Misadventures in Macarons

Some days are more frustrating than others.

I had big plans for this week. These plans were based on the fact that my oldest daughter is at summer camp for a week and my husband is at a work retreat for three days. Somehow, in my mind, that translated to an ability to get more done. I’m not sure why, since I’ve actually lost the two lowest-maintenance and most helpful members of the family.

Last week I bit the bullet and ventured into the world of biscotti.

Last week was the first week of the local farmers market. I’ve always wanted to make biscotti but have always been intimidated, so I decided to tackle that fear and made not one, but five different flavors to sell at the farmers market. The super-crunchy cookies were so much easier than I ever imagined, especially with this Classic Biscotti Recipe – Four Ways from Kristine’s Kitchen. I promised myself several more flavors for the market this week, and have already knocked out lemon and anise.

The biscotti was such a success, both in ease and in farmers market sales,
that I'm back at it this week. So far I've made anise (above) and lemon.
I plan to add almond and hazelnut to the mix

That’s the good news. Meanwhile, I’m dealing with a nine- and ten-year-old, who both have an endless supply of observations and “what if” and “why” questions. I have a barking dog. I have a cranky old cat, and a mother cat with five kittens underfoot—under my feet, that is. I have dishes to do, flower beds to weed, a garden to finish planting, and … in a paraphrase of the Disney song, “We don’t talk about laundry, no, no.…”

The obvious way to deal with all of that is to tackle another intimidating (but actually difficult) recipe I have on my bucket list.

Macarons. That’s macarons with one “o,” not to be confused with macaroons, which are tasty but not nearly so particular. Macarons are French and, like many French foods, have an attitude all their own. I found a French macaron recipe by John Kanell on his Preppy Kitchen blog, which seemed to have enough directions and tips for a nervous novice like me.

Did I mention I have two children talking at me nonstop? They’re like a noisy little conversational tag team, though they don’t always take turns. I blame that, not the recipe author, for how this recipe has gone.

There's the meringue, lingering at the soft peak stage.

First, for the first time in several months, if not years, I failed to correctly separate an egg on the first try. That’s a no-no for these meringue-based confections.

Second, the recipe called for two kinds of sugar. I perused the directions for when to add the granulated sugar. (“Mommy, what if you met a seven-foot-tall Chinese man?”) Not seeing it, I assumed the author neglected to say they should both be added to the almond flour at once. Not until later did I see that I was to add the granulated sugar to the egg whites before beating. Oops. That’s probably going to change something.

It doesn't really look like lava to me.

Third, egg whites linger at the soft-peak stage forever. That’s not really news since it’s always true for me, but it is irritating.

Fourth, the directions said to fold the dry ingredients into the meringue until the batter reached the consistency of “lava.” That’s interesting. It never did, which of course has nothing to do with adding the sugar at the wrong time.

Wrong piping tip, but they're kind of pretty. I didn't bother
trying to fill them this week. Heaven only knows what would 
have happened.

And, as I filled the pastry bag to pipe the macarons onto the baking sheet, I realized I didn’t have a plain round tip large enough to pipe the cookies without making a mess of them. I improvised. I eventually ended up with something pretty, if not macaron-looking.

Two things I did right—they taste good, and I think they’re the right size.

Never mind. I just realized my count is off by half a dozen.

I’ll try again next week.

The macarons won't be going to farmers market this week, but
they're still good with a mid-morning cup of coffee