the vanilla pod to exactly 65°C. Remove from heat.
- In a bowl, combine flour and remaining 260 g cassonade. Add eggs on top without mixing yet.
- Pour a small amount of the warm milk over the eggs while whisking to loosen, then gradually add the rest until smooth.
- Once cooled, stir in the rum. Cover with plastic wrap directly on the surface, keeping the vanilla pod inside. Refrigerate 48h at 4°C (minimum 24h, ideally 72h).
Mold seasoning
- Melt equal parts ghee and beeswax. Fill molds to the rim with the hot mixture, place upside down on a wire rack, refrigerate 3 min to set. Repeat for a double layer.
- Bake empty molds upside down 20 min at 200°C to cure the coating.
- For already-seasoned molds: one single thin hot coating before each use is enough. Over-greasing causes collapse.
Baking
- Preheat oven to 288°C (550°F) with the baking tray on the lowest rack for at least 10 min.
- Fill each mold to 1 cm below the rim. Optionally chill filled molds 3 min in the freezer, then keep at room temperature until baking.
- Place molds on the preheated tray. Bake at 288°C for 12 min, keeping temperature near 260°C (500°F).
- Without opening the oven, reduce to 175°C (360°F) and continue: mini 45–50 min, medium 55–60 min, large 65–70 min.
- Unmold immediately onto a wire rack. Let molds cool upside down to drain excess coating.
Background
Heating the milk to exactly 63–65°C matters: it partially precooks the flour (starch gelatinisation). If the milk is poured cold, the flour won't integrate properly and will settle to the bottom during the rest — you'll see it clearly before baking.
Use the least refined flour possible to minimise gluten. T65 or T80 is ideal. Gluten is what causes the batter to puff up and not fall back during baking — the opposite of what you want.
The rest (minimum 24h, ideally 48–72h) is not optional. It is what gives the cannelé its characteristic dense, custardy interior and allows the starch to fully hydrate.
The two-phase bake — very high heat first, then low — creates the lacquered shell while gently cooking the inside. Never open the oven between phases. The thermal shock at the start is what locks in the shell. "Slider" is the professional French coating product; ghee + beeswax is the best home substitute.
Mistakes I've Made
- Overfilling. The batter rises significantly. Leave exactly 1 cm at the top or the centre will dome and then collapse. This was the main failure in early experiments.
- Over-greasing. Too much coating causes the batter to slide upward and collapse. For already-seasoned molds, one thin coating is enough — I was doing double coats every time.
- Not unmolding immediately. The beeswax hardens against a flat surface instantly. It must be a wire rack, and it must be immediate.
- Milk poured cold or too hot. Below 63°C the flour doesn't precook; above 65°C you risk scrambling the eggs when they meet the milk later.
- Too short a rest. The interior will be undercooked even if the shell looks perfect. 24h is the minimum; 48–72h gives noticeably better results.
- Opening the oven between phases. Destroys the thermal gradient responsible for the shell.
Sources
- Cannelés Recipe —
- Cannelés 101 —
- Recette Muriel —
- Technique & science —