The Ups and Downs of Macarons

The trials of Macarons – Where to even start!?! What are they? Pronunciation? Lack of feet? Uneven feet? (Feet, they have feet?) Cracked shells? Gooey insides? They look so beautiful sitting on a plate, but getting there can be quite a journey!

So, what are they?  Well, they’re not macaroons which are made with coconut!

Dictionary.com has – a round, colored cookie consisting of a ganache or buttercream filling between two halves made from beaten egg whites with sugar and ground almonds.  That sure does make them sound ordinary doesn’t it?

Here’s my definition – delightfully crunchy, yet slightly chewy meringue shells sandwiching a flavorful filling. Often featuring unusual flavor combinations with quirky names.

What about pronunciation?  Macaroon and macaron are not pronounced the same way. Macaroon has an “oon” sound at the end. Macaron is pronounced with an “on” sound. Doesn’t it sound delightfully snooty?

Now we’ve covered the easy part. What about the actual baking of them? Macarons are horribly temperamental! Like a two year-old who missed her nap. “You stirred me two strokes too few! I’m not going to rise!” “My tops didn’t get completely dry, so I’m going to crack open!” “The warm wind blew across me slightly more from the left, so I’m going to rise unevenly just because I can!” Waaah! But when the stars align and it all works correctly? They are a smooth, glossy, beautiful thing to behold!  And the feet! Gorgeous, delicate, ruffly feet. When they come out of the oven, those feet make my heart beat fast!

Yes, macarons have feet. The ruffled circumference is called the foot or pied. It happens during baking. Letting the tops dry completely causes them to rise evenly and makes the feet!

We are not even going to discuss the gooey insides. Ugh! Those are the shells that my family can eat without getting their hands slapped

Look at those feet! So beautiful!