Macarons by Crumbs

I first heard about macarons more than a year ago. At that time, I was a sceptic….. no way could macarons be more popular than cupcakes!  But looks like I’m proven wrong! Macarons are taking the world by storm – with so many cookbooks written on the subject and more and more cafes are offering these delectable bites.

Macarons are basically confectionery made using 3 main ingredients: almond powder, sugar and egg whites. Macarons are not to be confused with macaroons which are cookies made from coconut, sugar and egg whites. Macarons come in a variety of fillings/flavours ranging from sweet to savory.

I’m now officially hooked on macarons after tasting one of them – yup – I am a convert just after eating ONE Madagascar Vanilla Salted Caramel Macaron. It’s a mouthful to pronounce but the taste and flavour is truly unforgettable. For the uninitiated, Madagascar produces the world’s finest vanilla beans, I repeat, the world’s BEST vanilla beans! By the way, I got my hands (and teeth) on ‘em MVSC macs from Crumbs during the recent Little Red Market bazaar. Crumbs is managed by Aleena (a mom of 3!) who loves to bake. What was first a hobby is now a biz. Absolute coolness. 

There are a myriad of flavours to choose from e.g. Cempedak (bestseller), Milo and Hazelnut. We are not talking about cheap dime store macarons here but premium quality macarons made from the best ingredients available which is something I like as I am also very fussy about ingredients used for my cakes.

The macarons come in lovely packaging perfect for gift-giving. They are also ideal as wedding favors – packed in pairs – and in the wedding theme color! Not to mention, perfect for baby showers, full moon celebration, wedding anniversary, birthday party packs and the list goes on! Cookies, chocolates and cupcakes are so so yesterday.  By the way, macarons also look good on cakes or stacked up in a tower! It will certainly make a statement for any function.

 

Crumbs gift box. Photo with permission from Crumbs

If that’s not enough to tempt you, Crumbs has also come up with designer macarons – and the latest design is Hello Kitty! Kawaiiness to the max! All fully hand-piped without using molds or any added sugar embellishments (cos that will be make the macaron too sweet).

With Marissa’s 4^th birthday coming up next month, I’ve decided to order Hello Kitty macaron pops from Crumbs to be given out to the little ballerinas at the ballet school. Probably I will bake a small cake as well.  

Hello Kitty and My Melody designer macarons – the first of its kind fully hand-piped with macaron batter. Photo with permission from Crumbs.

It’s official – I’m MAD about MACARONS! I can’t wait to see what other new designs and flavours that will be coming out soon! For enquiries, drop Aleena an email [crumbs.my@gmail.com] and LIKE their FB page! All orders are freshly baked in Aleena's home kitchen in PJ.

*update* 13 June 2012 : I'm now part of CRUMBS! I've joined forces with Aleena and now Crumbs is open for cake and cupcake orders too!