Basque Macarons

Apparently there are different types of French Macarons…depending on the region.  Who knew?  Not me!  I am only familiar with the sandwiched ones, the Parisian Macaron.  These are a simple macaron, not sandwiched but surprisingly amazing without the filling.

These cookies have a full almond flavor due to the almond flour, and a wonderful texture which is both crisp and chewy.  As one of my tasters commented, “these have a wonderful crisp shell with a chewy delight in the middle”.  This cookie is quite unassuming, plain looking actually…and easy to make.  However, every one of my tasters was almost speechless to describe why they loved these so much.

They just loved them…and couldn’t stop eating them.  I think that speaks for itself. 🙂

These are a keeper!

Smoothest, Silkiest, Creamiest, Tartest, Lime Tart

I think this might be the longest name of a recipe we have made…and yet, I have to say, it lives up to every word. 🙂

I just love the intro’s to all of our recipes.  It gives us the background and significance of each one.  I think it gives more context as to what we are baking.  We find out this is a “version of a tart all of Paris fell in love with…a rich and refreshing crème anglaise made with fruit juice instead of the usual milk or cream”. It is cooked precisely, whirred thoroughly, and whisked vigilently to achieve its remarkable texture.  It is likened to the American, Key Lime Pie…we are told as an option we may top it with sour cream and make the usual graham cracker crust but I decided to just go for it the Parisian way.

I followed the recipe exactly, topping out at the required 180 degree max when whisking the crème anglaise.  I do believe I reached the correct consistency, but it did take a lot longer than the 2 hours to firm up in the crust.  Perhaps I was too thorough in my quick whisk after chilling when I filled the crust.  I don’t know… I am just glad I wasn’t serving this at a dinner party or something.  It might have been a little less firm than would have been ideal.  All in all, it turned out beautifully and loved by ALL.  Everyone commented on the creaminess and lightness of the custard/creme.  I think everyone was somewhat skeptical since the tart is yellow not green as one would expect from a lime tart….but maybe this helped with everyone being so blown away by how tasty and creamy it was.  I don’t know, but this one got rave reviews!!

Coincidentally, I started this recipe an hour or two after dropping my son off at the airport for a trip to Europe.  Imagine my chuckle when I saw that this was a Parisian recipe….he was on a plane headed to Paris at that very moment.  I thought it was fitting haha!