Easy Peasy Cheats Macarons

The laptop is not fully dead. It's about 87% dead (don't ask how I worked out that percentage). It is taunting me - it switches on, the screen looks the same but only five keys work. Pah! So providing I am good and that I don't have food and drink within a five metre radius, the Grumps is humouring me by letting me write the odd blog post on his laptop.

Last weekend, we went to a friend's birthday party. I took along some macarons :o)

My favourite are the pistachio and the coffee ones. Yum.

I can't lie - these are actually Lidl macarons. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw them in the freezer section and quick as a flash squirrelled two boxes in my basket. At £2.99 for a box of 12 - I could not be more delighted! On the day, I put them in a  mooncake tin and passed them off as my own. Well the intention was to make some but after some googling on macaron recipes and the fact that most began with the words "these are one of the most difficult things you can make ….", I threw in the towel straight away. Did I ever tell you that a baker I am not? Anyway, like I said, I can't lie and I did confess to the macarons origins after everyone had cooed over how wonderful they were. And you're wondering what is a mooncake tin? These are tins which house little Chinese mooncakes* which are eaten during the Chinese mid-Autumn festival. I personally don't like mooncakes but I do like the tins which usually have really pretty designs on them and I ask my family to save me them so I can put brownies (the only things I can bake) in them as presents for people.

So just in time for the Christmas and New Year dinner parties, this is my tip for you. Go and raid the freezers at Lidl for some macarons. It will save you time, money, blood, sweat and tears from your attempts at making them unless you have nothing better to do and up for a masochistic challenge. You will have perfect macarons which are ready for consumption in 45 mins (time to defrost). Box them up and make them look even prettier than they already are and they will be the perfect little dinner party/Christmas party offering. 

Don't say I never tell you anything useful!

And if I don't get chance to do a last post before Christmas - I wish you all a very merry Christmas and I hope Santa brings you good health and fabby presents! Ho Ho Ho!

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For Info :

• Mooncakes* are a pastry which are filled with either red bean or lotus seed paste filling which usually contain the yolks of salted duck eggs. They are offered as gifts between friends and family during this festival time.