Macarons Are Not Macaroons - Part 2

Ok, so based on the fact that both macaroons and macarons contain egg whites, perhaps they are related. I googled...something about history and Italian amarettis...my other favourites. It's all irrelevant. To me, there's still a huge difference in texture, consistency and appearance between those giant coconut mountains and the delicate, round, melt in your mouth, dainty, filled macarons.

One full week after the macaron making failures, we tried again. We attempted it only once, convinced that we followed the instructions to the letter. We also added a secret ingredient (not into the batter but into us).

Step 1 - Sift together ground almonds and confectioner's sugar.

 

Step 2 - Beat egg whites until white, glossy and whatever else the recipe says. Add sugar and food colouring.

Step 3 - Combine in metal bowl and fold with spatula (about 50 turns) until mixture has lava like consistency. Our arm muscles weren't aching. The batter was a bit thinner.

"Yayyyy....It's looking better than the last times!" Isn't it amazing how much confidence wine gives you?

Step 4 - Squeeze onto double parchment paper (or a silicone mat, whichever you prefer). So far so good.

Step 5 - Oven. We waited. We watched. We were excited.......until.....

Little tongues or little feet? We weren't sure which, but they ran. Ugh...another failure, although they tasted awesome. We compared them to the sample macarons from the bakeshop that my friend had purchased. Hmmm...not that much difference I thought.

Some sympathetic person who was feeling our pain, posted this on facebook...a Wagjag special. Could these implements make all the difference?

After some discussion and further research, we were thrilled to discover the following course. We have registered.

http://www.getyourguide.com/toronto-l177/toronto-macaron-making-2-hour-workshop-t20718/

If we succeed, we should be able to teach techniques and sell macarons to recoup our investment. At the very least, our family and friends will be receiving macarons as Christmas gifts this year.

Stay tuned for "Macaroons Are Not Macarons - Success, The Final Chapter", at some future date.