The French Macaroon

Here lately I've really gotten into baking. 
I've always liked it, but never really had the time to try the things I really wanted to try. 
Recently graduating college..my free time opened up tremendously. 

French Macaroons have always been one of my favorite treats.  They were takeaways at my college portfolio show and they were a huge hit.  I had to buy them of course, because at that time they totally intimated me.  It was an expensive takeaway, but that's in the past now.

Yesterday after work, I randomly thought trying to make them would be a good idea.  It was.  I only know that now though. 



The main reason I never tried making these sooner was everyone else that has ever tried to make them.  That, and there are hundreds of different ways.  All of them are very similar, yet certain aspects of the process are varied.  That makes one little cookie pretty intimidating.  I found this one recipe for this fairly simple vanilla macaroon and I thought I'd give it a try.  I'm not a huge Lemon curd fan though, so for my filling I just decided to try a simple vanilla buttercream fill.  It was surprisingly very easy and they turned out deliciously.  I'm not a baking pro, hell, I've never even used a piping bag until last night, and I made these correctly.  If I can, anyone can.

Seeing that it was almost midnight when I finished, the picture effort was lax. 
I'm excited to try more complicated flavor recipes for these guys sometime soon!

xxBrittany

Parrot Bay Punch

Back in my hometown, one of my favorite eatery places is Flamingo Row.  This is a Caribbean themed restaurant and it's delicious: both food and drink-wise.
One particular drink that they have is called Parrot Bay Punch.  Knowing everything they put in that, I decided to make my own.

 
What you need:
- 1 shot of Parrot Bay Coconut Rum(Any coconut rum will work but it IS called "Parrot Bay Punch")
- 1 Shot of Creme de Banana
- 1 6oz can of pineapple juice
- 1 teaspoon of cream of coconut
- 4 ice cubes

Makes 1 serving (easily doubles to make more)

First add your shot of rum and shot of creme de banana to a shaker.  We don't have a cocktail shaker right now, so we had to improvise.

 Next, add in the teaspoon of cream of coconut.  We used a tablespoon because our shaker had a strainer.  You can use your own judgement.

Now pour a whole 6oz can of pineapple juice in, followed by 4-5 ice cubes. 

Finally, shake all of the ingredients together and pour into a glass.  Richard makes such an elegant model right?

Optionally, add a cute straw and an umbrella to kick it up a notch. 

This drink is super easy to make and tastes delicious.  Be warned though, the alcohol is hidden well, you'll be feeling good before you realized what happened. Enjoy!

xxBrittany