January 24, 2010

Macarons

Ya'll.

Look at what I did.




Well, with plenty of certified help.

My Christmas present from Nic and Mr. J was to attend a macaron class January 17th, given by the lovely macaron guru, Helen of Tartelette. And boy howdy it was awesome.  Macarons are something I seen making waves around the foodie blogs, and I think they're beautiful.  But I've never A. made them or B. even eaten them.  So this class was going to be all new to me.

And let me tell you, it was quite the learning experience, wrapped up with snacks, champagne, plenty of other Atlanta bloggers of all varieties (even one from Raleigh!) and soaking up any tips, tricks and blog hints I could.  This was all part of the Sugar Coma weekend, as put on by The Broke Socialite, Atlanta's guide to fabulous. Being in the company of such talented women made me think about the serious duty I have to this blog.  I also got the scoop on what it's like to be a famous blogger (and many of you are, though you deny it), creep and mean fans, and the best commentary I've heard on Hoarders to date.

The star of the day were our hosts, Atl's Running with Tweezers Tami, Tartelette's Helen, and Anatomy of a Dinner Party's Patti.  I also met so many wonderful Atlanta bloggers, the Blissful GluttonBakerellaHopeless Foodie, the Frugal Hostess, ATL_Events, Ultra Foodie who all taught me so much. I don't have many pictures from that day, as my pictures didn't turn out so well. My little point and shoot had some serious camera envy when everyone else whipped out their amazing machines.

My first macaron experience, with traditional almond flavored shells and chocolate ganache filling was...incredible.  Light, crunchy cookies with meringue-y insides and truffle like centers. Oh baby. Macarons have kind of a bad rap for being temperamental and difficult, but after Helen's directions, tips and tricks I know I can make these again easily.  And when I do, then I will definitely share it with you.

Here's one for the road.


9 comments:

tami said...

Your macaron photos are beautiful! They turned out great. The blog is FANTASTIC - just subscribed to your RSS feed. Can't wait to see more.

- tami

ps. so so great meeting you, as well :)

Paula - bell'alimento said...

Katie, it was so much fun meeting you! Your macs are gaw-geous! Beautiful post ; )

Cassie said...

Do you know where one can buy traditional (almond) macarons in ATL? Can only find coconut!

Katie Anderson said...

Aw Tami you're making me blush, thank you so much! I'm so glad I got to meet you, you're definitely some great inspiration for me!

Paula- you're so lovely, I hope you make it back to Atlanta soon. Or I come take a tour of Raleigh!

Cassie- You know, I have no idea. Where did you even find the coconut ones? Serious Eats suggests Henri's Bakery in Buckhead
or try here maybe:
Douceur De France
367 Glover Street
Marietta GA 30060
OR
Sugar Cakes Patisserie
101 North Park Square NE, Marietta, GA 30060
Good luck, let me know if you try any!

Cassie said...

Thanks Kate! I found some great ones at Crumb Bakery in ATL - apparently they specialize in “hand crafted French macarons” & cupcakes. http://ow.ly/10hRM

Rachael Hutchings said...

How fun! You did an awesome job!

Jayne said...

I'd really enjoy my life more if you lovelies could just package and ship all of your wonderful creations to me on a regular basis. K? Thanks!

Helene said...

It was so great meeting you Katie! You really did a fabulous job with the macarons! Can't wait to read more of your postings!!

M. said...

these look so great....I'm really envious right now, I haven't tried homemade macarons yet...
it must've been really fun class.