A few years ago my husband came home from work with the most delicious cookies. He picked up French macarons from a bakery near his job in the city. I never had one before but when I tried it I understood why he loved them so much. They are so different then anything I have tasted. If you haven’t had one the only way to describe them is delicious.
How I started making macarons
I decided that since he liked it so much I wanted to try and make them. I heard they were hard to bake so I decided to started with a super simple recipe that I got from Honeysuckle which explains step by step how to make this complicated cookie. What I like about this recipe is there are only a few ingredients and she gives an easy explanation on what to do.
Over the years I have checked out some other videos and I got a lot of helpful tips from The Preppy Kitchen. Even though his recipe is a little different watching him make the cookies gave me some great techniques.
Epic Banking Failure
When I started baking these cookies it took forever to make and sometimes they would taste good but look strange or I wouldn’t get feet (the bottom frill of the cookie along the base) or the outer shell would sink in. There are so many levels to making a perfect macaron. I didn’t give up but it took me a lot of tries to figure out how to make these cookies!
Parchment, Silicone Mold, Silicone Mat oh my!
There are a few ways to bake using the cookie sheet and I have tried them all. Everyone I speak to has success differently but for me the silicone mat with the circle outline worked out the best. With the parchment paper the shapes were all different and when I used the silicone mold it didn’t make feet. I am really happy with the way they come out using the silicone mat. I ordered my mat from Amazon and it was under $20 for two mats. This way you can make multiple batches without having to wait.
The Perfect Macaron
Finally five years later I have perfected making French macarons. When I say perfected what I really mean is it actually looks and tastes the way it’s supposed to. Now that I can make the basic cookie there are so many variations I need to try to master.
These little cookies make a great presentation at parties or putting on a beautiful serving tray to bring when visiting someone. I can’t wait to try some new types of shells and filling. If you have any that you love make be sure to let me know!
Happy Baking!
-XOXO
Carissa
