Mexican Chocolate Macarons and Hot Choccie

I’d given up completely…..

IMG_8168…on ever making macarons. Certainly not this weekend.

The damn things. Its not as if I love them anyway.

IMG_8163But that was till 3pm today when I saw some egg whites in the freezer.

And then I changed my mind.

IMG_8096I’d given up on ‘catching’ up with the Mexican stop of Foodalogue.

It was the first place on the tour .

Except I wasn’t part of the tour then.

But deep in my heart, I hate ‘partial’ completions.

It has to be completely complete.

IMG_8121In the meantime, my digital scale is ‘broken’.

I mistakenly, absentmindedly rinsed it.Under a running tap…..

Silly right?

So I used a measuring jug to mete out the ingredients for the macarons.

I knew it would fail.

The egg whites, I defrosted, aided by the microwave…for 10 seconds.

It almost cooked my eggs.

IMG_8074I had to add another egg white…and because the whites weren’t aged, I lost some whilst sieving.

I continued regardless.

I made the syrup for the meringue and I just eyeballed it – no thermometer, no nothing.

What the heck, if it fails, I’ll just call it Mexican cookies.

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No one ever has to know they were meant to be macs.

After all, no one sent me on an errand.

Choices, choices.

IMG_8045I made them and you know what, everything went well.

As I sift the icing sugar and oven-dried almonds, I remember what Pam said about part of my last mac mixture being a paste.

And Mimi too.

This time, I made sure that didn’t happen. I made the egg white- almond-icing sugar mixture somewhat fluid.

I add some Mexican chocolate – crushed and ground and well sieved.

IMG_8069For I fancy a bit of spice in my tummy tonight.

I pipe the mixture onto my silicone mat.

Its a bit runny. Some macs make friends and merge with one another.

IMG_8077I always produce monster macs, this time will be no exception.

I put it in the oven and I see the feet.

I’m surprised. Shocked. And mighty glad.

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Out they come and I get my act together, whipping up some Mexican hot chocolate.

In the pan goes some milk, and dried red chilli. I throw in some rose petals, to usher in spring!

It is the season afterall…

IMG_8054I add two tablets of ‘Abuelita’ and let it melt.

Then out comes my Molinillo.

IMG_8098I whisk it till the mix is frothy.

IMG_8110 IMG_8143IMG_8133 IMG_8092

And pour it into my mug.

I top it with some whipped cream as I get ready to ‘sandwich’ my macarons.

IMG_8099In this home, we do not believe that Macs taste better the day after.

We are not fanatical about the mac filling either.

Our standard can of whipped cream works a treat every time.

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Forgive us, we’re not French.

I squirt some cream onto one half…and I do these for the regular and the figure-of-8 macs (which the husband receives).

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I top it with chilli seeds, spread those all around. I need my sweet and hot.

IMG_8137I place the twin over the top and then I eat……

While one daughter decorates hers with blue edible glitter, shows it to me and insists I take a photo and blog about it, my almost 3 year old son (who knows macarons like he knows pancakes) runs between the living room and the kitchen.

IMG_8172Eating mac after mac after mac!

Daughter #2 can’t be bothered, she’s ambivalent on the matter of macarons.

I have some, dipped in my fragrant hot chocolate;

Perfumed with rose petals.

They add a touch of ‘Persia’ to my Mexican delight.

The hot chocolate is amazing. Rich. Smooth. Scented.

IMG_8115And my Mexican chocolate macs? Superb.

Delish. A confirmation to me.

Macs will not ‘snub’ me or be ‘hottie tottie’

They can be conquered….without a scale.

IMG_8135Hmmmmm.

I love you Mexico.

This is heading to the MacTweets “Spring Fling: Be inspired by your favorite spring flowers.” Plus its Jour du Macaron soon…..I won’t be here though….

logo macattacklogo-macaron

Yep, another mention for Barbados!

My favourite flowers are roses. And tulips and Poppies and many, many more. What are yours?

Also, this is heading too to Joan of Foodalogue. Yes I know Mexico is done and dusted but, I had to do it anyway!

IMG_8153Till tomorrow……yep. Tomorrow. I have a challenge to fulfill, albeit it……tomorrow shall tell!

45 Comments

  1. I am actually a little daunted about making Macarons, everyone tells me how hard it is but after seeing your recipe, I think I am going to make my first attempt. I love chilli chocolate, so i think this will be perfect 🙂

  2. These macs are like those plants that die when you show them all the attention in the world, and thrive when you forget about them and treat them terribly. Next time round with macs are you going to intentionally treat ’em mean? 🙂

    Gorgeous work! Love chilli and chocolate together, so these are just heavenly to me.

  3. Alfredo and me are impressed by your creativity. Who on earth imagined preparing such an fashionable delicacy with chocolate abuelita (our favourite). Your photography is first class and your story telling is so genuine.

    We are more than proud of you Ozoz. We’ll send you more Mexican ingredients, you can create unique dishes!

    God bless your site.

  4. Hmmm Mexican chocolate! For me there’s nothing better than a cup of steamy hot Mexican chocolate in a cold winter night. And now I can have it with some macarons. Genius! 😀

  5. Thanks for all your comments. I am SWAMPED with my last days at work, plus packing to go on holiday in a few days!!! I appreciate your comments and will ‘visit’ y’all soon. LOL

  6. Screaming gorgeous Oz … love the flavours & the story. Rinsed the scale … oooops!! Loved the cojoined macs… they stole my heart!! Rose petals look very chic on those perfect shells … have to try your recipe!!

  7. Wow, I’m impressed! You managed your scale-less macarons perfectly! And your macarons twins are so cute! I love your writing. You made me laugh again! 😉

  8. This is a fabulous post. Great photos. I have never attempted macaroons. There’s a bakery near by that serves up fabulous macs, so that’s my excuse. 🙂 My favorite flower are California Poppies.

  9. Oz hmmmmmmmmmmmm finally conquered those fears of the macs…well done..They do look very nice..Can I get a calorie count???? 🙂 🙂

  10. See? Macs are so fickle. Ignore them, treat them bad and they’re all over you. Do your best to treat them well and they can’t be bothered. Sigh.

    BRAVA for these. I’m throwing away my scale.

  11. Clap! Clap! Clap! Bravo! Well done on the macs. And the hot chocolate sounds divine. I’d been served a tiny cup of rose scented hot chocolate (made with pure cream) once, and it was ambrosial. Mmmm..

  12. Well done you.. you did make some.. When it comes to being creative, I don’t think Mac’s should have rules… and I MISS abuletta SO MUCH>>>>>> can’t find it here in Japan.. errr

  13. Oh, Oz, just magnificent! You bring faith back! I am moved by your writing and have fallen in love with these macs, this dessert, the spicy sweet chocolate, it’s all marvelous! And I am imaging you, your husband and your kids all sharing this moment! Beautiful!

  14. Oh everything looks so luscious. I can use a cup of hot cocoa now 🙂 There’s something comforting about hot cocoa that can’t be replaced with any other beverage.

  15. Oz -you are a lady of many talents. And I love your perseverance! You’ve been a good travel companion and I’ve enjoyed getting to know you via Kitchen Butterfly.

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