
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
How To Eat a Macaron

Sunday, August 23, 2009
Thursday, August 20, 2009
A Tongue-in-Cheek
Le Marron et Thé Vert Matcha a tribute to Pierre Hermé who created the original flavors.
These are photos collages from my trip to Paris, from the window display of Bon Marché department store to Marithé François Girbaud concept store somewhere in the right bank if I remember vaguely. It looks like a wall that's been vandalised by graffiti but still looks very cool with all the clashes of crazy colors. Another image is from le jardin du luxembourg, the prettiest public garden I have been in my life! and I saw that lady painting that sculpture and I was like oh my goodness I have to take a picture of that! Paris is so abundant with the spirit of art of la liberté.
Above is PH original Chestnut Matcha macaron with it's signature green tea paste centre. Since I haven't tried it (but will soon hopefully in September) I don't know exactly what it's made of, whether it's buttercream or ganache based. It's at times like this I wished I have his sell-out-out-of-production Macaron recipe book. His original is light-brown to complement the chestnut flavor, he then cut squares of matcha paste to add onto the half macaron shells and then piped the chestnut filling on top of it.
Mine on the other hand is green, but I like the green better and it's different that his. I used chestnut powder and milk to make the paste and combined the cream and white chocolate to make the ganache. The matcha paste centre is made from the chestnut paste combined with matcha powder. The contrast is very subtle between the matcha green and the chestnut brown filling. But taste-wise is a success because the chestnut flavor is pretty strong and the surprise matcha centre leaves a sorta oriental flavor and the sweet is an after-taste delight.
The matcha squares. Don't hesitate to ask me for recipes, it really depends on my mood if I want to write recipes then I'll write them...but sometimes I really can't be bothered. Sorry, but do ask me if any of you would like any of the recipes of the macarons posted here :)



chestnut matcha innards
New flavor of the day. Marron et Thé Vert Matcha, a tribute to Pierre Hermé, the master macaron chef. My chestnut is a bit too dark and taste v bitter but I really like it, not sweet at all so it's good for all those diet-conscious people...me included. I'm keeping the green colour, PH is beige-brown colour. I have to create a point of difference right...
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
In The Mood of Jasmine


I would love to go back to Paris one day, somehow the air feels different than any city I visited. Oh well that's another story. Back to my macaron! Jasmine is bittersweet as it is, but with lychee cream it gives it subtle texture. I use white chocolate to hold the ganache and it's great that I can hardly taste it as I am not too enthusiastic of using white choc in all of ganaches.

I hope Pierre Hermé is proud of me :D
la crème de lychee jasmin macaron
I love the scent of jasmine, it's sweet but at the same time it's quite bitter...that makes it so bittersweet.
Friday, August 14, 2009
Le Pamplemousse Tropical


So I've tackled grapefruit, using a buttercream recipe from Melanger, and the grapefruit recipe I followed Cuisine Campagne lemon curd recipe but I substitute the lemon to grapefruit. If the curd turns a bit too liquidy, add a few tablespoons of almond meal so that it becomes pasty. Try it, it works for me.
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Contact
Ask me questions, orders and purchase related at
Email: emmelyn_g@hotmailcom
Follow me on twitter: ladymacaron or http://twitter.com/ladymacaron
Facebook fan club for Lady Macaron
Email: emmelyn_g@hotmailcom
Follow me on twitter: ladymacaron or http://twitter.com/ladymacaron
Facebook fan club for Lady Macaron
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Pierre Hermé Minis


Monday, August 10, 2009
Cute Macaron Boxes





Of course between the two famous macaron giants, there is always a rift competition and Pierre Hermé who has set up his own macaron shop in Tokyo for a few years, has also collaborated with Lipton to make some of his miniature cakes as freebies attached to Lipton everyday drinks! Call him a genious, or just plain marketing savvy. They come as keyrings, as you know Japanese girls love to decorate their mobile phones with cute little danggly sometimes sparkly things. Just makes me want to go to Tokyo even more now.
They sell them now in Ebay and I am itching to get them...but oh they are free when you buy Lipton drinks in Japan...They look pretty real don't they, ohh even the pink macaron with the rose petal, called ispahan, looks so real...gosh and they're freeeeee.... I bet all those Jap girls are buying dozens of Lipton drinks just to get the key rings, I would...
Oh now I'm going to sleep knowing I'll dream of macaron in Japan. Yikes!

Oh now I'm going to sleep knowing I'll dream of macaron in Japan. Yikes!
Friday, August 7, 2009
Sydney Macaron Hunt

My first visit was to Adriano Zumbo was on a Monday afternoon at 3pm, little did I know that he is already a cult-icon in little town Balmain. His café chocolat had to shut early because everything was gone just after lunch hour. His little bakery less than 50 metres away painted a sad grin, his entire goods were basically all gone, what was left behind was a few pieces of rustic breads. I was pretty shocked to be honest, so we promised to come back in the early hours the next day.
Next was Lindt cafe in Sydney's George Street and a second location in Martin Place. They have the best filling in the terms of taste. Although they looked visually appealing with high feet, nice pastel colours and smooth tops, none had the chewiness that of french macarons in Paris. I like their vanilla and dark chocolate best, vanilla because I can taste their signature ice-cream flavour in the ganache, and dark chocolate because Lindt chocs are pretty good.
La Renaissance Café Patisserie is located at The Rocks, a small french bakery, this tiny gem has a colourful selections of macarons. Eventhough texture-wise they were crunchy, their passion fruit with milk chocolate ganache using Valrhona chocolate is refreshing. I can definitely taste the passion fruit.
Finally it's Adriano Zumbo, yes his macarons has a very abstract after-taste. Evethough it might say pistachio or pinenuts, there is definitely a grey area. Meaning he experiments with flavours and I have to give praise for that. He does not just stick to making a pistachio ganache out of a pistachio nut. He is definitely leading the way in Australia's dessert world and Balmain will never be the same again.
Adriano Zumbo
296 Darling Street, Balmain
Café Chocolat
308 Darling Street, Balmain
Lindt
53 Martin Place
259 George Street
La Renaissance Café Patisserie
47 Argyle Street The Rocks Sydney
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Lady Macaron Café



When I was in Paris and bakery-hopping, I found many boulangeries that were almost a decade old, still with their painted cherubs ceilings and ancient looking counters. It would be a cool idea, something I've been thinking, to open a little cafe in a restaurant, a concept whereas a fake façade is installed in a small area inside the interior of the restaurant or bistro. Guests would have to enter from a fake door and they would feel a totally different ambiance.
A beautiful tea room called Crown & Crumpet situated in the well-known Ghirardelli Square in San Francisco is the epitome of my idea of a very chic cafe. The space used both as a sitting room and a modern shop, it is filled with items for sale as well as for decoration. I especially love the pink and white chested floor and old English paintings of children on the walls. It is a forward interpretation of an antique English tea room, and as it specifically said in the website: There is no ‘Granny’s front parlor’ look for Crown & Crumpet.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)