We are fortunate to live in a city that has a bakery dedicated to macarons -- La Petite Délicat! We can't get enough of the delicate cookies filled with everything from chocolate ganache, to a local favorite, their salted caramel. Until visiting the store, we did not know that all of the flavor of a macaron comes from the filling, not the cookie part. That is why it is best to wait at least three days before eating macarons you make at home to let the flavors spread throughout the cookie. Who knew?

Creating macarons is an art form. The first time you try it, you will probably get something that tastes just fine but doesn't look as divine as you might like. But we would like to offer you a few tips that we learned from taking a macaron baking class:

• Using aged egg whites will affect the way they whip. The runnier the egg white, the easier they are whipped making an ideal meringue. You can either separate the eggs the night before and leave the whites on the counter or you can microwave the whites for 15-20 seconds.
• Precise measuring is key. Make sure you have a digital scale to achieve accurate and consistent readings.
• Macarons are sensitive to moisture. When adding food coloring, either use a small amount of liquid for pastel colors or use gel food coloring for deeper colors.
• It is important to let the macarons dry after being piped or they will crack while baking. Let them sit at room temperature for 30 minutes to an hour. You can use a fan to speed the drying process.

Frequent "imperfections" and what might have caused them:

• Overly rounded shells - did not mix enough.
• Flat, cracked shells or imperfect edges - mixed too much, damanging the firmness of the egg whites
• Lumpy shells - sugar and almond flour weren't mixed or sifted well enough
• Cracked shells - the shells were put in the oven without letting them air dry first or the oven was too hot

We hope these tips will encourage you to try out a macaron recipe. Impress your guests by serving your own creations to them while painting our "Macarons" design.

Not sure of your baking skills? Never fear, we can vouch for the delicous quality from La Petite Délicat and you can order online!