Sweet Burgers

Even though I’ve been quite busy lately, I tried out two new bakes this weekend – the doggie cookie and French macaroons. All because I wanted to bake something nice for my colleagues whom I’ll not be seeing for at least a year.

Both these new bakes are not easy to make. The doggie cookies require quite a bit of effort to shape and ‘design’ it so it looks like a dog. And I was inspired by the French macaroons I’ve been reading on Evan’s Kitchen Ramblings blog.

Since I have never tasted these before (the closest I’ve baked are coconut macaroons), I bought three from Bakerzin (cost me $4 – which was already an offer price ‘cos its normal price is $1.60 each). And my first reaction was – it’s really SWEET!

After doing some research on the Net, I tried out a chocolate French macaroons recipe which had the least sugar. Still, I reduced the sugar by another 20%. And I decided to use a mocha filling from another recipe.

As this was my first attempt at piping, it’s natural that my ‘burgers’ had different sizes and some couldn’t ‘sit’ properly : ( And they’re definitely American size ‘cos they’re really huge – double in height! Certainly not the petite pretty ones found at Bakerzins or Evan’s blog.

Nonetheless, I liked it – my 'American' macaroons were crispy on the outside, and soft and chewy and of course, sweet on the inside. Even my mom liked it and she’s not easy to please when it comes to bakes. She even gave me the idea that those made by others probably used a mould.

May try out green tea burgers filled with azuka beans tomorrow.