Sivert

Thanks. I'll try that. btw, I was in SF last week - I had delicious Macarons at Slanted Door. One was lavender and (I think) strawberry. The other was Lychee and raspberry. Delicious. Very near to Pierre Herme.

Wow, well the last month has been absolutely crazy. I did try the cornmeal macarons. I made a caramel-sea-salt-buttercream. They were Ok - we ate them. But the cookie part was indeed very gritty. Unpleasant texture. I think I either need to use some finer cornmeal or, more likely, some other flour. Yes, she's allergic to all nuts. Pine nuts and Sesame are ok - but I think they are too oily for this.

First post from a lurker... I love macarons. Pierre Hermé and Lenotre are my favorites, especially the interesting flavors. Paulette in Los Angelos is very good, also. Here's the problem: my wife is deathly allergic to nuts. She only became so about 8 years ago, and previously we both enjoyed these little gems. So, last time I was in Paris, I asked in some baking supply shops about ideas for alternative flours. I have tried using ground pumpkin seed. Besides tasting bad, they had no volume. While they came out with feet, and looked great, they soon went flat. I am thinking of trying a really fine cornmeal with a slightly salted carmel filling. Ideas...?