A petite French delicacy is literally the flavour of the month, if not the year.The macaron is earning legions of sweets-loving fans in Winnipeg, just like recent trend-setting pastries - cupcakes are so 2010.
Locals are furiously snatching up the two-bite delights at bakeries across the city. "If we could make more, we would," says pastry chef Alix Loiselle at The French Way, a bakery and café on Lilac Street at Corydon Avenue.
The chewy, meringue-like wafer sandwiches come in a rainbow of colours and flavours. There's some debate whether the sweet nibble has its origins in France or Italy but there's no question people love them. "We can't keep up with the demand," says Larissa Webster, co-owner of The French Way.
"They're really taking off right now," adds Christopher Atkinson, owner of Lilac Bakery.
Every week, both bakeries sell out of macarons, which cost $1.20 to $2 each. Macarons, not to be confused with chocolate macaroons, are gluten-free and made with egg whites, almond flour and sugar. The wafer batter is piped on to baking trays in toonie-sized circles before a short bake. One pastry chef can make about 200 macarons per hour.
The filling is a ganache, butter cream or jam, and that's where the creativity comes in. Lemon, raspberry, coffee and chocolate are just the beginning. Coconut, pear, pineapple and pink grapefruit have also popped out of local ovens.
At L'Epi de Ble on Main Street in the North End, the macaron is the standard bearer for the entire business.
"The success of the bakery depends on the macaron," says owner Nathalie Gautier. First-time customers come in for the macaron and, if it is up to snuff, they will try other French pastries, she explains.
Macaron sales have been so brisk Gautier is on the hunt for an automated piping machine. With a machine, macaron production will jump to 1,600 per hour, she says.
