Macarons have slowly been building in the foodie zeitgeist for about a year now, and are on the verge of exploding like that whole cupcake thing a while ago. I mean, ask me a year ago -- hell, six months ago -- what a macaron or macaroon is, I would've kvetched about those gigantic Costco coconut and sugar bombs dipped in chocolate that weigh about a pound apiece. I had never even tried a macaron until I made my first batch a couple of weeks ago.
Actually, macarons, the real-deal French ones, have been spotted at Costco recently:
That's all she wrote, folks. All that's left is a Food Network reality show about rival macaron shops, complete with feisty, chirpy macaron chefs and their equally feisty, chirpy macaron crews.
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Anyways. From Wikipedia:
A macaron is a sweet confectionery made with egg whites, icing sugar, granulated sugar, almond powder or ground almond, and food coloring. The macaron is commonly filled with buttercream or jam filling sandwiched between two cookies. Its name is derived from an Italian word "maccarone" or "maccherone". This word is itself derived from ammaccare, meaning crush or beat, used here in reference to the almond paste which is the principal ingredient. It is meringue-based: made from a mixture of egg whites, almond flour, and both granulated and confectionery sugar.
The confectionery is characterized by its smooth, domed top, ruffled circumference (referred to as the "foot"), and a flat base. It is mildly moist and easily melts in the mouth.
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My interest in macarons coincides with a recently engaged friend's interest in perhaps including macarons at his wedding reception. I had just ordered this book only a day or two before we happened to start talking macarons:
Soooo... I want that gig! I want to make macarons for a wedding!
But I can't do it until I become a macaron expert.
So far I have made a grand total of two batches of macarons; the first batch was unrecognizable as macarons. They were still tasty, but a complete and utter abomination:
This was before I ordered a food scale and before my macaron book came in. I used the marthastewart.com recipe that was well-reviewed on the site, so I was hopeful. Blurgh.
The second batch was way more successful. I had a food scale, I had an authentic recipe from the "Macaron" book. I wasn't going to let these little buggers get the best of me.
Well hellooooo, macaron. I think these are pretty textbook: smooth, domed tops, a frilly little foot and a flat bottom.
This particular batch is filled with a banana-chocolate spread that I got at World Market. (I'm just now getting used to calling that store "World Market." To me it will always be COST PLUS. Is that just a California thing?) Basically I'm just working on macaron shells at this point, and will move on to creative, homemade fillings a bit later. Also, colored shells. Next batch will feature some color.
I think we're moving in on acceptable macarons, folks. But I'd never had a store-bought one before, so I don't know how these stack up. I liked 'em, though. They seemed to get a good reception from the folks at work. They stored beautifully in the fridge. Well, for two days, at least. I guess that's a good sign that they were all gone after two days. Bringing them back to room temp after removing them from the fridge cuts down on the almost-a-tad-too-chewy factor.
Notes for next time: The "Macarons" book calls for 2.5-inch shells, which seems enormous to me. I might scale back a little, and bake them for a minute or two less.
Ever onwards.
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