Review: Sweet Macarons--Delectable French Confections for Every Day

In the world of sweet confections, macarons surely rank up there with some of the world's prettiest creations--at least in my humble opinion.  If you've ever walked into a sweet shop with a glass showcase filled with colorful macarons, there just doesn't seem to be anything better.  Their vibrant colors, intricate flavors, and gentle sweetness come together to make a delightful dessert.  Besides, they can make you wish yourself in Paris with nothing more than a bite!

In Sweet Macrons, I really appreciated the amount of time and space spent to explaining the issues that come up with macarons.  These can be tricky little cookies, that I have yet to really master.  Although I've only attempted them twice, both times my cookies spread out on the baking sheet and I had a bit of a mess on my hands.  After reading through the suggestions at the beginning of the book, Mercotte explains that part of my problem had to do with not separating my egg whites early enough for them to sit out.  Once you've measured your egg whites, almond meal, and sugar, it seems like you can really get to the heart of macaron making, which opens up a bevy of beautiful desserts.

There is a nice variety of recipes in this little cookbook to keep every taste happy.  I loved the fruit ones, with flavors like citrus and kaffir lime, and mango and passionfruit.  There are also some of the standards, such as chocolate and salted caramel.  Regardless of difficulty or time, this cookbook has a nice and simple outline for their recipes, with pretty pictures to help you see your end goal. 

Now, it's time for me to try to tackle these little beauties again!

*FTC Disclosure:  This review was based off of a review e-copy from Netgalley.