BAKING GURUS!!

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I have two questions.

How do I manage to get coconut macaroons to stay tall rather than flatten out when they are cooking?

What do I add to chocolate when melting it for using as glaze, or for rolling marshmallows in? Some sort of oil, or fat?

are you over mixing the macaroons....if they are too runny they will spread

and you can add cream or butter, or both to chocolate to make a ganache, but then it won't set, so for marshmallows I'd just do the chocolate.

I am following the recipe for the macaroons, but I would prefer more of a "meringue top" effect!

Oh, I do want the chocolate to set on the marshmallows.

However for the glaze which will be piped (or dripped on ) it could be softer, so maybe a ganache?

too much wetness/not enough coconut in the macaroons? what recipe are you using?

chocolate just needs to be chocolate, nothing added

I am using an old Norwegian recipe,

2 eggs,
125 g sugar
200 g desicated coconut
50 melted butter
1 spoon flour
1/2ts baking powder
Whisk egg and sugar "white". mix other ingredients, put spoonful on bakingpaper

are you whisking the egg whites enough?

Are you using the whole egg? The only coconut macaroon recipes i've used only use the white - might the yolk be making the mixture heavier, so it doesn't hold its shape so well?

Recipe I used for macaroons at the weekend said to leave them to form a "skin" for 15 minutes before baking?

Can we clarify whethe it is this kinda macaroon

Or this kind

Growing up in the north east, I always thought the second link, a kind of coconut mountain was a macaroon, but now it seems to be a meringue type thing, which is what I made at the weekend

ahh yeah i assumed it was the things in the second link too,

The <a class="break-all" href="http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?q=macaroons&start=36&um=1&hl=en&client=safari&sa=N&addh=36&tbm=isch&tbnid=ft3T04YjXfl31M:&imgrefurl=365holidays-my26thyearoflife.blogspot.com/2010/06/may-31-macaroon-day.html&docid=0jddYbNEKzIWIM&imgurl=1.bp.blogspot.com/_CmCvh8DaqIM/TAv3dGVrgQI/AAAAAAAAA0k/MkfHSVXd1ac/s1600/May%252B31%252Bpic.jpg&w=780&h=774&ei=1c3CTq_bIsqD8gPLoZCKCw&zoom=1&iact=rc&dur=286&sig=100917297802735748290&page=2&tbnh=114&tbnw=112&ndsp=35&ved=1t:429,r:5,s:36&tx=51&ty=80&biw=1920&bih=979" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">latter

The proper macaroon then

Does anyone know why they started calling the meringue coloured fellas macaroons too? [puzzled]

Yes, the proper macaroon, not this multicoulered faff that is trying to oust the cupcake.....

well... there have always been almond macaroons

maybe people started getting confused?

Ah, we call them almond kisses in Norway. Very appropriate. They are as lovely as a kiss!

I made Nigellas' chocolate macaroons at the weekend (the meringue/kisses type one), it's in her domestic goddess book...they were delicious! Also made snickerdoodles from the same book which are scrummy too.

Sorry, none of us have managed to give you pointy cakes have we?

Oh but you have! Nigellas recipe (I checked it, thanks!) has Cream of Tartar!!

That is going to make them more pointy??