Ok, arguably these came out MUCH better. They still had feet like crazy, but at least I got more of them to stay upright this time! The trick? I made them much smaller around, and tried to do more folding. Not sure if this really helped it or not….am I at least going in the right direction? I feel like they are looking more like macarons should look like at least.
NOTE: Macarons are not macaroons. They are two very different cookies, and it is more than just an issue of semantics that differentiates the two. This gets confusing because the two terms are used so interchangeably by so many. Macarons refer to the eggwhite & nut flour sandwich cookies that you see above. Macaroons are the larger fluffy chewy egg white based cookies that you often see such as coconut macaroons, like in this wikipedia pic:
So now you see the difference. There are macarons and then there are macaroons, also not to be confused with macaroni (elbow shaped pasta), haha.
For these, I used the same exact recipe for the shells that I used the last time. Though I got this idea from Tartelette in her violet macarons, and decided to grind up some lavender buds in my coffee grinder and press a few into the tops of the shells before baking. And then for my ganache, I combined chocolate, lavender and mint. The ganache was perfect. If you have ever had a Dagoba bar of lavender chocolate, it tasted very similar. Except that I still have a bowl of this ganache in my fridge and it is very hard not to just take a spoonful every time I pass by – let’s just say the lavender and mint in the ganache was a perfect combination! So very different from the strawberry mint ones I made earlier, I think these are definitely my favorite of the two so far. Maybe I will be adventurous enough to attempt them again and try new flavor combinations. But if you like macarons and can make them correctly, definitely give this flavor combo a try.
Jenn Cuisine
Lavender Mint Chocolate Ganache
Ingredients:
1/4 cup heavy cream
4 oz. semi-sweet (60%) chocolate, chopped or in chips form
1 tbs. ground mint leaves
1/2 tsp. ground lavender buds
just under 1 tbs. butter
Directions:
1. Heat up heavy cream in a small saucepan until just before boiling (I think the term is scalding).
2. Pour over chocolate, and stir until all the chocolate is melting and smooth.
3. Add in your mint, lavender, and butter.
4. Let sit about 5-10 minutes so it cools a bit before attempting to spread on cooled macarons cookies.
This ganache is absolutely wonderful. So simple to make, and yet so flavorful. I envision using this recipe again on top of a flourless chocolate torte, or rolling it to make truffles…
{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
Wow, I’m seriously drooling right now. Feet or not, these look fantastic!
Delicate flavors for a delicate cookie – these look amazing!!!
Beauties! They look lovely, and I bet they tasted lovely too. I’m going to make macarons for my blogiversary next month, I’ve been wanting to do it for a while and I needed an excuse
The best part is trying to decide on a flavor combo!
Thanks for the macaron v macaroon definition!
Admitted – I’ve never had a macaron and I don’t get this whole trend. What do they taste like exactly? Are they light and airy (I assume)? And the important part is the flavoring? Just curious!
They are light and airy, not too different in taste from say, an amaretti cookie, but the bottoms are a little chewy and big air pockets in the top of the cookie, so they are perfect to pair with really rich fillings!
How pretty!
WOWWW!! Theses look delicious!!
Thanks for the recipe! Great site!
You have a lovely blog here Jenn. I have added you to my blogroll. Will keep visiting for more.