I love looking at Epicurious and their recipes. Their main page today featured 30 Top-Rated Cake Recipes at Epicurious and I couldn’t help but forego the search for dinner and click on the link. Droolworthy. And apropos since my day of cakes started with Must Find Toes and later in the day, The Thirty-Something Bride’s post on the cake feature in Oprah’s magazine.
It’s a cake kind of day, with several I’d love to try my hand at making. Check these beauties out:
12 Layer mocha cake from Epicurious
Gateau de bayou via Louise and O magazine
And no, I won’t be trying to bake that. Maybe the meringue part for practice but uh… looks hard.
Homemade vegan yumminumminess from Must Find Toes
Usually I need a party to go to as an excuse to bake something because a) I’d eat it all myself if that weren’t the case and b) The Husband isn’t that into sweets. But if the weather’s nice and I have some time on my hands this weekend, I may just come up with something. Maybe a Japanese cheese cake in all its fluffy, cheesecakey glory. If you’ve never had any, I suggest you try some when presented with the opportunity – it’s gooooooooood.
Hmm, probably not a good idea to be day dreaming about cakes right before I head to yoga.
My goal this morning was for today to be a productive day and by geebus, it was. Except for the fact that I left a whole half pound of roast beef at the grocery while self-checking out and packing my wares into my canvas bags but it’s ok. I’m ok. Because I SUCCESSFULLY MADE FRENCH MACARONS!!!!!
I ended up following the French meringue recipe from Hisako Ogita’s book “I Love Macarons.”
Mine weren’t as pretty, but now that I have more confidence in executing the technique from the book, I plan on being a lot more adventurous with color and fillings. Because I didn’t have time today to make buttercream, I sandwiched nutella in the shells. Seems to work – the flavors complement each other and his recipe isn’t as almond-y as some other macarons I’ve tried.
Notes for next time:
- Add more color – it really does fade during the baking process but it’s really cool because when you look at its cross section, the intended color still shows and is contrasted by the outer shell.
- Get two smaller baking sheets that both fit into my oven so I can bake the whole batch at once.
- Be more firm with the mixing so they’re puffier. Mine are still rather flat in comparison to Hirako Ogita’s.
Macarons really are an acquired taste. I think it all depends on the filling – it can’t be too sweet. These are such light, fluffy yet chewy treats that just one or two will be enough to satisfy even the sweetest tooth. I still think they’re perfect for weddings or showers though, either as part of the desserts or as favors.
Until next time!
