Wednesday, August 15, 2007

Macaron Architecture Lesson...

Chocolat and Pistache macarons by PIERRE HERME It's funny but a year ago I had macarons on the mind too.
On August 17, 2006...
Pierre Herme macarons photo by Fanny ZanottiPierre Herme Macaron photo by Fanny Zanotti of Food Beam
And then I read about
Fanny goes into delicious detail of what goes on behind the closed kitchen doors at PH...
She tells us of the bucket where all wrecked macaron lids end up = a sort of circular file.
How we would love to get our hands into that bucket!
I also learned from Fanny that the baked macaron lids are called coques - meaning shells..
Immediately I thought of CLAM shells!
Am I alone in seeing the resemblance?
Two lids containing a delicious filling...
I was reminded too of when Barbara Bleu (shown here) and I went to Bofinger
and shared a plateau a coquillage - a yummy melange of shelled goodies.
Clam shells were also used by 18th century British watercolorists
to hold their paint splodges when they painted outdoors.
Rose and Pistache macarons by Pierre HermeSo clams + macarons + watercolors are all kind of related
if you see what I mean...
After all, a lot of architecture comes right out of nature.
I can only think of the macaron/clam combo at the moment,
but I'm sure this is the case...
So the next time you're about to bite into that macaron...
Think CLAM please/S.V.P.
PS!
you can chew on, while digesting this clam-mac thought...

18 comments:

  1. Anonymous9:30 AM

    Lovely post, Carol. I like the notion of clam shells holding luscious paints. Thanks for that image!

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  2. Anonymous9:30 AM

    ps
    wonderful watercolor!!
    ;))

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  3. If I'm going to bite into one of those yummy chocolate macarons I am afraid I am going to be thinking ..soft rich melt in your mouth flavor, not hard clam shell. ;-)
    All kidding aside, nature has always been the best roll model for ideas. You always have something to ponder.
    Love the paintings. I felt like my breakfast tray was waiting for me this morning even including that heavenly looking chocolate macaron on it. ;-)
    Cris in OR

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  4. Don't you LOVE foodbeam's descriptions of her stage? I am curdled with envy, seriously. Except maybe for the outfit she has to wear, but otherwise...

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  5. so this is why you love both macarons and clams :)

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  6. Anonymous11:45 AM

    Someone has CLAMS on the mind I think...more than macarons
    Annie

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  7. Anonymous12:41 PM

    No wonder you're good, you do so many of these--
    You perfect them!
    Great colors!

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  8. Anonymous12:42 PM

    What a beautiful post Carol!

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  9. Lovely post as always!

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  10. Hello Carol!
    After your post I had to stop by and was thoroughly impressed (and now hungry). If you have any recommendations for Paris I am all ears. We are going there for our first time this week and I couldn't be more thrilled, or nervous that I won't see it all. Typical American mentality, huh?
    As for posting about freezing fruits and veggies, I wrote a few things but will certainly update them when the unfreezing begins and the results are clear.
    Thank you for visiting and again, if you have any advice for our travels please let me know!
    Thanks,
    Lindsay

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  11. It's so funny, Carol: I took so many photos in Paris - 465 to be precise - and thought of you so often as I did so.

    I will be dolling them out for months...

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  12. Now only you could think of clams and macaron together. Love the watercolours today. I'm still working on the painted biscuits as macarons and now you go and throw a clam shell in!!!

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  13. Anonymous9:03 AM

    So wonderful the watercolor!
    The colours are perfect!...
    By the way...do you only paint these beautiful sweets...
    or do you eat them afterwards?

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  14. Anonymous9:04 AM

    These are so lovely -- and you've even captured the stem offset in the water!
    My 7th grade science teacher taught me the correct term, but it's lost in my brain now.
    Longears

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  15. Anonymous3:03 PM

    That's a great loss to the world, The loss of that Blame It on Clams book. :)

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  16. Anonymous3:04 PM

    Barbara Bleu looks like the actress in that movie (filmed in Provence) "A Good Year" (Russell Crowe; Albert Finney) except her hair is brown. :-)

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  17. Anonymous10:34 PM

    Impeccable logic! I feel compelled to take it one step further: Since I am an architect, I owe it to my professional education to partake of macarons! Tomorrow, bright and early, I head to the new French bakery in town (the baker IS French!) to sample the macarrons.
    jeanette m of l

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  18. What delicious paintings. And I SO want to dive into that plateau a coquillage!!

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