Macaron Madness

I feel like I have only recently come to understand the glory of Maracon (one N only because they are french and the french are weird). They are crispy little puffs of tasty delight and while I am a new comer to the fan club, I feel as if I have had a sorted past with them. Flash back to me walking around Paris in 2010 and seeing all of these multicolored petite cookies in every bakery window and seeing on the sign "Macaron." I remember think " Gross those shredded coconut things my mom always served on Passover...", however the shape, and color, should have tipped me off that these cookies were nothing like the ones of my childhood.

The USA has recently become obsessed with these sweet little french cookies that can come in color or flavor. The essential parts of a Macaron are the "feet" and the glossy clean little dome of the top of the cookie. Now that may sound simple enough but it is actually rather hard to get that clean top and the essential feet.  So after many trials and errors Evan and I discovered a couple of online resources that really helped with the process.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wdeGVLXYkCU

Also some pictures associate with our first attempts!
It is important to also note that the types/quality of your ingredients are extremely important. Evan and I have tried many different forms of Almond Flour and have found that it is worth it to pay out the bigger bucks for the finer flour rather than getting the stuff that still has the shells on it. Another important tip is to age the egg whites. Meeting separate the whites like 2 days earlier.

More on this later as we experiment with other flavors and technique. As of right now we are just attempting to get the cookie consistency right.

Cinnamon Macaron

My friendly neighborhood taste testers!