That was very sweet ekscrunchy ! who knows...happy NEw Year to you, good traveling. Let us all pray for Europe.

Wow, I went away for the evening and look what happened : )

I am actually venturing out today to a French bakery I saw reviewed as having amazing macaroons. We shall see.

I have not tried Pierre Herme but I am certainly not against it.

The coconut macaroons are different that the French style, of course, I am not against those either.

I will have to try that recipe. I just like the eating much more than the making....Maybe I could be your new friend?

Wish that darn Euro would come down or of course the dollar up

Mmmm...I love the macarons from Laduree. My favorite is Rose. I don't think I would buy them even if they could be shipped though...I tried to bring several boxes of Laduree macarons home with us a few years back and they completely dried out and were dissapointing to say the least.

I was wondering about the ones from Dean & Deluca, so I appreciate the reviews.

Tracy

In NYC, Patisserie Madeleine, 128 West 23rd Street is getting lots of praise...If you try these, please let us know...I will have to get over there someday soon..

Gosh ¡¡ I know no one is interest in the recipe, but I checked it and there is a mistake, ONLY 20 minutes at the oven, and it should be set 250 to 300F.
Actually the oven is mostly to dry them than bake them if this makes any sense to you, they come out very good.
Crisp on the outside and lightly dried in the inside.
good luck

La Maison du Chocolat also makes macarons, and they are very good. The flavors are limited, but I'm guessing that they'd be better than Payard (not that I've tried Payard recently).

Actually I've eaten 3 big ones in 24 hours (two vanilla and one chocolate).

The more I buy stuff from them, the more I realize that their stuff is of consistently of high quality.

I thought Maison shipped them to the US but I did not see that listed on their site..anyway, I think we can agree that having them shipped from Paris is kind of silly..

I don't see any macarons on their website:

http://www.lamaisonduchocolat.com/co...US/Collections

I've arranged for them to ship chocolates though, but I don't know if the shipping extends to macarons. You can always call them if interested. They have two stores in NYC, one in Rockefeller Center and one near 78th and Madison (I forget the exact cross street).

In other words, no, they wouldn't ship from Paris. They do ship certain stuff within US.

But I thought that all of their products were made in Paris. Years ago I asked them about chocolates and was told that they receive shipments once or twice a week as seems to be the case with other upscale chocolatiers in the city. .So it would pay to inquire as to which days those are and buy accordingly for optimum freshness.
If they are shipping within the US, the items must have originated in Paris unless they are now crafting in the US now.

I have an excellent French bakery in my home city (Seattle). They have them (and no they are not the coconut type).

Macaroons are a mainstay for the Jewish holiday of Passover since they are made without flour. Most bakeries in any Jewish neighborhood will have them.

I also prefer ther ones from Pierre
Herme, I had the last one from a huge box yesterday- a Xmas gift from my daughter in Paris. I dont know how my cholesterol is going to like it now, but my stomach wasn't at all dis-pleased.

The colors were amazing too.

Check local French bakeries. I have seen them at several in NYC.

Macaroons and macarons are rather different:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaron
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaroon

Yes they are different. In English, both are written "macaroon." The correct spelling, when writing about both pastries in English, is "macaroon." To distinguish between the two, some publications refer to one as a "French macaroon" and the other as a coconut or a "Passover macaroon." Wikipedia is not the best reference for matters of writing style.

Yes, indeed I think that the stuff from Maison comes from Paris. I believe the cakes are "finished" in the US. I'm not sure what that means though.

I asked them at one point as well. I attended a chocolate tasting class with them and I think this was something that was mentioned, and I asked them some follow-up questions out of curiosity.

I don't think that I'd worry too much about freshness. If they can't ship the macarons to you and ensure their quality, I doubt that they would ship them in the first place. It's easiest just to call them and ask (or visit if you are in NYC). I don't think they are the sort of shop to want to make a buck.

I've never found anything I can complain about when I've bought from them. Actually we just finished one of their latest creations -- a New Year's cake with champagne and raspberry cream (I think). It sounds better than it tasted, but again, the quality is much better than anything else one can really get locally.

Thanks, 111op..good information. Whose chocolates do you like the best in NYC?

I stick to La Maison du Chocolat because I think their markup is reasonable compared to Paris prices.

About two weeks ago, out of curiosity I worked out prices for a 400g box of chocolates (i.e. about 0.88 pound) was about $76 in the US vs. $58 in Paris. It's about a 1/3 markup.

When I'm in Paris, I buy chocolates from Pierre Marcolini (they also have a store in NYC on Park Avenue) because I think that I save much more in Paris. Marcolini's chocolates are cheapest in Belgium. I believe the Paris prices are about 2x more (for a 250g box, say).

I've never really been too tempted to try Neuhaus or Teuscher or Leonidas. I probably have had some of these at one point or another though.

A long time ago I tried Marie Belle (in SoHo). Also I know there's Vosges (I've never tried). And Payard also makes chocolates, which I think I've tried. I just tried some Jacques Torres chocolates at the office recently, and I did like them.

I guess objectively I can't say that I've tried a lot, but I don't see much of a need to try other brands given the quality of chocolates from La Maison du Chocolat. I feel that it's "good value" (if I dare say so), and usually when I like something, I just stick to it.

Do you have a favorite, eks?

Aside: Speaking of good value, it could be interesting for people to look up Noka chocolates (do a Google search) and read a detailed critique about them about one year ago.

111op: I don't buy them often enough here in NY to have a knowledgeable opinion. A month ago I was in Marcolini's Park Avenue shop looking at assortments for a gift. The salesperson told me that they get their shipments once or twice a week and that they had already had the first shipment 4 days ago. Hearing that I figured that it would be silly to buy them that day since they might be past their prime..perhaps they would have been just fine. But at those prices!! I ended up at Michel Cluizel in ABC. Their prices seemed to be a bit gentler..

At the chocolate show I was impressed by a chocolatier working upstate..Olivier-something. But I lost his card..he was in an upstate county (Putnam??) and I think he taught at the CIA...

I've tried Cluizel as well (both here and in Paris), but I think La Maison du Chocolat is better.

As I mentioned, I'd not buy large quantities of chocolates from Marcolini in NYC because I think the markup is pretty atrocious. I can find something that's similar quality elsewhere (like Maison) for cheaper (maybe 50%-70% the price?).

In Paris, Jean Paul Hevin is also a possibility. But there's no store in NYC or in the US (that I know of). They are also excellent.

Now that I'm writing this, I'm reminded of Richart. In NYC, their store is on 55th near the St. Regis hotel, if I remember right. Their chocolates are extremely beautiful. They are presented as if you're buying jewelry or something like that. If you like presentation, that's great. But I don't find the chocolates especially noteworthy, having tried them a few times.

I've never been to the chocolate show. I don't know that chocolatier you mentioned. Well, I guess there's more for me to learn. :-)