Macaroons and female autonomy (part 2)

I thought it would be incredibly difficult to discuss how the macaroon holds such socio-political power within Ibsen's A Doll's House without making it myself, which will be the basis of this entry. I am following Mary Berry’s recipe, which makes 10 macaroons:

For the macaroon shells:

· 125g/4oz ground almonds

· 200g/7oz icing sugar

All of the ingredients.

· 3 free-range egg whites

·2 tbsp caster sugar

·½ tsp cream of tartar

· A few droplets of red food colouring

For the chocolate filling:

· 200g/7oz dark chocolate, chopped

· 200ml/7fl oz double cream

· 1 tsp brandy

· 15g/½oz unsalted butter

Method:

·         Blend the ground almonds and icing sugar in a food processor until well combined. Set aside.

The consistency should look similar to a meringue!

·         Using an electric whisk, slowly whisk the egg whites in

       a large bowl at a low speed until stiff peaks form when the whisk is removed. Slowly whisk in the cream of

      tartar and caster sugar until the mixture is smooth and glossy, gradually increasing the speed of the whisk

       as the mixture stiffens.

·         Gently fold in the food colouring and blended ground almonds and icing sugar until the mixture resembles shaving foam.

  

·         Spoon the macaroon mixture into a piping bag fitted with a 1cm/½in round nozzle. Pipe 5cm/2in circles onto the baking tray lined with greaseproof paper. If a peak forms, wet your finger and smooth it down. Sharply tap the bottom of the tray to release any air bubbles from the macaroons, then set aside for 60 minutes (the macaroon shells are ready to go in the oven when they are no longer sticky to the touch).

  

·         Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 160C/315F/Gas 2½.

·         Bake the macaroons in the oven for 10-15 minutes, or until cooked through. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool for 5 minutes. Carefully peel away the greaseproof paper and set aside to cool completely.

 ·         Meanwhile, for the chocolate filling, heat the double cream and chocolate in a saucepan over a low heat, stirring occasionally, until smooth and well combined. Add the brandy and butter and stir until smooth, then remove from the heat and set aside to cool completely.

·         Use the filling to sandwich the macaroons together then chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Applying this back to Ibsen’s text the instructions alone shows the attention to detail and skill needed in order to make these successfully. I will put my hands up for possibly being the world’s worst when it comes to using a piping bag, as the misshapen shells in the pictures demonstrate. In saying that, although I followed the recipe word for word I somehow ended up with 14 macaroons! The small amount of food colouring I used made the macaroon a pastel pink, a colour stereotypically associated with femininity. While the shells were light, airy and sweet, the chocolate filling was incredibly rich and slightly bitter due to the dark chocolate. It was this juxtaposition of indulgent flavours that made it impossible to eat more than one per sitting.  

Works Cited:

Berry, M. “Macaroons” (2014). BBC Website <http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/macaroons_16105=>  Date accessed 01/03/14

Ibsen, Henrik. A Doll's House. Trans. Meyer, Michael. London: Metheun Drama, 1991.