Macarons (attempt)

The 2009 October Daring Bakers’ challenge was brought to us by Ami S. She chose macarons from Claudia Fleming’s The Last Course: The Desserts of Gramercy Tavern as the challenge recipe.

These are not the coconut chewy macaroons most of you are thinking of. These are french macarons. A light cookie, essentially a meringue with almond flour added. And they are difficult. I did some research before the attempt and discovered that she chose the most difficult recipe. One site stated that it only has a 50% success rate.

Mine failed. So miserably I didn't even take a picture.

Life conspired to not allow another attempt this month. When I try this again, I'll use a recipe with a better success rate. For now I'm on the hunt for a local bakery that makes them. I'm hoping to taste one!

Savory Pumpkin Seeds

One of my favorite benefits of cleaning out pumpkin guts is the seeds. I love roasted pumpkin seeds. This year I went for a recipe similar to what mom made us as kids. They're almost worth cleaning out pumpkins more often.

Mia's Savory Pumpkin Seeds

2 cups pumpkin seeds
1 1/2 Tbs butter, melted
2 tsp Worchestershire sauce
1 1/4 tsp salt
Dash of garlic salt
Dash of onion powder

Preheat oven to 250. Mix it all together. Spread on ungreased jelly roll pan (cookie sheet with sides). Bake for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, stirring every 15 min. Seeds are done when dry and starting to brown.