Macarons have been on my “Must Try” list since long. I had heard about how difficult it is to get a perfect macaron. I had planned to give one whole day to make these sweet little confectionery items but surprisingly I was able to make them in a matter of hours. There are many steps where, if you are not careful, you can ruin the macarons, like over-mixing the macron mixture (macaronage), not maintaining the egg-whites at room temperature, or not beating the egg-whites till stiff peaks are formed. Also, macarons are sensitive to moisture and being very light, should be handled very delicately throughout the process. The best part about macarons is that they require very less ingredients and if all the important points are taken care of, they are pretty easy to make. Click here to see the complete recipe.
What are Macarons
Macarons are confectionery items like marshmallows, marzipans, etc. They are meringue-based confectionery cookies, primarily made of egg whites, sugar, and almond flour and are characterized by a crusty top and hollow and chewy inside.
Macarons were first made during the Renaissance in France by the Queen’s Italian chef. Later in 19th century, these macarons were modified into a sandwiched version with filling between the two cookies. Between the two macarons cookies, you can have different types of fillings like, buttercream icing, ganache, jam, etc. Macarons are considered quite costly because of some rich ingredients like almond flour and natural food flavorings.
Macarons and Macaroons
Although they sound similar, macarons and macaroons are very different.
Varieties of Macarons
Although, the macarons made by French method are the most popular and are often considered the genuine macarons, the macarons made by Italian method are also very popular. In French method, the egg-whites are whisked till there are stiff peaks and then the sifted almond flour and icing sugar mixture is added to the egg whites through fold and cut method. This process is called – Macaronage.
In the Italian method, the egg whites are whisked while the hot sugar syrup is added to it to form a meringue. After this, the sifted almond flour and icing sugar mixture is added to the egg mixture to form macaron mixture. Besides the French and Italian methods, different countries have their own versions of making macarons based on the popular flavors of their land.
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