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baking, cooking, food, France, french cuisine, french culture, Life in Paris, macaroons, Travel
A great friend of mine came back from Nancy last weekend, where her parents are living at the moment, with a box of original macaroons under her arm. I was excited on a number of levels: first of all, I didn’t know that macaroons originated in Nancy, France – a medium-sized town to the east of Paris about half way to Strasbourg – and second of all, I didn’t know that real macaroons weren’t the double layered cream-filled cookies I’ve taken as traditional French confectionery for years!
Real (and by real I mean the original) macaroons are actually just the top of the macaroons that we know from Ladurée or Pierre Hermé in Paris. And they only come in one flavor: vanilla. Not chocolate or pistachio, strawberry or coffee. They have the same general porous appearance as modern macaroons, but they are rather thinner and crunchier, and must be kept in the fridge.
The bakery where my friend bought my sample is called Mason des Soeurs Macarons which is known as where the macaroon was created. This particular bakery was founded in 1793 (can you believe that!), just after the last king and queen were taken captive by Revolutionists. Here’s the story:
When Catherine de Vaudémont, daughter of the Duc de Charles III, became the abbesse of Remiremont, she founded in center of Nancy the monastery of the Dames du Saint-Sacrement where eating meat was strictly prohibited. As a result, the Sisters baked a large variety of pastries including the famous Macaroon…
At the time of the décret de suppression des congrégations religieuses (5 Avril 1792), two of the nuns, Sisters Marguerite and Marie-Elisabeth, found refuge with a certain Doctor Gormand, the community doctor near the monastery. In order to sustain themselves, the Sisters continued to fabricate and sell their Macaroons.
Rapidly, the sisters began well-known and were from then on called “Les Soeurs Macarons”. In 1952, the city of Nancy honored les Soeurs Macarons by dedicating the part of the street where the doctor lived to the Sisters and the “Véritable Macaron de Nancy” (the real macaroon).
Ever since, Les Sœurs Macarons has been a local and national treasure.
We’ll have to try the originals but those that come from Paris (laduree etc) have always been our downfall!
I love the history of this delicious cookie. Now to find myself a recipe. Merci mille fois.
Fascinating to learn the origins of the macaron – while the colourful filled ones are fun, I think I prefer the simplicity of the original.
I’m also a sucker for the original, authentic anything…! 🙂
My hometown isn’t very far from Nancy, and I have had the great pleasure of tasting “macarons de Nancy” a good few times ove the years… and they are just delicious!
Other towns, like Boulay near the German border, have their own take on “macarons” and there is fierce competition as to who has the best recipe. These “macarons” are quite different from the Nancy variety; they come in small mounds rather than the traditional flat shape, and often contain coconut. Do try them if you have the chance, they are lovely too! 🙂
That’s so interesting. I’ve never been to Boulay. Thanks for sharing!!
Visually these could be mistaken for Italian Amaretti. How did they taste compared to the modern macaroon?
I found them drier, a little, and less sweet. You are told to keep them in the fridge and take them out a little while before you plan to eat them. This is lost on me. When I want a cookie, I want it now… 🙂 The dryness could very well be attributed to the fact that I didn’t let them warm up to room temp before tasting. I prefer less sweet treats, though, so that part was a bonus for me.
There’s a place like this in Saint Emillion too that sells old fashioned macarons like these. I don’t rememebr the name of it though. They ARE delicious!
Hear, hear! I haven’t been to the one near Saint Emillion, but if they’re anything like the ones I tried from Nancy, then they’re worth the trip down south! All my best.
This was such an interesting read, I’m a massive macaroon fan but never knew any of the history behind them (or that the originals don’t have cream inside). Thanks so much for sharing.
Thank you! I didn’t know either and loved learning the real story, or the story behind the myth… 🙂 Hope you are well! Warm regards from Paris.
My mouth is watering!
They are indeed that good!
I’m . . . oops . . . wait, sorry . . . drooling. Great blog. I can’t wait to get back to France!
😀 Thank you kindly!!
Wow! Lovely story. I didn’t know that the real macaroons are not sandwich-style! Very informative 🙂
I didn’t either. I loved learning about the real thing!
Nice to learn about the original… so many times (i.e. present day), it seems as though folks can’t be satisfied with one layer, when that was all that was intended.
So perfectly said, as always! Hope you are well! All my best from Paris.
my absolute favorite. how lucky you are.