RASPBERRY COCONUT MACARONS FOR WORLD MACARON DAY!

WORLD MACARON DAY!


AND OLD FASHIONED BREAD PUDDING


I am anti-trend. Yes, I have worked in the arts. And fashion. Now food. How much trendier, how much under the influence can one get than art, fashion and food? Yet I recoil from trends, fads and crazes with a knee-jerk reaction, like being faced with the plague. Never one to easily fit in, I found that no matter how I tried to wear the latest styles or act like the others I looked little more than a misfit, a goon (yes), so why bother? While others were oohing and ahhing over the hot new artiste du jour, the David Salle or Julian Schnabel or whoever was being promoted as hot, I was too much of a naturally born skeptic to follow the crowd blindly, analyzing, over-analyzing and doubting the sincerity of this one or that. Too much is made over a film, a book or an exciting new gadget? I steer clear. I may purchase something – a cool pair of shoes, a lovely skirt, all the rage – but then I will safely tuck it away in the back of the closet only to pull it out 5 or 10 years later when the fad has passed and happily slip it on, pairing it with the most unlikely things. I may deign to discover a book or a film several years down the line, but first impressions and doubts tend to stick and I have been known to regret the money spent, close the book with disgust and give it away without having read further than the first chapter. Cell phone? Had to have one forced on me when I began working outside of the house. Iphone? Just got my first and my men still roll their eyes in dismay that I only use it…to phone.


And food. Once one is plugged into the world of food blogging, one has a front row seat to all the newest trends and crazes, watching the hottest, the coolest, the funkiest scroll by with a flick of the wrist: cupcakes, macarons and cake pops, bacon or pork belly, this new restaurant or cookbook. Mini this or fried that, edible dirt, molecular and foam, have absolutely no charm for me. If you must tack the word gourmet, heirloom, redefined or gastro- onto the name of whatever you are selling, then count me out. Farmer’s markets and eating more leafy, green vegetables, eating local and seasonal…wait a minute? Well, we’ve been doing this for years! I wouldn’t call these trends as much as I would call them smart!

Screeeeeech…. Wait a doggone minute there. Did you say….macarons? Ah, the trendiest of food trends, that lovely little French confection, that wisp of powdered sugar and almonds, that mouthful of delicate, feminine froth. Since these tiny, colorful treats have taken the world by storm, shops spreading like wildfire across the globe, one pastry chef creating even more eye-popping, astonishing flavor combination after the next, I have tasted exactly five store-bought macaron selections: Ladurée (much too gooey and sweet), Fortnum & Mason (a tad dry, a tad bland), Pierre Hermé (luscious! Some I could have passed over but his cassis-chocolat and caramel au beurre sale are exquisite) and Vincent Guerlais and Sucré (my favorites, beautiful flavors, perfect shell-filling balance and not overly sweet, simply suggestive, seductive), but I tend to prefer purchasing a box of handmade chocolates to macarons any day. Macarons for a treat, a snack, a dessert are simply not my thing. There is little attraction and, quite possibly, the fact that everyone seems to go wild over them, everyone dreams of nibbling on a chocolate-truffle macaron by PH or is willing to spend hours queuing on the sidewalk in front of Ladurée, so many have elevated this tiny sweet to dizzying heights, had me simply turned off from the get go. Just another trend, fad, craze. And I am so not interested.


“So then why do you make macarons?” you ask with a sneer or a laugh. “I mean, just take a gander at your blog, stroll through your own recipe index and there they are for all the world to see: Espresso Sea Salt Chocolate Macarons, Coffee Macarons, Gingerbread Macarons, Blueberry Hibiscus Macarons with Blueberry Vanilla Mascarpone Cream, Tulip Macarons with Honey-Pistacho Mascarpone Cream, Violet Macarons, Vegetable Macarons with Chili Chocolate Ganache, Beetroot Macarons with Smoked Salmon, even Cotton Candy Macarons. Guilty as charged! I’ve been caught red-handed falling in line and succumbing to this latest food trend. But I can honestly say that I was seduced by the baking challenge rather than beguiled by the treat. Never one to be tempted and turned on by any dessert not rich and hearty, creamy and gooey, I would have never imagined in my wildest dreams that I would have taken to the delicate, ethereal French macaron. Husband despises them and I did long avoid both eating and making them, but THIS challenge got me started, thanks to Deeba, the wonderful baker behind Passionate About Baking, and ever since we have baked macarons side by side, in failure and in success, gathering around us so many passionate, talented bakers in our own virtual Mactweets’ Kitchen. And today is World Macaron Day, so I will heartily and lustfully shout out a cheery Happy Macaron Day to you all and share my latest creation: Raspberry Coconut Macarons with Chocolate Ganache for Mac Attack Challenge #27.


These rather brown macarons are indeed Raspberry-Coconut – having mysteriously turned the color of mud in the oven after beginning their round life a stunning, deep fuchsia pink. I added 2 tablespoons of dried raspberry powder – sifting out the seeds – and a couple of tablespoons sifted dried coconut powder to the powdered sugar/ground almond blend of my traditional recipe (without the spice, cinnamon or cocoa of course). I filled the shells with a simple dark chocolate ganache, although if I did not have such a persnickety family I would have stirred some raspberry or cherry preserves into the chocolate. In spite of their sad murky color, the flavor was brilliant, a mild yet wonderful fruity flavor which paired beautifully with the chocolate. The macarons were perfect: a thin crispy outer shell giving way to a perfect, tender, mildly chewy inside. Wonderful.


But to end this anti-trend, non-fad, craze-free sentiment and blog post, I will add on a recipe that immediately became a family favorite: Pudding au Pain. We always prefer the old fashioned, the homey, the comforting over the latest and the hottest. And what is better or more delightful or, for that matter, more popular than a Bread Pudding? But this Bread Pudding is no regular Bread Pudding…. This is French Bread Pudding. The stale bread is soaked in hot milk and then the softened bread is mashed into a purée into which is blended the rest of the ingredients. Plump raisins are added for sweetness to an otherwise lightly sweetened pudding and baked under a lovely caramel. Of course, I based the recipe on JP’s favorite Françoise Bernard from Recettes Faciles, but giving it my all-American twist of finely grated orange zest, a dash of cinnamon and a splash of vanilla.


The result? Instead of chunks of bread rising to the top and getting crusty while others remain soft and rather than, as so often happens, the custard separating during the baking, the puréed bread blends into a batter-type mixture and creates a dense, chewy, pudding-like cake. This is a marvelous way to use up any type of stale bread or cake, any and all kinds blended together; this is a staple of most French boulangeries: leftover breads and cakes are used to create a very popular, old-fashioned dessert, either vanilla or chocolate and topped with either gooey caramel or a chocolate glaze or ganache. Next time you crave bread pudding, next time you have stale bread piling up around you calling for attention, make this fabulous French Bread Pudding. Gorgeous, addictive, a perfect balance between very delicately sweetened pudding and sweet, sweet raisins, mildly bitter caramel and the hint of orange and cinnamon….a truly stunning treat.


PUDDING AU PAIN –or- FRENCH BREAD PUDDING
Adapted from Recettes Faciles by Françoise Bernard

3.5 oz (100 g) raisins, dark or blond
7 oz (200 g) stale bread, cubed
2 cups (500 ml or ½ litre) milk, whole or low fat
¾ cup (150 g) sugar
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
Finely grated zest of one orange, preferably untreated
Dash of ground cinnamon, ¼ to ½ tsp
½ tsp vanilla

10 sugar cubes (2 oz, 60 g)
2 Tbs water
Couple drops lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Have ready a regular loaf pan.

Rinse the raisins and place in a small bowl; cover with hot water and allow to soak for 15 minutes to plump. Drain and set aside.

While the raisins are plumping, cube the stale bread (smaller is better, but about an inch square is fine) and place in a large mixing heatproof or Pyrex mixing bowl. Bring the milk to the boil in a small saucepan and immediately pour the hot milk over the bread cubes. Allow the bread to soak up all of the milk, tossing and pressing the cubes down into the hot milk regularly. This should take several minutes.

Once the bread has soaked up all of the hot milk and is softened, either run it though a food mill or purée it using an emulsion mixer or robot until fairly smooth. Return to the mixing bowl and whisk or stir in the sugar, the lightly beaten eggs, the plumped and drained raisins, the finely grated orange zest, the ground cinnamon and the vanilla. Stir to blend well.

Place the sugar cubes, the water and a few drops of lemon juice into the loaf pan. Place the loaf pan over medium-low heat and carefully cook. The sugar will melt and the mixture will bubble; allow to cook gently, shifting the pan around and back and forth gently, until it turns into a deep golden/light brown caramel. This can take from 5 to 10 minutes but watch very carefully for as soon as the sugar begins to turn into a caramel (turning brown) it goes very quickly and can burn easily.

Remove the loaf pan from the heat and carefully tilt the pan back and forth so the caramel evenly coats the bottom of the pan and goes a little way up the sides. Immediately pour the pudding batter into the loaf pan on top of the caramel and smooth. Bake for one hour until puffed and golden.

Remove the loaf pan from the oven and allow to cool just until the pan can be handled (the pudding should no longer be hot but should still be warm). Run a sharp knife around the edges to loosen the pudding then place a serving platter upside down on top of the loaf pan. Quickly invert the platter and the pan and lift the loaf pan off of the pudding.


The Bread Pudding is delicious eaten warm or at room temperature, plain, with yogurt, whipped cream or ice cream. We love it plain with a cup of coffee.

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MACARONS PAIN D’ÉPICE (GINGERBREAD MACARONS)

WITH ORANGE CHOCOLATE COGNAC GANACHE : COGNAC PART I


It’s beginning to smell a lot like Christmas…. The air is redolent with the warm, comforting scent of spices, cinnamon and ginger, nutmeg and cloves. We count the days to Hanukkah, thrilled that Simon will be coming home for the holiday, yet this year we feel the urge for a little Christmas spirit as well. Maybe it is the icy whiteness outside the window giving the world a romantic glow. Maybe we just need a bit of festive cheer that only sparkly decorations and the scent of an evergreen can bring. I will dig out the shoebox overflowing with shimmering garlands and the few holiday decorations we have collected over the years, hand-painted shells, walnuts and tiny pinecones in gold to string gaily in and out among the green, several treasured gems the boys made when they were mere tots. I’ll pull out the cookie cutters and bake batches of sweet, buttery treats, stars and menorahs, Santas and reindeer, all dancing happily together on the plate. I’ll make my favorite Cookie Christmas Tree, piles of sizzling potato and cheese latkes to be eaten in the glow of the Hanukkah flames. “The more the merrier,” the tiny elves shout with glee! Yes, our Hanukkah and Christmas can indeed mingle side by side in merriment and joy, seeing in the New Year in brilliance and splendor.


Smoky fumes kissed by a hint of pear and berries, I have never smelled anything quite as rich. Breath in deeply, the sharpness of alcohol stings the nose so unused to the complexity, the experience of cognac. How does one recount a truly remarkable experience, for a remarkable experience it truly was, from that astonishing e-mail that wended its way surreptitiously, almost furtively, into my inbox, hiding amongst all the others, to that nostalgic trip home, each one of us huddled in the corner of our own seat, quietly contemplating the almost 3 days spent together learning and laughing, already sad that we would be separating ways. Son couldn’t contain his mirth at the idea of his old mom sipping cognac amidst the elegant wisps of cigar smoke, but yes, the invitation made it more than clear, I had been invited by Martell Cognac to discover the fabulous world of, yes indeed, cognac.

The season sweeps in on the heady fumes and aromatic eloquence of cognac. The sights, the odors, the flavors sing Christmas.

Now why, you ask, would son find it so amusing that I had been invited for total cognac immersion? I am normally averse, I must admit, to the taste of strong liqueur, yes indeed. One powerful, intoxicating whiff knocks me over and turns me off. An urgent “Taste it!” as the glass is nudged closer to my nose only makes me step back in distaste. How many years and lessons did it take for me to appreciate, nay actually fall in love with wine, the luscious, lovely grape? But I was utterly fascinated and extremely excited to have been invited, intrigued to discover this mysterious libation and as one who has come to love using rum, Grand Marnier, Amaretto, Limoncello and, yes, cognac in my baking, I couldn’t help but be pleased to step into the train that would whisk me off to Paris.

An introductory dinner at Les Closerie des Lilas in Paris with the other food, wine and spirits and luxury bloggers, Katja and her bevy of lovelies from Balistik*Art and a group from Martell Cognac began my journey of discovery. From the welcome cocktail to the last sip of Cognac at the close of a wonderful meal already had me hooked and yearning for more. After a delicious night’s sleep, we were up at the veritable crack of dawn, begging the hotel staff for coffee and just a nibble of croissant (which they happily obliged), finally to be taken to the train and off to Cognac.

Pampered from beginning to end: coffee served in the salon...

...but we always end up with cognac (photo courtesy of David Lebovitz)

A stroll through the vineyards, a walk through the distillery and we were sipping our first glasses of Cognac. Glasses. In the plural. For, yes, we would spend 48 hours sipping, tasting, rolling the amber gold liquid around in our mouths, feeling the heat spread through our bodies, bathe our beings in warmth, our cheeks taking on a rosy glow as the giggles bubble up, our group, strangers a mere few hours before, now feeling connected by a lively, generous bonhomie. No longer shy – is it now the Cognac speaking? – we ask questions, snap photos, chatter among ourselves. With utter fascination I listen, am walked through the long, laborious, delicate process of creating an excellent Cognac, listen as our resident Cognac expert Jeremy Oakes, who accompanied us throughout the weekend (or so I call it), walked us through the many stages of production and passionately discoursed on the magical process of distillation.


Stepping back in time, walking through the tiny, sparse home of the brand’s founder, Jean Martell, through the dim, chilly corridors and cellars where kegs and demijohns of eaux de vie are stacked, soberly, patiently awaiting for the day, the year, the decade when they will be blended, married, with other eaux de vie to create the perfect, silky smooth balance offering a complexity of aromas and flavors, fruity, woody, spicy, floral with a touch of vanilla or hazelnut, to watching the oak kegs being made, one by one, each by hand, the process only barely changed since when kegs were first used, simply inspired me. The process brought me closer to the finished product and instilled an understanding and an appreciation for the artisan quality, the pride, the skill and the creativity that goes into making this venerable libation, into keeping Martell Cognac alive.



Elegance, Complexity, Balance. We heard these three words over and over again and as the three days glided gently, merrily by, I came to see what this meant. Two days of being pampered at the Château de Chanteloup, of dining on delicacies prepared from local ingredients and paired time and time again with a carefully selected Cognac for each dish, being walked through each delicate sniff, each heady breathe, guided through every sip, swirl, swallow of Martell, and little by little a revelation. As the Christmas season peeks its head around the corner, as the lights pop on one by one throughout French cities and villages everywhere, wooing us with the brightness and glitter, the romance of cognac adds to the spirit, promising festivities and luring us into her warm embrace. Gingerbread aromas of cinnamon and ginger with the lingering hint of vanilla; the tang and freshness of winter citrus, oranges spiked with cloves to scent the festive celebrations; or a glass of smoky smoothness, the elegance of curling one’s hand around a globe of liquid gold snuggled up in front of a roaring blaze, haunted by the dark moodiness of plums, damson and black currents or kissed by the romance of chocolate; the whiff of pear tatin as we stood out in the cold mist surrounded by the inky night up there on the Belvedere, the wind snatching at our words as we huddled together to taste the first bottles of Chanteloup Perspective. Sexy bottles held reverently in the hands like a special gift, the sensual curves, the gilded trim, we each had our preference, from the very feminine Noblige, soft, voluptuous, gently sweet touched by the exotic, well structured and light. Or the more lively and very masculine Cordon Bleu, orchard scents of plum and apple surprisingly, harmoniously mingling with coffee and grilled almonds yet touched by the wonder of citrus and floral, the perfect pairing with seafood or veal. The spiciness of XO – Extra Old - in its stunning arched decanter and sophisticated almost jewel-like silver cork, offering that magical blend of cinnamon and candied and dried fruits, peppery, earthy, strong yet silky, sipped while dining on fish.

The Cavern of Ali Baba

Yes, Jeremy brought us into the sacred domain of the true taster where we enjoyed an official dégustation and then carried us down into Paradise, the tiny magical room, dark and slightly dank, where demijohns of the oldest eaux de vie are stored – one of the world’s largest collections - for a special tasting of L’Or de Jean Martell, the pride of the House of Martell. We experienced the nose and the second nose, the orange blossom and lemon zest, the cassis, vanilla and gingerbread chased by a nutty earthiness of a Very Superior Old Pale. We listened to the tale of how Romans planted the first vines in this region in the Fourth Century and created the earliest of cognac-type brandies, a drink forbidden to the French. How it traveled thanks to the French and then the Dutch, finally to be brought back to Cognac by Jean Martell in 1715 where he founded his house. Snapping photos, sipping cognac then wandering back to the Château for a private pastry class by Chefs Danger and Pienkowski – more on this and the food part of the trip will be shared in my next post – before our last jubilant meal followed by a glass or two of Champagne surrounded by laughter and smoke and then an all-night karaoke session, packed into a tiny room, singing our hearts out (and only one among us opted out, sneaking quietly off to bed, and he knows who he is.).


Do I ramble on too long and evangelize too loudly; do I give off the aura of one who now adores, worships the great god cognac? I find it difficult to expound on this wonderful trip and the wonders of my newfound passion for cognac without sounding like a brochure or a marketing tool at the hands of a great company. Yet, I must admit, although wary of their expectations before I left, as I accepted the trip, as I then sat in front of a clean white paper deciding on how to tell the story, for it is always a story for me, I couldn’t help but acknowledge that I was totally swept away, left completely enthralled with not only cognac and the region (which my husband has always loved) but with all of the people who managed and oversaw our three days, who took care of us, pampered us; I was captivated by their passion and their exuberance, how they were like one large, happy family who welcomed us into their fold.

photo courtesy of Douglas Blyde

A warm and heartfelt thank you to the kind folks at Martell Cognac and to my fellow travelers

Ren Behan of Fabulicious Food
Douglas Blyde of Intoxicating Prose
Brad Lau of Lady Iron Chef
Helene Le Blanc of The Luxe Chronicles
David Lebovitz of David Lebovitz
Qing Lin of Neeu
Max of Cognac Expert


Please be patient, the food and fun will soon continue on Cognac Part II

N.B. Round trip travel from Nantes to Cognac via Paris, all hotel accommodations and meals were courtesy of Martell. No further gift (except a wee bottle of cognac) and/or remuneration has been solicited or offered. The decision to write about the trip was my own decision and all views and opinions are my own.


For a truly stupendous, stunning holiday dessert using Cognac, try my Holiday Chestnut Cake with Chocolate Chestnut Cognac Cream Filling and Chocolate Buttercream Frosting!

GINGERBREAD MACARONS
WITH COGNAC CHOCOLATE CHESTNUT GANACHE


For this month’s Mactweets challenge: Seasons & Holidays Macarons, I used my favorite macaron recipe and spiced it up for the holidays, bringing to the French macaron the lovely flavor of Pain d’Épice – gingerbread. For a festive filling, I made a ganache using an orange-spiked dark chocolate and blended about 2 tablespoons prepared vanilla-scented sweetened chestnut cream and 2 tablespoons Noblige Cognac by Martell into the cooled and thickened ganache. They were beautiful! Like a fine cognac, the marriage of each Christmassy flavor blended together in perfect harmony, yet allowed for each individual flavor to stand out, passing over the tongue one by one. Just splendid!

7 oz (200 g) powdered/icing sugar
4 oz (112 oz) finely ground almonds
3 large eggs whites (about 3.5 oz / 100 g)
1.2 oz (35 g) granulated white sugar
1 tsp ground pain d’épice or gingerbread spices
1 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder
¼ tsp ground cinnamon

Blend the cocoa powder and spices together with the sifted powdered/icing sugar and ground almonds. Whip the granulated sugar in with the aged egg whites and carry on from there! I baked these at 145°C in my never-ending quest for the perfect oven temperature for my own oven.

For the Chocolate Chestnut Ganache:

4.2 oz (120 g) good quality dark chocolate (I used Lindt 70% cocoa Orange-Chocolate)
½ cup (125 ml) heavy whipping cream
2 Tbs sweetened Crème de Marrons (canned sweetened Chestnut Cream)
2 Tbs Martell Cognac of your choice (I used Noblige)

To prepare the GINGERBREAD MACARONS follow the directions here.

For the Chocolate Ganache, simply chop the chocolate and place in a medium heatproof bowl. Heat the cream over low heat until it comes just to the boil then pour over the chopped chocolate. Stir until the combined and smooth and the chocolate is completely melted. Allow to cook and thicken, placing in the refrigerator to hurry the process. When the ganache is cooled and very thick, fold or stir in the chestnut cream and the cognac. Refrigerate again to firm up.

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COCOA MACARONS FOR PINK OCTOBER

AND A THOUGHT…

No one is useless in this world who lightens the burden of it to anyone else.
~ Charles Dickens

Sometimes occasions come around that inspire the need to take action. We have each done our part, made a gesture no matter how small, to bring about awareness for a good cause or donated money, goods or time to help someone in need. From leaving a pile of old coats and cuddly sweaters for the homeless person who lives in a makeshift shack outside of Paris as winter sets in to dropping a few coins in a hat on a street corner, from purchasing too many boxes of cookies from the adorable daughter of our next door neighbor to making phone calls for our candidate of choice, from taking to the streets to giving our time in a shelter, we have all made an effort. Now, as I sit at my laptop in the comfort of my own home, surrounded by my family (listening to my husband and son chatter together amid the noise of puttering) and enjoying good health, I think of those close to my heart who have suffered at the hands of one evil or another. I have sat with one of my college roommates as she received chemo; I have spent hours upon hours, weeks and months listening to the labored words of my husband as he had to make decisions on his own father’s behalf; I have telephoned my cousin to tell her about my brother’s illness and death only to end up discussing her own brave fight against breast cancer; I have been stunned and amazed by the courageous behavior of two very close friends made through the internet as they face their own struggle with cancer, blown away by their humor and grace in dealing with something so dreadful. I have lost my own father and brother to an illness still, sadly, without a cure.

A day wasted on others is not wasted on one's self.
~ Charles Dickens

It is Pink October, Breast Cancer Awareness Month and I cannot but remember the two times I entered a clinic to have lumps removed, confused, stunned and trying to deal with the fear of the unknown. I was one of the lucky ones, educated, informed and having the means with which to do something about it. Others are not so lucky, like the poor woman I found standing in front of the banks of elevators at the Breast Clinic in Manhattan, alone, hysterical, crying for help as the tears coursed down her cheeks, one woman, one moment that is seared into my memory. And I know that no matter how small and insignificant my words or my actions, if I can reach out and help one person or be the means of educating one single man or woman then I will feel as if I have made a difference. Deeba and I selected Pink October as our monthly Mac Attack Challenge theme for the second year in a row. We understand the importance, the urgency of spreading the awareness of this still incurable disease. We understand that there is still a long way to go not only in research and finding that cure, but in simply making more women (and men) aware, educating them that they have the power to anticipate, screen themselves as I did those many long years ago, and at least begin to take matters into their own hands and help themselves.

Keep love in your heart.
A life without it is like a sunless garden when the flowers are dead.
~ Oscar Wilde

Pink is the color of October. Now, one thing that I have learned along the way is that a most crucial element in dealing with a challenge such as an illness is friendship. Kind words. A hug. Support, encouragement and laughter. Sharing the burden just a little, making us forget the pain and worry for even a few minutes or a few hours. Chocolate and chick lit where a chick flick isn’t possible, when distance divides. And baking together. From Mactweets, where we gather together each month a bevy of Macpassionate bakers in our virtual Macaron Kitchen to Bake Together where Abby Dodge offers us her recipes, shares her love of baking, her encouragement and her own virtual kitchen to bake together across space, miles and continents, there is always a place for the healing power of friendship, camaraderie and conviviality. And food.

I will share two recipes from these two groups that offer each of us a way to spend just a little time with friends, to spread laughter, help each other face challenges whether in baking or in life, a way to get to know each other a little better and widen our circle of friends and support. This is one reason we have all come to food blogging, knowing that we will meet like-minded souls, many of whom will become allies and companions, collaborators and mentors, friends with whom we can share our woes and successes, our knowledge and our support. Today I offer you… French Macarons for Pinktober! As I have only one macaron eater chez moi and he really loves my chocolate macs the best, I have used my regular recipe, adding 1 tablespoon cocoa powder to the dry ingredients and about ¼ teaspoon pink food coloring paste whipped into the stiff egg whites to get a cocoa macaron with a faint pink tinge. I sprinkled the shells with candied rose petal bits or cherry-flavored sugar crystals then sandwiched the halves together with a thick, rich semisweet chocolate ganache swirled with a dab of my favorite cherry jam. Luscious…to be eaten in moderation. And with a friend or two.


Please find the basic and my favorite Chocolate Macaron recipe and well as the best Chocolate Ganache filling HERE. Adjust to taste by adding cinnamon, cardamom, vanilla or any other flavored sugar as you please.


And this month of October: THINK PINK!


Follow Deeba and I on our monthly macaron adventures on the Mactweets blog. And join along, the more the merrier, and see how baking together ignites your creativity, inspires your imagination, gives you courage to try and laughter when you fail… and a whole lot of new friends.

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CHOCOLATE CINNAMON MACS WITH ORANGE & CHESTNUT

FALLING INTO FALL


My son shakes his head in dismay and disappointment as he stares at the screen. “You are doing it all wrong,” he exclaims, speaking to me as if I was a wayward, naughty child caught with my hand in the cake batter, chocolate smeared across my face. He grabs the laptop and begins to scroll through other blogs that he has discovered, pointing out that I, too, need to reduce my words to the bare minimum and simply offer my readers recipes and only recipes, easy to make, easy to find, easy to access. “Who wants to read through long, rambling stories on a food blog?” I have heard, sadly I might add, the same or something similar from my husband and older son as well. “But what,” I ask them, my heart pounding, breath coming short and fast, “do I do with my stories? I am, after all, first and foremost a writer! I can’t just stop writing, can I? You know what they say… A writer writes….always!”

And my darling, talented friend Nanette tells me that I am limiting myself too much, trying to contain my writing to food and that I should expand my platform. And maybe she is right. Yes, okay, Nanette is always right. But what’s a girl to do, a girl with limited time and limited finances?

So my solution is this: alternate my posts, every other one a story, every other one a recipe. More or less. And so it goes.


I have been away too long. New Orleans, Florida, Oman. Out of the loop. Behind. Shamefully behind. Deeba was left all alone to handle Mactweets but happily our little Mac Attack challenge was left in perfect hands. She selected and posted this month’s challenge while I was off wandering the world, watching American television shows about serial killers and enjoying myself. The theme she offered us was Seasonal Macarons and as we roll gently and lazily into my favorite season, autumn, this couldn’t delight me more. Thoughts of October in Tuscany, cooking and snapping photos in Italy and talking passionately about what I love the best, writing, is filling up every waking hour and dotting every conversation as we finalize details for our second From Plate to Page workshop. I have always loved fall the best, maybe because I grew up in a place where fall just doesn’t exist. I adore the cool, crisp weather, the clear blue skies, the gentle breeze that floats through the house when we throw the French windows open onto a beautiful autumn day. Strolls through the vineyards or a romp in the woods with Marty and JP are comforting and enjoyable. The trees turn rustic, mellow, gorgeous, fading from green to burnished reds and matted orange. Summer with just a hint of winter, the promise of holidays and my world turns into a place I want to stay forever.

And the food! Yes, I’ll miss summer’s cherries and plums, peaches and nectarines, but autumn fruits are beginning to show up now, teasing and tempting and inspiring thoughts of Halloween, Thanksgiving and the approach of the holidays. Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year, highlights apples and sweet golden honey, almonds and hazelnuts, an abundance of foods of the earth in greens and golds, creamy browns and deep purple. Figs and pears and mushrooms of all sorts tumble from rough wooden crates lined up at the Primeur’s stall whispering to me, inviting me to take them home. And citrus. Oranges and grapefruit make their first tentative appearance and nothing means cold weather to me better than the oranges and yellows of citrus, my childhood rushing back to me with each glimpse of those fragrant heaps of fruit.


Yes, I love autumn best of all. But what do I love so much to inspire a seasonal macaron? The first thing that popped into my mind was orange and chocolate. This combination of flavors brings back family holidays with a bound: each year we offer ourselves elegantly beribboned sachets of chocolate-covered candy orange peel from the best chocolatier in Nantes, slowly savoring them one by one as we sit side by side on the livingroom sofa of an evening. Orange and chocolate together remind me of autumn as it slips into winter, as one Jewish holiday fades into another, bringing us closer together mother, father, sons and brothers.

And chestnuts. How I love chestnuts in both savories and sweets. A wonderful chestnut layer cake beautifully layered with chocolate-chestnut cream and covered in chocolate buttercream is a favorite dessert, astonishing friends who clamor for more. Who thinks of autumn or winter without thinking of chestnuts…roasting over an open fire, imparting a fabulous, earthy, woodsy scent, wrapping us in a blanket of memories?


Chocolate cinnamon macarons – cinnamon synonymous with baking, warm, toasty kitchens, scrumptious holiday snacks and lazy Sunday mornings – sandwiching a rich, creamy dark chocolate ganache. And more: in half the macarons I placed a dollop of tangy, sweet and bitter orange marmalade and in half I added a smear of chestnut cream. What flavors say autumn more than chocolate combined with orange or chestnut?


MY FAVORITE CHOCOLATE MACARONS

7.2 oz (200 g) confectioner’s/powdered sugar
4 oz (115 g) ground blanched almonds
3 large egg whites (about 3.8 – 4 oz/ 110 – 112 g)
1 oz (30 g) white granulated sugar
1 Tbs unsweetened cocoa powder
½ tsp ground cinnamon

Prepare 2 large baking sheets. On 2 large pieces of white paper the size of your baking sheets, trace 1 – inch diameter circles (I used the wide end of my pastry tip) evenly spaced, leaving about ¾ - 1 inch between each circle. This will be your template to help you pipe even circles of batter onto the parchment paper. You will be able to reuse these endlessly. Place one paper on each baking sheet then cover with parchment paper. Set aside. Prepare a pastry bag with a plain tip.

Sift the powdered sugar, the ground almonds, the cocoa powder and the cinnamon together into a large mixing bowl. Set aside.

In a standing mixer or with a hand mixer, whip the egg whites for 30 seconds on low speed then increase speed to high and whip until the whites are foamy. Gradually add the granulated sugar as you continue to whip the whites until you obtain a glossy meringue and all of the sugar has been beaten in. The meringue will be very stiff (turn the bowl upside down over your head and they shouldn’t move) and be dense like marshmallow.

Gently but firmly fold the whipped whites into the powdered sugar/ground almonds/cocoa, using a silicon spatula or the equivalent, turning the bowl as you lift and fold, making sure you fold in all the dry ingredients completely. When the batter is ready to pipe, it should flow from the spatula like lava or a thick ribbon. To test to see if you have folded it enough, drop a small amount onto a clean plate and jiggle it slightly. The top should flatten, not remain in a point. If it doesn’t flatten, give the batter a few more folds and test again. You can also fold the powdered mixture into the meringue if it is easier for you.

Fill your pastry bag with the batter. Pipe circles onto the parchment paper, using the traced circles on the template sheets to guide you, holding your pastry bag above each circle and piping into the center. DO NOT FORGET TO CAREFULLY REMOVE THE WHITE PAPER TEMPLATE FROM UNDERNEATH THE PARCHMENT PAPER. YOU DO NOT WANT THIS TEMPLATE TO GO IN THE OVEN!


Preheat your oven to 280°F (140°C).

Allow the macarons to sit out for about an hour or even longer if the shells are not ready to bake. The top of each shell should form a “skin” (it will feel like it hardened a bit when gently touched and not stick to your skin). Bake the shells for 15 – 25 minutes, depending on their size (when I touched macs that were not quite done, the top jiggled a bit as if there was still a bit of liquid batter between the top and the “feet” so I let it continue to bake another minute.) I turn the trays back to front halfway through the baking.

Remove the tray from the oven and immediately slide the parchment paper with the shells off of the hot baking sheet and onto a surface, table or countertop. Allow to cool completely before sliding the shells very gently off of the parchment by slipping a metal cake spatula under the shell as you lift it up or by peeling the parchment paper from the back of the shells. Be careful or the center of the shell risks sticking to the parchment.


When the macaron shells are cool, pair the shells up evenly, each with a matching partner. Smear a half teaspoon or more of either orange marmalade or sweetened chestnut cream onto the bottom shell of each pair. Pipe a dollop, about a teaspoon, of ganache filling on top of the marmalade or chestnut cream. Carefully sandwich the shells together.


CHOCOLATE GANACHE
Feel free to use a bittersweet or semisweet chocolate or any of the flavored chocolates now available – orange chocolate, for example, in your ganache.

Optional but highly recommended
A few tablespoons bitter or sweet orange marmalade
A few tablespoons vanilla-scented sweetened chestnut cream

½ cup (125 ml) heavy cream
4 ¼ oz (120 g) Lindt Excellence 70% Dark Chocolate (I used Doux) or your favorite chocolate

Chop the chocolate and put in an appropriately-sized pyrex (heatproof) bowl. Heat the cream in a saucepan gently until it comes just to the boil. Pour the cream over the chopped chocolate and stir until all of the chocolate is completely melted and the mixture is smooth and luxurious. Allow to cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally. It should thicken to a spreading/piping consistency. If you need to, speed up the process by placing in the refrigerator until desired spreading/piping consistency, stirring occasionally.

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