The recipe calls for 3 slightly beaten egg whites. Without thinking, I grabbed a fork and ran it through the egg whites until there were bubbles floating on the surface. Only after I baked the macaroons and thought a while about the delicious but dense consistency inside the crusty surface did I rethink what "slightly beaten" might mean for egg whites as opposed to full eggs.
Beating egg whites takes them through stages from foamy, to soft peaks, to stiff peaks, and finally to the unfortunate state of overbeaten. But what does "slightly beaten" mean in 1941 parlance? There's a big difference between my very wet and bubbly egg white (liquid) and a not quite frothy egg white (half solid, half liquid). If/When I make these again - is tomorrow too soon? - I will try beating the egg whites harder, stopping short of full froth. I think this might introduce more air into the cookie insides, and I think that would be an improvement over what I made today.
The instructions say the "cooky mixture" can be "dropped from the tip of a teaspoon" and baked "in a slow oven," all of which I find completely charming.
I baked mine slightly longer than I was supposed to if color is any indication, but this resulted in a beautifully textured top surface that looks, IMHO, more attractive than Gourmet's cookie centerfolds.
As for taste, the recipe say "these should be baked a few days in advance," so I really tried not to eat them today. I failed. They were delicious, and my home team testers asked for more. I will sample the batch again tomorrow and hopefully the day after that. I'll post updates if taste changes significantly over time, and certainly if I make them again.
In other news, soccer practice takes place at the middle school next to a gorgeous running track. I walked around the track for 45 minutes and even worked up a sweat. Yeah for me!
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