"macaroons" news and stories

If New York has given it up for whoopie pies, San Francisco is a city that has sold its soul for a box of macaroons. And I don't mean the coconut kind that get stuck in your teeth – I mean French-style macaroons (often called macarons); little, round, pastel-colored puffs of perfection. If you've ever fantasized going to San Francisco with some flowers in your hair long after the Summer of Love turned to fall, I'm here to tell you: This is where the magic went. Tune in; turn on; add ten pounds.

Like the whoopie pie in NYC, French macaroons have been dubbed "the next cupcake" here, though I don't think the fair cupcake has to pack her bag quite yet. Macaroons are cookie sandwiches made with almond meal (or flour), powdered sugar, egg whites and food coloring, surrounding a filling of buttercream, ganache or jelly. Compared to the humble cupcake, the macaroon is rarefied – and at $1.60 each, they still go faster than Oreos, and are not the kind of snack you'll be buying for your ten-year-old's birthday party.

But forget the children for a moment, and get over your French-bashing and savor the flavor of these macaroons from Paulette San Francisco. First, dig the pretty colors, man. Caribbean chocolate, lemon, Sicilian pistachio, violet cassis – each box is like a rainbow, and lasts about as long. I brought six of them to the movies with me (The Blind Side) and had to stop myself from eating the whole sample set before the film was over. (And yes, I could discern the flavors in the dark.)

Yup, we know it's going to sound incredibly clichéd but there's really no other way to describe this: An edible rainbow.

French macarons (or macaroons) are not even vaguely related to the dense, tear-drop shaped coconut concoctions common here in the U.S. These light cookies are crispy yet chewy, made of almond flour, powdered sugar, egg whites, and food coloring, and they sandwich a luscious buttercream filling (or ganache, or jelly).

They're a true classic -- refined in looks and taste (and a pain to make) -- which is why they've proudly held their place in French pastry shops for decades, and will continue to do so for years to come.

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Don't mess with a macaroon that works.

I'm told macaroons aren't all that difficult to make. But you wouldn't know it from this recent story in the New York Times.

Seems that when the Century Association, an august gentleman's club on West 43rd St. in New York City, learned that its macaroon supplier of 60 years would be closing its doors soon, it went on the hunt to find another baker with just the right stuff.

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I tend to associate macaroons with clumps of coconut, sometimes drizzled with chocolate and occasionally very delicious. But lately I've been seeing gorgeous photographs of French macarons, which, with the removal of a single 'o', put my version to shame!

One of my favorite design blogs, Oh Joy!, just wrote a post about Paulette bakery in Los Angeles, which specializes solely in these colorful little beauties. Not French enough for you? Lauduree in Paris is an authentic go-to spot -- you know, just in case you're in the neighborhood (or if you are like me and enjoy torturing yourself by looking at food located oceans away).

I'm definitely going to have to try baking these, and I've found some excellent recipes to get me started. Tartelette features a sweet pink version, but I don't know if I'll be able to resist this chocolate variety. For pictures and ideas, though, I'm definitely heading to this French macaron haven over at ColourLovers. Mostly, though, I love how they look like mini-hamburgers.

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At this point in the grand game we call "The Race to Finish Holiday Baking," we're looking at cookies and confections that are easy, fast, but still have that "ooooh"-inducing factor. Perhaps the easiest thing I've ever come across in this category is the coconut macaroon, with all of four ingredients and nothing but a stir-and-bake. I feel almost Sandra Lee because there's no measuring involved, really. All of the ingredients come straight from 14 oz packages or cans, and we're quite sure you can't really mess up on a teaspoon of vanilla.

Of course, the real "ooooh"-inducing factor isn't the coconut macaroon part, but the chocolate dipping - either regular or white. White chocolate just seems more "holiday," but if you use regular semi-sweet or milk chocolate, dip from the bottom, and the tiny macaroons will look like brown chocolate mountains with white coconut peaks.