Dissing Dainty Macarons with Coconut Almond Macaroons

So I get up today and I open the Los Angeles Times and let forth a sigh.

I always sigh when I read the LA Times because it makes me so sad to see what a pathetic rag it has become. Once among the nations great reads this newspaper has degenerated so far and so fast (much further and much faster than other papers suffering through the same fate) that the front page of today?s paper had an ad for Cadillac ($0 due at signing, 0% GMAC financing).

Anyway, I digress.

Despite the state of the LA Times I still enjoy the Food Section. Russ Parsons, Amy Scattergood, Noelle Carter, and Ms. S. Irene (among others) are running hard enough and fast enough in place to keep that section readable.

Take today. There was a nice article written by Dorie Greenspan (a respected author and high class foodie) about that ubiquitous cookie trend of the moment Macarons. According to Dorie these colorful little treats are ?all the rage in Paris?. Well, I don?t know about Paris, but Macarons have exploded across the blogosphere in the past few months to the point that if I never see a Macaron again it will be too soon!

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I mention this with just enough harumph in my voice because today (coincidently) I have Macaroons for you. Only (as I am so prone to do) I arrived at this party late and severely under-dressed.

Because the Macaroons I am presenting are not the lighter than air ?beloved, bewitching and bewildering? Macarons of Ms. Greenspan?s fancy. Nope, mine are the fat little coconut cousins with a similar sounding name.

Unlike the chic French pastries my little treats are foolproof. There?s no need to circle the oven three times chanting an offering to the gods whilst rubbing your special spatulas together (to paraphrase Dorie). Mine are also not ?ooh-la-la worthy?. Again according to Dorie Greenspan, harumph...

Now I am not dissing Dorie's dainty delicacies. You can bet your butt if Dorie Greenspan made ?em they are sheer perfection. But come on already. All this attention to the Macaron is down right humiliating for the humble little Macaroon.

So today (coincidently because I swear I had this planned long before I saw this morning?s LA Times) I bring you the Double-OH version.

Mine are Coconut Almond Macaroons. I adapted the recipe from Cooking Light. I say adapted even though all the ingredients are straight from the magazine because I have always preferred my Macaroons to have lots of ridges. This way when they bake you get a lot more crunchy caramelized edges. So like the fancy-pants French version, I chose to pipe my batter through a pastry bag onto the baking sheets. I used a large star shaped tip to get the ridges. I attempted to pipe them in a circular manner in hopes of getting an interesting swirled shape (think Dairy Queen). But the thick batter performed for me better with out this flourish.

Coconut Almond Macaroons makes 32 CLICK here for a printable recipe