We're not here to talk about hockey, though (sad :-( ...) We are here to talk about my second attempt to make the perfect macaroon!
As you know, my bakery skills are self taught, from my Easy Bake Oven days forward. I have never sat for a single class (that will change soon), and everything I've learned has come from friends, family, the internet, and maybe 20 bazillion Food Network shows. Oh, and a little common sense too ;-)
That being said, sometimes my first tries are far from perfect. My first tiered cake was, well, a disaster. It took me 3 times longer than it should have to actually get enough cake to use, and then it heavily leaned to the one side. My first chocolate cupcake was either the best or worst cupcake in the world, depending on who you ask. My original attempt at spritz Christmas cookies almost burnt the Mexican crack den I live in to the ground. Sometimes my baking classes are nearly catastrophic.
For those of you who are brand spanking new to this blog, last week I tried and failed to make an edible and beautiful macaroon. It was edible, but it looked awful. You know those macaroni projects your kids bring home that look like a train wreck, but you post them on the fridge anyway because you want your kids to feel like something they invested time and energy in is worthwhile?? Yeah, that's how I felt about these macaroons. I was happy I had tried, but man I couldn't wait to throw them away.
So take two was today. And I have to admit, I was bound and determined to make this recipe correctly this time. Sometimes, when I'm impatient, or think I know everything, I'll tend to edit recipes to my liking. For example, the recipe I was trying said "sift the powdered sugar, cocoa, and almonds together once to properly mix ingredients before stirring", but, thinking this was a dump step, I skipped it last time. I'm not saying it was the deal breaker for my Round 1 Macaroons, but you better believe I was going to follow every darn step perfectly this time. To a T.
About an hour later (after my food processor had had enough), I pulled my first batch from the oven:
Perfection! Finally, it seemed I had mastered the tricky art of macaroon baking.
Here's what I love about recipes like this: once you understand how the base recipe works (i.e. how a macaroon becomes a macaroon) the creativity you have is absolutely endless! I made chocolate because, well, I have a weakness for the flavor, but I was already dreaming up flavor combinations and designs I would love to try out. Definitely a mint chocolate recipe. What about a lemon cookie with a raspberry glaze icing between? An apple cinnamon combination, or even something more daring like rose and almond? This is why I love baking!! It's almost like a complex science experiment, and once you understand what needs to be done you can have as much fun as you'd like with it.
Any other suggestions for some delicious macaroon flavors and fillings? What about a PB&J macaroon? Would you eat that? Let me know if you have any other fabulous ideas for macaroon flavorings! This could become my new favorite thing to make!!
Lis
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