Macaroon Me?

Peppermint Macaroon [Green] among
other macaroons at Passionfood Cafe

My first encounter with macaroons was probably in the pages of Enid Blyton story books where I read about how the child characters had melt-in-your-mouth macaroons for tea or packed some delicious macaroons for a picnic.  At that time, all I wanted to do was to rush to the end of the story to solve the mysteries and only had a passing interest in how the macaroons really tasted. 

I may have eaten them before but my most memorable encounter with macaroons must have been at the St Regis Singapore, a hotel renowned for its unsurpassed luxury and elegance.  I cannot forget the pleasure of being checked-in, not at the reception counter, but by my personal butler inside my suite of rooms.  I was graciously invited to sit down and help myself to the refreshments prepared as he efficiently processed the paperwork.  As I settled myself more comfortably on the sofa, my eyes were riveted to what was on the coffee-table.

Warm welcome from St Regis Singapore
included macaroons!

Laid out nicely for me, were macaroons and a tray of fruit with a bottle of Baileys Irish Cream whiskey!  I did not need much persuasion to indulge myself because in the short time my butler took to complete the paperwork for my signature, I had discreetly wolfed down one macaroon!  [Notice the uneven number of macaroons from the photo!]

So what is a macaroon?  A macaroon or macaron [French pronunciation] is a sweet meringue-based confectionary shaped like cookies made with egg whites, icing sugar and almond powder sandwiched with a variety of tasty fillings between the two cookies.

To enjoy its taste, I simply sank my teeth into its crisp crust to a softer interior and melt it in my mouth as I savour the filling flavour sandwiched in between. 

Poster menu for macaroons at Passionfood Cafe

I didn’t have any further encounters with macaroons until that day when I accepted an invitation to Passionfood Café & Bakery.  I know they have a reputation for macaroons, cupcakes and an exciting range of confectionery but my first time there was to taste their menu of French fusion food. 

Finally in the Tea-for-Two set to share for dessert, there were only two macaroons among the array of cakes and snacks on the two-tier plates.  As I was only sampling, I managed to savour a tiny wedge of the Peppermint Macaroon and I found that it tasted surprisingly like After Eight, the after-dinner mint chocolates!

Wow!  The Peppermint Macaroon is named after me?

Keeping this in mind, my next time in Passionfood Cafe was purely to satisfy my sweet-tooth.  It was a leisurely evening where I had time to survey what was available and I selected a few items to try and decide if I liked them.  I took my time to look closer at the colourful confection range on the shelves and decided to pick a few macaroons as well. 

The helpful waitress directed my attention to the poster that introduced a variety of macaroons by flavour and as I scrutinized the brief description under the pictures, I was pleasantly surprised to read my name!  I was rather taken aback as it was least expected and I’m not so conceited to think that the café deliberately named the Peppermint macaroon after me! 

More macaroons among other yummy cakes!

Then I discovered that the cafe has nine interesting flavours with each named with girl’s names like Denise for the double-chocolate macaroon, Betty for the blueberry macaroon while Bonnie is the black sesame flavoured macaroon.  I know Peggy is often used for animals like horses, chimpanzees and dogs but this was the first time I came across it being used for a macaroon! 

I was at Passionfood again for lunch and wanted a few macaroons for dessert but I was disappointed that PEGGY – the Peppermint Macaroon was all sold out.  I guess the café makes new batches by flavours in rotation but I couldn’t help wondering if the PEGGY macaroons are so popular that they were quickly sold out… Well, now I have another reason to go there again for my PEGGY!

/pl