We’ve been developing a chewy almond cookie, loosely based on macarons, for our ice cream sandwiches. So far our cookies are good, but not great. So who better to go to for some macaron basic training than our sister food business, Ma Mere Maison?
I think we first met Lexi at Neighbourgoods Market, where she also has a stall. But she’s been a real sister in arms to us, at other expos, events and those gosh-who-can-we-borrow-5-litres-of-glucose-from-RIGHT-NOW? kind of moments. And with her usual graciousness and generosity, she welcomed us to her kitchen this week for a macaron demo.
Lexi made lemon macaron shells (shells are the meringue cookies you use to assemble macarons) from scratch for us, and showed us what textures and signs to look out for to get just the right consistency for piping and baking. It was fascinating watching someone else’s production methods, and we all picked up some great tips we can borrow and use in the kitchen for our almond cookies. We were also the lucky recipients of an impromptu fudge demonstration after I casually mentioned our challenges with fudge sauce.
We left Ma Mere Maison with lots of new plans for combining forces (sharing larger stands at upcoming Christmas markets, swapping egg yolks for whites and vice versa, pop up shops and more!), and sugar on our lips.
