Chicago bakeries crank out French macarons
July 28, 2010 (WLS) — Look out cupcakes, there’s a new sweet treat in town. It’s called a macaron, and our Hungry Hound says, not only are they showing up as party favors, they’re also inspiring entrepreneurs.
For the past year or so, French macarons have been hitting the party circuit, showing up in gift bags at weddings. But they’ve also been inspiring pastry chefs, who’ve made the pilgrimage to Paris, and now want to recreate the delicate combination of flavors and textures back home. In Chicago, there are now two companies spending most of their day just making macaron.
The Logan Square Kitchen is an incubator of sorts, a place where small food artisans can create, without the hassle of overhead. Beth Jacob uses the space for her company, which focuses on just one thing.
“The name of my business is Macaron Chicago. I make macaron which are French — traditional French cookies made with meringue-based shells and fillings of caramel, butter cream, jam or ganache,” said Jacob.
Jacob makes everything herself, from the delicate merengue shells, to the sweet fillings. She then sells them at farmer’s markets and through wholesale accounts.
Same principle in West Town, at Kitchen Chicago, a similar concept where you rent space. For friends Katherine and Lauren, the Panna Dolce brand was born here. Their specialty? French macarons, of course.
They begin by sifting almond flour; then, in a stand mixer, they combine egg whites and sugar, whipping it fiercely, until it begins to get frothy. Food coloring is added to create a unique color palette. That sifted almond flour is added, which will give the macaron shell some lift. At this point, ratios are crucial.
“It’s definitely about the right ratio for the meringue and how much sugar you use, the temperature you cook at, the time that you bake at, the weather outside; really there is more chemistry to it than making just your regular batch of cookies,” said Panna Dolce co-owner Lauren Robin.
Fillings also have to be calibrated, depending on which type of shell you’re using. The partners say as much as macarons are loved on the East and West coasts, they’re not quite sure if Chicago has fully embraced this latest dessert craze.
“I don’t think that they are there yet in Chicago, definitely on the coast, but I think they’re going to be the new cupcake,” said Robin.
Notice we didn’t say “macaroon.” Those would be the golf ball-sized, toasted coconut and sugar balls — a far cry from a French macaron.
www.macaronchicago.com
www.pannadolce.com
(Copyright ©2010 WLS-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)
Join Our Mailing List
Categories
- Announcements & News (20)
- Community Involvement (6)
- Events (7)
- In the News (35)
- In the Wild (6)
- Just for Fun (31)
- Newsletter (1)
- PD Buzz (51)
- Photos (23)
- Polls (2)
- Promotions & Specials (2)
- Reviews (18)
- Videos (7)
- Weddings and Showers (6)
Archives
- November 2011 (1)
- February 2011 (2)
- December 2010 (2)
- November 2010 (3)
- October 2010 (5)
- September 2010 (1)
- August 2010 (1)
- July 2010 (6)
- June 2010 (4)
- May 2010 (20)
- April 2010 (3)
- March 2010 (11)
- February 2010 (14)
- January 2010 (24)
- December 2009 (17)
- November 2009 (2)
- August 2009 (3)
- July 2009 (2)
Tag Cloud
abc bridal Bride Brownies catalog charity chicago cookie cookies custom Dessert event Events fantasea favor favors french macaron gift gifts Goddess holiday hungry hound illinois katharine Katharine Greis kitchen lauren Lauren Robin location macaron macarons metromix Panna Dolce party review Reviews Shower social networking steve dolinsky Volusion wedding Weddings wgn yelp yelp review

Check out the great feature on Panna Dolce macarons by our friend and Chicago Hungry Hound, Steve Dolinsky. Steve visited with us a few weeks back and we baked up a few batches of macarons together. We laughed, we talked, and we ate sweet sweet macs!

