Green Goodness: Sweet Eats!



"Hello Lover" Photo via Foodtographie



 I tried to take a fieldtrip the other day to sample my first Green Goodness item, and they were tragically sold out! See, they really must be good! So what is this little guy? It's my favorite green sweet in the city - the Pistachio Macaron from Buchon Bakery.

I am a bit obsessed with Macarons in general as of late. A few years back I kept seeing them in frilly magazine photo shoots and films like "Marie Antoinette," and could never figure out what the little pastel cakes were (at least I thought they were cakes. Oh poor ignorant me). So what are Macaron's? First of all, they are not to be confused with the ol' coconut Macaroon! Although they both deal with egg whites as a main component, the Macaron is not coconut related necessarily. It's traditionally almond. It is described as a "small round dry pastry made of almond paste, sugar and egg white." Ok, so that description doesn't make it sound very special, but oh it iiisss. You see, between each little pastel pastry there is a layer of butter cream that is to die for. At bouchon especially, they put a little "surprise" in the center of the butter cream layer. In one flavor there is a dollop of caramel for example, in another flavor, jam. Yum. The pistachio flavor is by far my favorite though. It's that perfect mix of savory and sweet. To clarify, it is definitely sweet, but the pistachio helps to balance the flavor and keep it from getting to that sickeningly sweet point. The bakery keeps these little guys in the fridge (pictured above) so they are all chilled out. This create my favorite aspect of the treat. The butter cream stays cool until you take a bite and then it literally melts in your mouth! The cookie portion itself has a very light, crisp outer and a soft, chewy middle. It all makes for an awesome mouth circus of texture and flavor! A great treat for your St. Patrick's table when you and yours are all Soda Breaded out!

Anyone else have any recommendations for some awesome Macaron action in your home town?