Macaron Workshop

Alain Ducasse Macaron Book

Hello my dears,

A lot of my favourite bloggers like Kristina, Emily or Caro declare Macarons to be their favourite sweet treat. I don’t share their excitement to such an extent but a good macaron from time to time makes my heart beats faster as well.

Less because of their taste but more because of their photogenic quality (hello instagram!) I then head to Ladurée or another neighbourhood bakery in order to indulge myself this typically French dessert. But it was only until last weekend, that I met with a (let's call her macaron experienced) friend to rise the challenge: my first self-made macarons.

We followed the standard recipe (or here) and added some pink colour to make them look even prettier. I quickly realized how important it is to have the necessary equipment like a baking mat (you can also take parchment paper) and a piping bag - and enough time and patience. Instead of the typical white chocolate filling that is generally mixed with all kinds of flavours, we went for berry jam or salmon-goat cheese. Yes, you read correctly: We mixed the sweet with the salty with an extremely satisfying result. Last but not least, we started playing with the macaron forms as we added little ears and finished by painting cat, bear and pig faces on our macarons. This workshop was so much fun and I definitely will include macarons into my baking days!

The right equipment helps a lot!

Strawberry jam macaron

Salmon, apple, coriander, chives, lemon, goat cheese and whipped cream (not in the picture)

Cats love the salty version!

And Paddington bear is a jamoholic!

P.S.: The leave on the last picture is a mint leave, dipped into egg white and sugar, then baked in the oven at 50°C for about 2 hours. A nice and tasty decoration trick that you cannot only add to your macarons.

Bon Appétit!