Friday, December 11, 2009

On the Topic of the Holiday Baking...

I will spend this weekend making:
  • Pound cake with chocolate glaze
  • Sable (my fave style of shortbread - from France!), and
  • Macarons filled with chocolate ganache
As y'all know, the pound cake and sable recipes are old faves, but the macarons were inspired by a) the season b) Joe Pastry - who does the best cooking blog around, for my money and c) my desire to impress the jingle bells off my friend Anne, whose tree trimming party I'll be attending, avec dish, this Sunday.

Anne makes Martha Stewart look a little meh, truth be told, so I don't feel like I can turn up at her door without something impressive. (Competitive much?) And, really, I have been wanting to make these crunchy/fluffy morsels forever. The stars just haven't aligned before this weekend.

So give me your positive meringue vibes pls. And I'll keep you posted.

But while we're waiting to see how it goes, tell me: Have you made macarons? If yes, did they work out well? Do you love 'em, hate 'em, never tried 'em? Do tell.
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9 comments:

  1. D. DebilDecember 11, 2009 at 8:56 PM

    You rock.

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  2. materfamiliasDecember 11, 2009 at 11:52 PM

    David Lebowitz did a great post on making macarons, but I warn you, he took seven tries to get ones he was satisfied with (and he's got mad pastry-making skills as the former pastry chef at Chez Panisse). Google "David Lebowitz macarons" to get to that post which has directions and pics and recipe. (should also warn you that checking out his website may result in booking a quick trip to Paris for one of his chocolate tours. . .

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  3. K.LineDecember 12, 2009 at 9:04 AM

    Mater: I came across that post yesterday! I might use his ganache recipe as the filling. And, if you read Joe Pastry, he's much less anxious about it all - more science-y too. I've decided I have to live in that sunny imaginary (pre-bake) world. Otherwise it'll throw me over the edge. But I've read many an article on the famed macaron. Which is probably why I've never tried making them before :-)

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  4. materfamiliasDecember 12, 2009 at 9:59 AM

    I'll be following anxiously to see how yours turn out. Given the other wonderful treats you'd had emerge from your oven, I'm sure the results will be gorgeous. (So far, I've only eaten macarons at Ladurée in Paris so the cost per beautiful taste is way high!)

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  5. Miss CavendishDecember 12, 2009 at 10:08 AM

    Hmmm. Although I LOVE coconut, I have never made macaroons. Good luck!!

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  6. Couture CarrieDecember 12, 2009 at 11:21 AM

    Yummy!
    Sending postive meringue vibes your way, darling!

    xoxox,
    CC

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  7. anymommyDecember 13, 2009 at 1:42 AM

    Fingers and toes crossed that all went perfectly for you.

    ReplyDelete
  8. AnonymousDecember 14, 2009 at 2:58 AM

    You and I have the same taste in sweets/desserts... it took me 16 tries to perfect the macaroon's... but I'm sending you all the vibes and can't wait to see the pictures as well.

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  9. K.LineDecember 14, 2009 at 11:03 AM

    D.: I try :-)

    mater: The macaron post comes tomorrow. I actually think the experiment went as well as could be expected from a first attempt. But I'm going to do it again next weekend. Thanks for your confidence in me!

    Miss C: Oh, these are the petits fours "macarons" - like the ones you get in France. Having said that, I so LOVE macaroons. And now I want to make some :-)

    CC: I think it worked.Thank you !

    Stacey: Thank you!!

    April: We really do! Wait till tomorrow's post. I think you will like the result.

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