Pierre Herme Macarons, Fall 2006

What I love about Pierre Herme:

He's a rebel.
With a cause.
He has a sense of humour.
And it's smart, sharp, and camp.
Pierre Herme is not afraid.
Of the French Pastry Mafia.
Not afraid of French Pastry History.
He knows the classics.
But he knows how to break the rules.

Pierre's in town and he's making new rules.
He's not afraid of color.
Or of referencing sex.
Not afraid of leather.
Not afraid of skin.
Not afraid of surprise.
Pierre Herme is big.
In girth but also in mind.
And he thinks big.
He's bold and subtle all at once.
With some naughtiness thrown in for good measure.

Pierre Herme is alive.

He gets better every year.

He carries around with him, like a vial of snuff, his favorite salts.
He dresses in impeccable clothes.
He's not afraid of the feminine.
Pierre Herme knows packaging is important.
He's vibrant.
Loves color.
Embraces dichotomy.
Celebrates whimsy.
Has a way with words.

Pierre Herme's grammar is perfect.
Even when translated to English.

He has us all falling on our knees to pray to him.
And he never rests on his laurels.
Nothing is ever stale.
The ganache is never dry.
The buttercream ever stiff.
The garnish ever inconsistent.
Or unnecessary.

Pierre Herme is one of the great thinkers of our time.
Don't believe me? be my guest ~ eat his words.
He inspires.
Delights.
Challenges.
Bewitches.
Enchants.
Is sometimes bratty.
Seems ever elusive.
Seduces.
Teases.

Pierre Herme is my hero.
My mentor.
Our teacher.
Our inspirationalist.
A painter.
A dancer.
A muse.
Untouchable.

He's seasonal.
His new desserts are called collections.

And he treats his business like an haute couture fashion house, but without all the whiny models.
In the macaron catalog some cookies are listed as a one time only moment in time!

He has introduced the macaroon with secret filling surprises. A hidden sour cherry enveloped by pistachio cream hinted with cinnamon and dusted with pink faerie glitter.

Chocolate-Salted Caramel.

Apricot with a tiny powerful hidden thumbprint of chocolate-feuillitene hiding dead center.

Sweet, yes, but worth it.

I love that Pierre Herme can inspire transatlantic flights.
And Eurostar bookings.
And affairs.
Obsessions.

Inspire one to use all the descriptors one can find by turning over every rock and still not be able to convince you or myself that you will die happy only having read about them here.

3 October: White truffle and hazelnut.

14 November to 14 January: Vanilla.

10 December to 7 January Chocolate and Foie Gras.

I mean, come on now, are you not moist or stiff yet? Or are you like me?

Head over heels, somersaulting down the Seine, sleepless and wandering in the Marais, kissing strangers, leaving no crumb of macaron behind, liquefying your credit card for more, tiptoeing through the Amsterdam tulips in love?

Read more about what his shops produced this fall by someone who staged on his macaron line. Or get a glimpse of what he's done before. Want to know about what he was doing this time last year?

And I ate the Isaphan, a rose-lychee-raspberry dessert experience too fast to photograph it. But here's an idea of what it looks like.

Comments

[Jennifer]

I always thought the macarons from La Durée couldn't be topped…until I tried Pierre Hermé's. They are unbelievably and inexplicably amazing, and your description conveys this perfectly! I finished the entire box sitting on a bench in front of the shop.

[Melissa]

That is the BEST tribute I have ever read about him!
Wow!

[laura @ cucina testa rossa]

Bravo!

[H.Alexander Talbot]

thanks for the expose

[kudzu]

Whew, Honey, I had to fan myself. What a way to start the day! Certainly took the allure away from my pedestrian breakfast. Merci!

[maura]

Wow. Wow!

My word!

[Jeanne]

Yes, yes, yes to all of the above! What a great tribute & I couldn't have put it better myself ;-) I discovered PH in June 2004 and it was a revelation. Yes, you CAN put those flavours together and yes it WILL taste great and oh my, the sensual pleasure verges on the obscene. I have been back twice since then and feel inordinately proud that I now have favourites amongst his regular flavours and no longer have to dash out with a pre-packed box before somebody rumbles me as an uninitiated newbie ;-) I will choose olive oil & vanilla every time, ditto the salted butter caramel and (when they have it) the pamplemousse & campari. Although I would kill for a bite of the foie gras one you mention... And good Lord, isn't the Isphahan beautiful?!

[shuna fish lydon]

Jeanne,

Thank you so much for extending this tribute with your own words! If I get the chance I will give the olive oil one another try... but oh how I miss the Rose like a lover I left behind...

[Julie O'Hara]

Pierre Herme is a fabulous man, fabulous artist, fabulous character! And, god, I just want to eat that one with the pistachio cream and pink sprinkles. Thank you for the photos!

[Steve]

My wife and daughter returned from a week in Paris with a great gift for me ... A package of macarons from Pierre Herme. Not to sound overly enthusiastic about this, but I have never eaten anything like them ever before. Every flavor I tasted was incredible. Who would think of a combination of olive oil and vanilla? Passion fruit and milk chocolate, WOW! They really need to open up a store in New York ASAP!

[sandy]

someone help me make some..!! im craving.. and i duno how to make them =(((!! please =(

[Valerie Rodgers Lugonja]

Greetings, Shuna!

You whisked me back to France and whetted my intellectual appetite. Yummy. I found your blog though Tuttifoodie, and have been spellbound for over two hours this morning. A delicious start to my day. I am a teacher of Literature, and a Canadian Foodie. I travel often. Open air markets and grocery stores are always on my itinerary. I will be back to this blog OFTEN. Thank you so much.

Referencing the French Macaroon, I have tried, and tried, and tried, and tried to make something close at home, but cannot seem to get it. I have a convection oven, and need some specific advice. Can write a very specific "how to" in you blog, and send me a copy?
On my knees... Valerie

Valerie, Thank you so much for spending your time here. I'm glad to hear there's much for you at Eggbeater. In terms of the French Macaron---- Find what you're looking for in Desserts Magazine. ~ Shuna

[Ted Niceley]

One of favorite books purchased in '08 was "Macaron" by the Man himself, PH.
He is The One"!

[Francesca]

Yes, Pierre Hermé is the best. Many a time I have stood in line outside his shop near Saint Sulpice to buy just one macaron. But he does not make pomme et cannelle so when I get a craving for an apple cinnamon macaron I go to Gregory Renard Cacao and Macarons, 120 rue Saint-Dominque 75007, Metro: Ecole Militaire. As far as I know he is the only one who makes this flavor.