1.6.08

mad for macarons

david lebovitz's chocolate macarons

can you believe i went to paris and never ate a macaron or any other baked goods besides croissants and baguettes? no macarons??! well, two years ago i hated sweets. and now i can't get enough of them. i still don't love sweets, but i am in love with trying them.

actually, now that i write that ... can you believe that two years ago i never even heard of a macaron? the horror!

and of course, some of my favorite bloggers are the queens of sweets, and since then i've learned what they are and seen the most beautiful macarons ever. so when minko over at couture cupcakes announced a mad for macarons event, i was instantly excited! here was my chance to try baking the wonderful loveliness that every one adores and which i have never had!

after hemming and hawing with whose macaron recipe to try first, i decided to go with david lebovitz's chocolate version. why not? i have a blog crush on monsieur lebovitz and the idea of chocolately meringuey almondy cookies sounded delish.

and for my first ever batch of macarons, i'm pretty happy. not ecstatic, because they didn't really come out correctly. but happy that i tried them and more than happy that they taste absolutely delish.

tray

i got the cute little feet on my macarons, but the majority of them cracked on the top, as you can see in the tray above. the optimist could reason that i did them right, but some messed up. or the realist could argue that i f*cked them up, and was lucky to get a few to come out nicely. but either way, i would really love it if any of you more experienced macaroners could clue me in to what might have been wrong?

chocolate macarons

because i've never had a macaron, let alone an excellent one, i don't know what to compare mine to. basically the filling was lovely (although i think i may have not put enough on) and the cookie crust was thin, not really crisp, but like a thin shell, and the inside was soft. i don't know, it's hard to describe it properly (or maybe les adjectifs français serve this purpose better.) the taste was oh so chocolatey and the smell of these were just amazing.

next time, and oh yes there will definitely be a next time, i would like to sift my almond meal even a little bit finer to get a smoother shell. and pipe out my batter a little more evenly in size and shape so i can actually match tops and bottoms!

but this macaron virgin is now officially in love. i can't wait to visit paris again to get the real thing.


stacked

for david lebovitz's recipe, click here and you won't be disappointed!

for a description of french macarons, i really like this write up.

13 comments:

  1. I don´t blame you, macarons are so beautiful. These look amazing.

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  2. Well, for someone who's never even eaten a macaron, those look amazing. You got feet! And your description of the taste end texture sounds spot on. I can't give yu any words of wisdom about the cracking-- the only time I tried to make macarons they came out looking like little candles that were left on a hot windowsill too long.

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  3. This is sheer torture Mimi...move over girl! You will not believe my disastrous macroons of day-before!! YOURS ARE FANTASTIC...a feast for my eyes! I posted my mcacaroon disaster under corny cookies!! Phoooooooeyyy...*BOW* to you, great macaoron maker!

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  4. Mimi, they look so beautiful! I have eaten Pierre Hermé's macarons and yours are as wonderful as!

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  5. I can't believe this was your first go at macarons!?! They look amazing and I'm a bit jealous, because although they are one of my favorite bites, I've never made them. Guess I need to get on it, huh?

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  6. It's strange, up until a few months ago, I too, was unschooled regarding mararons! But lately, they seem to be everywhere! Maracrons with caramel, pink ones, white ones, and these, gorgeous. I'm not the best baker, but yours turned out so well, it give me courage. Lovely post. Thanks!

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  7. I too went to Paris and didn't try a macaron! I ate all other sweets while there though :)

    Great job... I've been thinking I'd like to try them too.

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  8. I was in Paris years ago, before I was even interested in food, and didn't even know that I should try a macaron. Now I really want to go back!

    Your macarons look so perfect - I keep wanting to try my hand at these!

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  9. They look beautiful! I'm still working up to trying to make them for the first time. Great job!

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  10. I love how you've balanced your macarons on top of each other! They look delicious.
    Shari@Whisk: a food blog

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  11. great job! i've always wanted to try these.

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  12. wow! they are beautiful! i am just impressed you tackled them, as i am too intimidated to try them....

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