MACAROONS

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As I write this it is late afternoon on our last full day in France, so I am very tired and may not do this blog entry the justice it does deserve. Monday was macaroon class day, so I got up at 7 in order to have time to get ready and get to the class on time by 9 am. This is the same place that I took the morning market class when we were in Paris for my Birthday.

I go to the class about 5 minutes before it started and there was one other person there waiting for the doors to open, she was from Melbourne Australia and was on her last of 4 days of cooking classes, she did the 5 class series. We were let in promptly at 9 and the other 4 students arrived shortly there after. I was the only male; the others were one young woman from San Francisco, and woman from Rhode Island, a very young woman from Mallorca and her friend from Munich. It was quite the international class. The instructor, a trained pastry chef, was from Melbourne but had lived in France for 12 years.

The class started with Briony (the instructor) stating that you just don’t wake up one day and decide you’re going to make macaroons. The reason for this is that the egg whites need several days to rest and fully separate from the gelatin part of the white so that all you get is pure liquid whites. They also must be at room temperature. I am not going to go in to great detail about how to make macaroons, other than that there are several stages and at any stage you can screw up and ruin them. Using exact weights is very important and not over beating or stirring is extremely important. I have attached a couple of videos and several pictures to really tell the story of the day.

I will say that it is my goal in life to master the making of macaroons; it is quite difficult and takes a lot of patience and time. The final product turned out pretty could tanks to Briony’s constant watchful eye and the hard work of the other class members.

After the class I took my finished product back to the room to share with Jerry. While I was in the class Jerry was going to go see some things he didn’t see the last time, but he got a late start so instead explored some stores around la Madeleine. He specifically went to two specialty food stores that has he described them were like Harrods on crack. (If you have ever been to the food section of Harrods in London, I think you will understand). He just walked around the first called Hediard, it had mustards, wine, cheeses, etc. and a restaurant upstairs. Both Hediard and Fauchon had valet parking. At Fauchon he bought some violet mustard and had lunch. It was primarily a very upscale grab and go bar on one end and the other had a caviar bar with very uptight patrons. He did not eat at the caviar bar.

Meaning while I had lunch at the hotel bar, to save my feet from trying to find something more interesting.

After lunch we met back up and went to Louis Vitton to buy a gift for Chad our house sitter and more importantly babysitter for Tarragon our cat. If not for needing to buy this gift I would not go into this store. The main store is on the Champs Elyses and you actually have to wait in a line to get in. It is so big you could get totally lost. People are taking pictures everywhere; there is security everywhere and more empoloyees than patrons. In any event we found him something within the range of reason and made our escape back to the safety of our hotel. After that we just rested, and got ready for dinner. We were headed back to our favorite place on Montmartre Butte, Relais de la Butte. The prior two times we have eaten there we have had very pleasant experiences, I am sad to report the third time is not the charm and it was a very bad experience, so bad we mostly likely will not return on a future visit. It sits up on the hill looking down toward the invalids, which you could not see through all of the umbrellas covering the tables. It was a beautiful day, and the outside terrace was packed with after work beer drinkers, few people were eating. The service was worse the mediocre and the food was barely worth mentioning in the Today’s Eats section.

After our very disappointing dinner we went back to the hotel and crashed thus ending the day.

TODAY’S EATS

Jerry’s Lunch: Location, Fauchon Paris, Place Madeleine: Verrine Asperge Oeuf Saumon (a mouse of asparagus with a tartar of salmon on top, the surprise center was a peeled 3 minute egg), Vegetarian Club Sandwich on a skewer.

Chris’s Lunch: Location, Hotel Astor Bar (server rude and looked down on you): Salade Paynnaise and class of Rosé.

Dinner: Location, Relais de la Butte: Started with a rustique charcuteire platter, several cheeses and meats (best part of the meal). Jerry had a steak with béarnaise, cooked well but tough and gristly. I had a veal scallop that was totally over cooked and very small. Jerry had a side of lukewarm dauphine potatoes and I had very hot gratin zucchini (that was good). We skipped dessert because (one it wasn’t worth it) and two we had macaroons in the room. The meal was so unmemorable, we took no pictures and I didn’t right anything down, so I can’t even remember what wine we had.

REVIEWS: Fauchon Paris: Worth the visit and lunch at the grab and go.

Relais de la Butte: Don’t go when the weather is really nice or during the high season, they just cannot handle the crowds. It is much better when they are slow and take the time and care with their food and service.

Cooking with Class: Again, if you’re in Paris and like to cook or just want to learn a few tricks. The classes here are small, affordable, fun and very informative.

DAILY TIPS: Don’t be afraid of the Metro, it is the easiest and cheapest way to get around the city. If you’re here for less than 3 days, buy a day ticket at a time, six trips or more and it more than pays for it self. If you’re here for 3 days, buy a 3 day ticket, if 5 days a 5 day ticket.

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Photos

Birds Beak
What the egg whites and sugar should look like before adding to dry ingredients.

Before Mixing
Italian meringue on right, almonds, sugar and egg whites on left.

Whipping the batter
The macaronaize

Piping the cookie
I start the pressure, I stop the pressure, I flick it off

Viola, Macaroons
Easy as 1, 2, 3 (NOT)