Trial Bake #1
I would be lying if I told you that this bake went how I wanted it to. Although it wasn't a complete failure (they still tasted great), they were not aesthetically what most look for in a macaron. Macarons are known for their picturesque, shiny and smooth shells, along with what are known as "feet" - the small, ruffled border that forms in the oven around perfectly executed macarons.
The Macarons
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Like I mentioned before - these first batches of macarons I made didn't completely suck. I would describe them like I would describe the feet around the borders of these macarons- almost there, but not quite. The feet on these macarons didn't reach fully around the circumference of the macaron like they were supposed to, and the tops of the shells cracked and split apart.
What I Learned / Takeaways
Being that I had never made macarons before this bake, I was incredibly nervous going into it. I am a perfectionist, and I was incredibly disappointed that they didn't come out perfect like I had hoped. However as I reflected I realized that the process wasn't going to be perfect and regardless of how they come out, they always taste good anyways. Baking wise, I became a lot more mindful of ingredient ratios as well as oven temperature and time. This first bake really allowed me to get comfortable in the kitchen with macarons, and it was a lot easier after this to be comfortable in the meringue and the macaronage stages, as that is where many people often mess up. I also deduced that the cracking I saw on the tops of my macarons was either from over-mixing the egg whites, tapping the piped cookies on the counter to remove the air bubbles too many times, or leaving them out to dry for too long. My point is, the possibilities for a problem in the shells are endless and can be caused by a number of different things. This is why it is so critical to be mindful of every step you take when making macarons, as something as small as folding the dough over one more time than you should can make the macaronage unstable.
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