The Now Eating Thread

Merlin5 · 4 Apr 2019 at 03:26

'Macaroon De Nancy'. Or, Almond Macaroons. I made them because my mum fancied some so I told her I'd have a go at making some. Two attempts. First attempt, too thin, nice chewy inside, but when they cooled, they went hard like a biscuit, kind of more like those amaretti cookies. Tasty but not what I was aiming for.

Attempt two, pretty much exactly what I wanted with that nice cracked shell like crispy crust and staying soft and chewy inside. Nom nom!

jpaul · 4 Apr 2019 at 08:00

(remembering earlier thread) did you grind their icing sugar too ?,
recent food unwrapped was in a french macaroon factory .. with cochineele , pistacios sometimes added - do they have to be piped to get the shiny outside.

Merlin5 · 4 Apr 2019 at 11:40

jpaul said:
(remembering earlier thread) did you grind their icing sugar too ?,
recent food unwrapped was in a french macaroon factory .. with cochineele , pistacios sometimes added - do they have to be piped to get the shiny outside.

I piped mine but nah they don't have to be piped, you can just spoon blobs onto baking paper. Brushing them with water and dusting with icing sugar before baking helps with the shine and the cracking. I used shop bought icing sugar last night as it was too late to grind my own since the blender is noisy and I'd wake the neighbours. I wish ground almonds were cheaper. I seem to go through a lot of packets.

jpaul · 4 Apr 2019 at 11:56

Merlin5 said:
I wish ground almonds were cheaper.

like we do - 2kg / £16 if you have a grapetree .. bakewell/marzipan/.... BUT ok that is ground almonds, not almond flour.

Merlin5 · 4 Apr 2019 at 12:07

jpaul said:
like we do - 2kg / £16 if you have a grapetree .. bakewell/marzipan/.... BUT ok that is ground almonds, not almond flour.

Funnily enough I discovered that deal on Grapetree just yesterday. However the petrol to get to their nearest shop from me, or the shipping if I buy online from them makes it less cost effective.

However, I also found out that Sainsbury's now sell 500g bags for £4 so I'm going to buy a couple of those.

Is there much difference in almond flour and would it be any cheaper?

jpaul · 4 Apr 2019 at 12:10

I had googled macaroons and had seemed they need flour not ground ...don't know if GT sell it :
http://www.thebakerchick.com/2013/04/making-macarons-what-i-learned-in-paris/

Merlin5 · 4 Apr 2019 at 12:30

There's some confusion on the words Macaron and Macaroon. As far as I can tell, Macarons are normally the sandwiched ones that look like yoyos like in your link. Macaroons though are like the ones I made. However, this is the recipe I followed (and used google translator for some of it) and it seems they're called Macarons.

She uses poudre d’amande (almond powder) which may well be almond flour. I used ground almonds though. I think it has to do with the fineness and how it affects the texture of what is baked. I think almond flour is ground finer.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8eTbOLK41Q

Raikiri · 4 Apr 2019 at 17:54

Double smash burger with local Sussex slipcote cheese, red onion chutney, tomato, streaky bacon and lettuce on a brioche.

I am now dead.

Merlin5 · 4 Apr 2019 at 23:15

That looks awesome Raikiri. I could murder one of those right now.

bsoltan · 6 Apr 2019 at 18:11

Made a brunch/breakfast burrito today

Craig1981 · 7 Apr 2019 at 15:59

Couldn't resist going to Scran for this weekends special. Mustard pulled pork, breaded haggis fritters, poached eggs, hollandaise sauce, spring onions and capers on toasted sourdough bread. DAMN this was good! One of their best yet! Perfection on a plate!

Lunch wasn't quite as good, but it was still not bad. Went to Revolution for a cocktail and to try out their dipping sliders. 6 mini sliders with a bowl of nacho cheese for dipping. The burgers were reasonably good, but the sauce could have been a bit thicker. And cheesier. It was not bad though. I only managed 5 out of the 6 sliders and I was struggling by slider number 5. All in all I'm not sorry I tried it, but I wouldn't get it again.

Things change I've changed · 10 Apr 2019 at 12:25

makai nu shaak

the-evaluator · 10 Apr 2019 at 12:40

I had to Google it, but that sounds delicious. What recipe did you use?

Merlin5 · 10 Apr 2019 at 20:46

I've been threatening myself for a while to attempt Beef Lasagne and I finally did it today from scratch. Ingredients included Gran Padano which I grated, a whole ball of mozarella sliced and put between layers, passata, chopped tomatoes from tin plus some fresh tomatoes I put in the food processor, couple of sticks of celery, peeled and finely chopped, diced onion, grated carrot, garlic cloves, 500g beef mince, beef stock, salt, pepper, tomato puree, italian seasoning. And I made a béchamel of butter, flour, milk, with a little nutmeg and some gran Padano thrown in. I've still got enough mince mixture in the saucepan to layer another lasagne, I'll just make some more sauce to go with it. My verdict? Oh yeah!

bjorkiii · 10 Apr 2019 at 21:11

Looks excellent , I'm rubbing garlic bread on my screen mmm it's scrumptious.

Merlin5 · 11 Apr 2019 at 00:43

bjorkiii said:
Looks excellent , I'm rubbing garlic bread on my screen mmm it's scrumptious.

Raymond Lin · 13 Apr 2019 at 00:09

Ippudo in NYC.

It's good, I'd say 7.5 out of 10. But egg was extra, and that was $25 !

Craig1981 · 13 Apr 2019 at 08:40

Ouch!! That seems expensive for a bowl of ramen.

Squid Vicious · 13 Apr 2019 at 12:24

Birthday breakfast, bit of a treat to have a full English nowadays

Sadly I forgot the plum tomatoes...

Mrs Seabiscuit · 13 Apr 2019 at 13:02

Jacket potatoe with butter and cheese!

The **Now Eating** Thread

The Now Eating Thread