Making macarons

I’ve had my fair share of macarons in Paris (47 in one day??). I hosted the macaron smackdown, trying to decide who made the very best in town. I figured it was time to learn how to make them. So I took La Cuisine Paris’ macaron class.

And I will never complain about paying two euros for a three-bite snack again.

I knew these little beauties were tricky business. But I didn’t realize all the little things that can go wrong. Everything from the sugar type to egg white measurement, to the oven’s accuracy to the weather can affect their outcome (“Humidity is the enemy of macarons,” Diane, our instructor told us—and it was rainy outside.). They’re finicky, requiring many individual steps, a good deal of baking experience and experimentation, and a lot of time on your feet.

The ten of us in class took challenge seriously.

We measured the egg whites and butter and combined the cream and chocolate…



We followed instructions for the proper sifting, folding and whipping techniques…



We proceeded with the deliberate pastry piping execution to get the shiny, crackly cookie croute and proper foot (that little bumpy edge).



We filled half with dark chocolate and raspberry jam; the other half was white chocolate and raspberry. The cookies themselves, I learned aren’t flavored; it’s all in the filling.


They weren’t exactly the prettiest specimens. But, being as they were a Pierre Hermé recipe, they were pretty tasty.


And mine, gone in about two minutes.