{Sweet Treats} Macaron Day NYC 2012

Dominique Ansel Bakery's PB&J and Raspberry Balsamic macarons (left) were slightly larger than Epicerie Boulud's rich and tasty macarons.

Happy 1st Day of Spring everyone! What better way to ring in the warm weather than with complimentary macarons? Today was Macaron Day in NYC and unlike in previous years (2010, 2011), it was held on a weekday.  Since we both had to work, my macaron hunt was short but sweet.

Before work, I checked out Epicerie Boulud and received an intensely-flavored dark chocolate macaron. Since this was my first time at Daniel Boulud's bakery, I also bought a box of 4 macarons ($9.50) to try the other flavors: lemon, raspberry, and pistachio. My favorite mac of the day was Boulud's nutty pistachio macaron. The lemon one was vibrant too and the raspberry mac tasted like jam.

Since there weren't any participating bakeries near my office, Jeff kindly ventured to a couple places downtown for me.  Dominique Ansel Bakery was another new-to-us bakery. There were a few other people coming in asking for a macaron along with the usual breakfast crowd.

Jeff picked up a complimentary PB&J macaron from Dominique Ansel Bakery's selection and bought a Raspberry Balsamic macaron ($2.50) to go. He really liked the different flavor profiles offered there. His favorite macarons of the day were Boulud's dark chocolate mac and these two macarons from Dominique Ansel Bakery.

After two years of offering hazelnut macarons (seen here and here), this year La Maison du Chocolat offered a Lemon Macaron.  Jeff thought it was light in flavor but sweet and, unlike some previous purchases from the Wall St location, was not cracked or falling apart.

Though I didn't get to visit many bakeries this year for Macaron Day, I'm glad we were able to try a couple new places. And hearing about Dominique Ansel Bakery's other French pastries makes me eager to visit soon.