french macarons

I posted about this months ago, but I FINALLY made the time to create a little Paris at home via French macarons! Anyone who has been to Paris knows that these are a hot commodity, and rightly so. Contrary to the coconut cookies that they are often confused with, macarons are delightfully tasty sandwich cookies whose varieties are limited only by your imagination.

At work, we had a cookie swap and I figured this was as good a time as any to try my hand at this special cookies. If you're looking for a quick way to churn out 96 cookies (which is how many I had to make), these are definitely not the cookies for you. But, if you want to make something really special that will get you noticed, then these are it! There are a ton of recipes and antidotes all over the Internet, but it really is just trial and error to find out what works best for you and your oven.

Below, are pics from my first 2 attempts at making macarons - these are chocolate peppermint - yum!



The macaron batter with green food coloring.



The finished product!



The cookie box I made for each cookie swap participant!



My office Christmas tree complete with macaron box.



My second go-round this week. These turned out even better than the first try. Yea!