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Dessert

Macaroons

Almond macaroons made with sweet almonds, sugar, rose water, and egg whites, baked until done.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 4 ingredients
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Macaroons

Why it works: Almond and rose are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 11% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,465 recipes. Both carry eucalyptol, which smells eucalyptus, herbal. The science ↓

Macaroons

Oven, in the book's wordsA quick oven

Ingredients

Directions

The book says “a quick oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.

Prepare the mixture

  1. Blanch and finely beat the almonds.

  2. Mix the almonds with sugar and rose water to prevent oiling.

  3. Beat the egg whites to a froth and add to the mixture.

  4. Work the whole mixture well together.

Shape and bake

  1. Drop spoonfuls onto wafer paper.

  2. Grate sugar over the top.

  3. Bake in a 400°F (200°C) oven until done.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.

Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Almond + rosetop 11% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together1,465 recipes

    Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).

  2. Almond + sugartop 18% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together15,679 recipes

    Shared aroma: 1-penten-3-one (fish, pungent).

  3. Sugar + eggtop 21% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together122,807 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).

  4. Sugar + rosetop 25% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together3,584 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).

  5. Almond + eggtop 25% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together12,645 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Sweet almonds
Provide the main body and flavor of the macaroon.
Sugar
Adds sweetness and helps give the surface a crisp, lightly browned finish.
Egg whites
Whipped to a froth, they add lightness and help bind the mixture as it sets.

The step that matters

Work the whole mixture well together. Thorough mixing spreads the whipped egg whites evenly through the almond and sugar paste, so the macaroons bake with a consistent texture rather than dense or uneven patches.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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