Macarons and Macaroons are not the same, & a Macron is quite different!

Did you know that President Macron of France has a family connection to macarons? A Macron marrying into a family of famous macaron makers must be destiny. The confection and the politician are separated by a single syllable. It is in your best interests never to confuse the pronunciation which is very close, so listen and learn to how to say macron and Macron correctly here:

This is how to pronounce Emmanuel Macron

ay:mah:new:el mah:kroh~

The story of how President Macron married into a family of famous Macaron makers is quite a story: the stuff of fairy tales of undying love to some, a salacious gossip to other. He met his wife Brigitte when he was her teenage student and she was his teacher at the Jesuit College in Amiens. Brigitte was married at the time and the young Emmanuel’s parents took steps to keep the much older lady away from their young son. Love prevailed and the rest is history.

President Macron speaks highly of his wife and has stated that he owes his success to her encouragement and guidance. She must have done something right because now she is the glamorous First Lady of France and he is the President.

So where do the Macarons come into the picture?

Believe it or not, Brigitte comes from a famous family of macaron makers and chocolatiers. The patriarch, Jean Trogneaux started a dynasty making the famous Macarons d’Amiens, which are unique and are considered a decadent treat.

How to pronounce:

Brigitte Trogneux bree:zheet troh:nyɜh

How to say:

Jean Trogneux Chocolatier zhah~ troh:nyɜh shoh:ko:lah:tyay

This is the correct pronunciation of Macarons d’Amiens

Macarons d’Amiens mah:kə:roh~ dah:myɜh~

Now we’ve dealt with the Macron / macaron connection, let’s clear up the confusion between macarons and macaroons

Macarons and Macaroons are not the same thing

You would think that sweet cookies that are spelled in a similar way and sound almost the same must be related. They are not! The difference between macarons and macaroons starts with pronunciation and extends to history, ingredients, technique, appearance, exclusivity, and price, and most importantly, taste and texture.

There are many who disagree with me, don’t quote them, hear me out. I don’t care if the New York Times uses ‘macaroons’ as a translation of ‘macarons’ – they are wrong.

All macarons and macaroons have in common is that they are both cookies. If you ask me for the French word for ‘parsley’ (persil), you would not be impressed if I gave you the random name of another French herb. I could hardly defend myself by saying ‘well, they are both herbs, aren’t they?’.