Bake and Take: French Macarons

Join Chef Melissa Walnock, a classically trained pastry chef from the CIA Apple Pie Bakery Café, in the Watergrasshill kitchen studio to discover the secrets to making the perfect French Macarons. Macarons, not to be confused with coconut macaroons, are meringue based and are made up of 2 cookies sandwiching a jelly or buttercream filling. They are also naturally gluten Free! Bakers of all levels are invited to join in on this fun evening. Students will learn how to make and decorate macaron shells, which includes learning how to cook sugar and make Italian meringue. They will also make buttercream and fruit jam fillings with step-by-step guidance from Chef Walnock.

At the end of the class, each participant will go home with a box of their own pastries!  

Melissa Walnock is A Certified Hospitality Educator of baking and pastry arts at The Culinary Institute of America (CIA). Chef Walnock serves as pastry chef and instructor in the college’s Apple Pie Bakery Café. Before joining the CIA faculty, Chef Walnock worked at some of the finest restaurants in the United States including The French Laundry in Yountville, CA, Jean-Georges V Steakhouse, Union Square Café in New York City and The Breakers in Palm Beach, FL.