Macaroon vs Macaron: Walnut Cheesecake Macarons

French macarons have certainly been the 'flavour of the month' for considerably longer than a month. It seems like every café, bakery and patisserie has them in a myriad of hues, they have become such a phenomenon you can even get packet mixes for them in the supermarket (not highly recommended). The problem with such a glut of macaron is that not all macaron are created equal, nor is it easy to tell without tasting them all (not such a bad way to do it)!

 

They may have good 'feet', a smooth shell and an exotic pastel shade with notions of lychee or violets, but this is no guarantee of flavour and the *Wow* factor. I have been seduced by too many 'Meh' (with a shrug of the shoulders) macarons that unless someone says emphatically, 'You HAVE to try the salted caramel macaron from... or you HAVEN'T lived!', I am content to admire their neat rows in pretty rainbow shades of compact perfectness while ordering a coffee éclair or something oozing chocolate.

Macaroon vs Macaron: Coconut Macaroons

Taste is such a truly individual thing that you will find for anything you are cooking there are an infinite number of variations out there. Only through trial and largely delicious error will you find out which one becomes your never fail, go to recipe. Coconut macaroons are no exception, they can be chewy, "meringuey", with a glacé cherry, dipped in chocolate, with desiccated coconut or moist shredded coconut … you may end up with several recipes that are just right depending on what mood you are in.

 

Macaroon vs Macaron: Moroccan Almond Macaroons



In recent years the French 'Macaron' has become so popular and all pervasive that the 'Macaroons' of the rest of the world have taken a back seat. While it may seem like semantics to debate Macaron vs Macaroons - there is a difference (for which we should rejoice in all their delicious variety). They all have in common the base of egg whites with icing sugar but after that they diverge into an array of widely varying flavour and texture... so please, let's call a Macaron a Macaron, and a Macaroon a Macaroon and enjoy them all.

 

Morocco has two versions of the Macaroon, one is an almond based thin chewy biscuit, often with a whole almond on the top while the other is still almond based and chewy but is more dense with a hint of cinnamon, and usually lemon zest and rose water. For me, this second version is a wonderful representation in bite sized pieces of some of the influences evident in Moroccan culture and cuisine through centuries of diverse colonisation. Amongst the colonizers there were the Arabs who brought spices to the table, while the Moors cultivated citrus and the French shared their love of sweet pastries and biscuits.

Peanut Butter: Biscuits

It's that time of year when everyone wants to catch up, it HAS to be before Christmas and you end up rushing around, bringing plates to gatherings or entertaining people at home when all you really want to do is collapse in a heap on the couch and eat sugary buttery food!

Peanut Butter biscuits can combine these facets of pre-Christmas frenzy as not only do they taste delicious, the dough keeps really well in the freezer so you can have it on hand to whip up a batch of bikkies whether you need to entertain or just satisfy your sugar and butter cravings! Even better, if you did make the PB ice cream and on the off chance you didn't finish it all in one go, you can slather the ice cream on the still warm biscuits for the ultimate PB ice cream sandwich of joy (scroll down to the end to see the photo)!

Peanut Butter: Ice Cream

I finally got all organised before the night before posting, worked out the whole "schedule" thing and was sitting back feeling pretty pleased with myself when I somehow managed to delete the whole content of this post! Aaarrgg. So, armed with a big bowl of peanut butter ice cream I am re-writing this week’s second peanut butter binge recipe the night before posting - a custard based super creamy ice cream with a good dose of peanut butter goodness *AMAZING*.

 

Peanut butter always makes me think of being a kid - celery sticks covered in PB as an afterschool snack, PB sandwiches and PB running down the wall... yes, that's right - the wall.

 

Peanut Butter: Satay chicken

One of the girls from work has just come back from 3 weeks of sunshine and satay sticks in Bali looking brown and relaxed... meanwhile it rained overnight in Melbourne and I am still very Vitamin D deficient! While I have to wait for the warmer weather, and even then it can be unpredictable, I can make satay sticks as aromatic and moreish as those found in Bali so at least that's something...