Tuesday, September 04, 2012

MAC ATTACK #31 - SEASONAL FRUIT MACARONS

Live each season as it passes; 
breathe the air, drink the drink, 
taste the fruit, 
and resign yourself to the influences of each. 
Henry David Thoreau 


The summer has flown by and Mactweets was on vacation. We are back now as the summer wanes and the days turn cooler (or warmer, depending upon where you live). The fruits on market stalls metamorphose, peaches and cherries fade into apples and pears, plums in a tumult of size and color, purple and red, yellow and green, defy the calendar and keep the pumpkins at bay. (But not for long!) But the season is surely changing, and autumn will be upon us before we know it – unless spring has sprung where you are down under.

It is at the change of seasons that we most notice and appreciate the fruits and vegetables at our local farmer’s market and grocery store. We grasp onto the last remaining this or that favorite, sad to see them go, enjoying as many as we can before they disappear, yet begin to yearn for those that we’ve not tasted since last year and now cannot wait to eat. Each visit to the market offers us surprises as what was there yesterday is replaced with something we hadn’t yet expected. And the excitement sets in! Pies and cakes, dishes savory and sweet that we haven’t made once since last year are now calling to us. As we use up the last of one season’s fruits, we eagerly watch for the next season’s treasures to arrive and we plan our baking accordingly.

This special feeling towards fruit, 
its glory and abundance, 
is I would say universal.... 
Jane Grigson 


Autumn’s first Mac Attack Challenge will have you featuring the season’s best fruits. Seasonal, fresh fruit will add an exuberant twist, the perfect companion to your delicate, sweet macarons. Savory, sweet, anyway you love your macarons, simply add the very best your market has to offer. And while we are at it, make the fruit local and share with your fellow MacPassionate Bakers what grows where you live.

So now it is up to you! September’s Mac Attack challenge is to create a macaron highlighting a fresh, seasonal, local fruit – or vegetable! Why not? Sweet or savory, Macarons with Seasonal Fruit is your challenge!


Now, just follow the rules!

1. When you post your Mac Attack macarons on your blog, make sure that you mention the Mactweets Mac Attack challenge in your post and link back to the Mactweets blog. Please make sure that your Macarons are inspired by the theme: Macarons with Seasonal Fruit! This is obligatory if you would like to be included in the round up!

2. Please link back to this challenge on your post. This is obligatory if you would like to be included in the round up!

3. Feel free to promote the Mactweets blog by proudly displaying the Mactweets badge in your Mac Attack post as well as in your sidebar! It isn't mandatory but is a nice way to get the word out!

4. Have your Macarons with Seasonal Fruit posted on your own blog by SEPTEMBER 30, 2012. And being just a little bit late never hurt anybody...

5. Once your post is up, simply leave the link to the post as a comment to this Mac Attack Challenge post!

The round up will be posted on OCTOBER 5, 2012!

When tweeting your macaron post, don't forget to add #mactweets



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Sunday, July 22, 2012

ROUND UP MAC ATTACK #30 - VACATION GETAWAY MACARONS!

We're sorry again but looks like we both disappeared on vacation. This round up has been a loooooooong time coming, and Jamie and Deeba are currently swimming against the tide, trying to organise their time a little better. 

MacTweets has been recharged with macarons that rolled in  brimming with the  beauty of idyllic vacation spots, the beach, the mountains or far-away exotic lands. Thank you, you macpassionate folk, for sharing such wonderful memories, many that stirred up beautiful macarons along with large doses of nostalgia.

You bakers are inspirational, creative and have put your best feet and memories forward. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts frilly FEET!

Thursday, June 07, 2012

MAC ATTACK #30 - VACATION GETAWAY MACARONS!

SCHOOL’S OUT! 


A vacation is having nothing to do and all day to do it in. 
Robert Orben 

School is out, summer is here! Let’s shout out a rousing cheer! Suitcases lying open on the bedroom floor waiting for our favourite summer gear: we toss in swimsuits – more than one – flip-flops and sun cream. Hiking shoes and a floppy hat, guide books and maps fill tote bags and we tuck an extra box of cookies alongside the paper bags of fruit and packages of lollipops for those “just in case” moments on the road.


On the road again 

Goin' places that I've never been. 
Seein' things that I may never see again 

And I can't wait to get on the road again. 
- Willie Nelson 

Cameras recharged and so are we: with the idea of getting away from it all, escaping to some idyllic vacation spot, whether the beach, the mountains or some far-away exotic land. Each of us has some special place, a wonderful memory of the best vacation we have ever taken, the perfect spot tucked away somewhere out there in the world that still stirs up nostalgic sentiment, the place we plan to return to once again. And each of us has some beautiful vision of a place we have yet only dreamed about, some romantic spot or some exciting discovery full of adventure!

So as we prepare for this year’s summer vacation, as we pour over those guide books, study maps, make up lists and dream, we wander into the kitchen and bake macarons. Our best macarons reminiscent of that ideal vacation or that perfect holiday spot. Mountains, seaside, tiny hamlet lost in the countryside, large, bustling city teeming with restaurants and museums, these are our inspiration. Maybe a romantic getaway for two or a rousing family adventure; an escapade with your best friends or a soothing trip alone. Let’s channel the best vacation that comes to mind and from that thought, memory or distant dream, let’s create a fabulous Vacation Macaron!


As school lets out with that final bell and summer vacation approaches quickly, let’s bake a Vacation-inspired mac! Let your imaginations flow in any direction that it will and lets get creative, as creative as planning the perfect holiday trip!

So grab your suitcase and you know where this is going….

VACATION GETAWAY MACARONS! 


1. When you post your Mac Attack macarons on your blog, make sure that you mention the Mactweets Mac Attack challenge in your post and link back to the Mactweets blog. Please make sure that your Macarons are inspired by the theme! This is obligatory if you would like to be included in the round up!

2. Please link back to this challenge on your post. This is obligatory if you would like to be included in the round up!

3. Feel free to promote the Mactweets blog by proudly displaying the Mactweets badge in your Mac Attack post as well as in your sidebar! It isn't mandatory but is a nice way to get the word out!

4. Have your macarons posted on your own blog by JUNE 30, 2012. And being just a little bit late never hurt anybody...

5. Once your post is up, simply leave the link to the post as a comment to this Mac Attack Challenge post!

The round up will be posted on July 5, 2012!



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Thursday, April 05, 2012

MAC ATTACK #29 ... COLOUR MY WORLD MACARONS!

“Mere color, unspoiled by meaning, and unallied with definite form, can speak to the soul in a thousand different ways. ” 
 Oscar Wilde

Welcome back our lovelies. We've had a truly exciting Macaron Day round up with macarons that hit the ball out of the park over and over again. Your creativity astounds us, never ceases to amaze!!
 
So we thought, Jame and I, why don't we go a step further and bring the rainbow into our world. Never know, we might just find the pot of gold ... or then again, we might not! But what we would definitely have is mac excited bakers colouring our world in a myriad of colours!

Are you game? ARE YOU GAME? Our call this month is colorful. Colourful feet to be precise!!
We ask you to bake dual colored macarons, at least 2 colours in the shell, or a different top and bottom. You decide. Or if you dare, go beyond that! If multicolored is your game, then spin the colour wheel and show us what you have.


You know what's next….

1. When you post your Mac Attack macarons on your blog, make sure that you mention the Mactweets Mac Attack challenge in your post and link back to the Mactweets blog. Please make sure that your Macarons are inspired by the theme! This is obligatory if you would like to be included in the round up!

2. Please link back to this challenge on your post. This is obligatory if you would like to be included in the round up!

3. Feel free to promote the Mactweets blog by proudly displaying the Mactweets badge in your Mac Attack post as well as in your sidebar! It isn't mandatory but is a nice way to get the word out!

4. Have your macarons posted on your own blog by April 25, 2012. And being just a little bit late never hurt anybody...

5. Once your post is up, simply leave the link to the post as a comment to this Mac Attack Challenge post!

The round up will be posted on April 30, 2012!


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Tuesday, March 20, 2012

ROUND UP MAC ATTACK #27 - MACARON DAY!

HAPPY MACARON DAY!


Birthdays and anniversaries roll around but once a year and we long for the day to arrive with the excited anticipation, the eager enthusiasm of children. How should we honor the one celebrated? What kind of fête do we organize? Presents and party hats, cake and ice cream, music and parades... This won't be an ordinary day, just like all the others! Oh no, this calls for something special; an event this important deserves our every attention, festivities, gaiety and merriment!

Yes, it's that time of year again! Today is Macaron Day the world over and this certainly deserves a huge hullabaloo in the Mactweets kitchen! And haven't we just pulled out all the stops and created some incredible macaron memories!? A little hoopla for our favorite little treat is certainly called for, and our Macpassionate Bakers put their heart and soul into this special day and created an amazing array of fabulous macarons!


Happy Macaron Day! Let these fabulous treats inspire you to bake your own, try new flavors, add a little humor, a dash of spice, your own special flair...

Jamie and Deeba wish all of our MacPassionate Bakers a wonderful, inventive, delicious Macaron Day and thanks to each and every one of you for spreading the Mac Love!


Roller Scraper @ My Pink Kitchen with Baby Shower Macs
Marilyn Macroe
Andy MacWarhol

Bob MacMarley
Billie Holidaymac
Albert MacEinstein

Barmac Obama

Beyondumami with Pierre Herme inspired Ispahan Macarons with Chocolate-lychee Ganache and a Raspberry Jelly

Mira @ Marmottes et Chocolate with Hazelnut Truffle-scented Macarons (inspired by Pierre Hermé)

Jen @ Make it Pop with Salted Caramel French Macarons

Hi Cookery with Sunny Yellow Macarons for World Macaron Day

Jodijojo @ Biscuits & Bobbins with Green Tea and Chocolate with Nutella filling

Deeba @ Passionate About Baking with Blood Orange Macrons with Maple Orange Chocolate Pastry Creme

Cecilia @ One Vanilla Bean with Blood Orange & Meyer Lemon Macarons

Margarita @ M5cake with Lemon Macarons with Lemon Curd & Starwberry Macarons with Strawberry Buttercream

Shabs @ Shabs Cuisine with Orange Macrons with Cream Cheese & Marmalade
&