madeleine

madeleine (small shell-shaped sponge cake)

noun mahd-LEN Rare

Origin: named after Madeleine Paulmier, 18th-century Lorraine pastry cook

Also means

trigger of involuntary memory

Usage Note

Madeleine is famous worldwide through Proust's À la recherche du temps perdu, where dipping the little cake in tea triggers a flood of childhood memory. Because of this, une madeleine de Proust has become a fixed French phrase for any object or sensory detail that instantly evokes a powerful personal memory. The cakes are baked in scallop-shaped moulds and are a staple of French patisseries.

Examples

"Elle trempe une madeleine dans son thé."

Natural Translation

She dips a madeleine into her tea.

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