Where do macaroons come from?
Where do macaroons come from?
Parisian, the macaron? This little almond cake was actually born in the 13th century in Italy. In France, it appeared in the Middle Ages, among the monks of Cormery or Saint-Émilion, before experiencing its hour of glory at the court of King Henry II (introduced by the Italian Catherine de Medici).
It would also have been served a decade later at the wedding banquet of Louis XIV. At the time, the macaroon was still just a simple round biscuit. Since then, many French towns and villages have made the macaroon their specialty and each has its own specific look: that of Amiens is thick and sandy, that of Nancy crackled and light, that of Cormery with holes, that of Joyeuse subtly caramelized...
At the beginning of the 20th century, the “Parisian macaron” was born: the pastry chef Ladurée imagined a sweeter and more fragrant macaron, enriched with jam or buttercream, and colored. This new recipe is still a worldwide phenomenon today.
