Tested: these are the tastiest (and nastiest!) supermarket macarons
Macarons, those small, round, airy cookies sandwiched together with a soft filling—we absolutely love them in the editorial office. Preferably from French Ladurée, but alas, it’s not exactly around the corner. We wondered: can you also go to a Dutch supermarket for a macaron craving? We investigated it for you: which supermarket sells the tastiest macarons? And which ones should you avoid?
The macarons in our test were all bought on the same day (and stored in the same way). At all the stores, you get a box with 12 macarons and 6 different flavors. At Dirk van den Broek and Vomar, you pay €4.79 for 12 pieces. At Albert Heijn, €5, and we got the most expensive box at Jumbo: 12 macarons for €5.39.
We tasted different flavors from all the stores side by side, from mocha to lemon and from pistachio to raspberry. We’re taking a closer look at the pistachio and raspberry flavors, as these were the easiest to compare across all the flavors.
Tasted blind
All the macarons were tasted blind, meaning only the note-taker knew which macaron came from which store. At first glance, most of the macarons are the same color; only the filling looks very different. For example, the filling of the pistachio macarons from Dirk and Albert Heijn isn’t green, but caramel-colored. And not everyone is equally impressed by that. When you think of pistachio, you expect a green filling. “When the filling is brown, it puts you on the wrong track mentally,” says Sharon. But what does the pistachio macarons’ flavor taste like?
Little pistachio
We start with Jumbo’s pistachio macaron. “Chewy, slightly crisp, but the flavor isn’t very pronounced,” says Robbert. It also takes a long time before you can really taste the flavor, and the jury can’t taste pistachio at all. Sharon: “Very flat and uninteresting.” Rick isn’t exactly enthusiastic either: “If you told me this was vanilla, I’d believe you.”
Moving quickly on to Dirk’s pistachio macaron. The filling is light brown, and the macaron is clearly much sweeter than Jumbo’s. Also striking: the exterior is somewhat grainier. The jury isn’t particularly happy: “It tastes more like almond and marzipan,” “It’s not really a macaron, more like a sweet cookie.” You can safely call it extremely sweet: “This is really much too sweet!”
Crispy top, nicely chewy
Fortunately, Albert Heijn’s macaron is better received; this filling is also somewhat browner: “It’s almost caramel,” according to Robbert. “Crispy top, nicely chewy and a clear pistachio flavor,” says Lauretta. The test panel is unanimous: “This is the tastiest one so far.”
And it stays that way, because the jury isn’t very enthusiastic about Vomar’s macaron. Sharon: “Zero pistachio flavor, this is white chocolate.” Rick finds the filling too sweet, but says “the cookie has a good texture and is tasty.” Lauretta is very pleased with the “ratio of filling to cookie.” Robbert, who loves white chocolate, still considers this a successful macaron, but that’s because he loves white chocolate: “But if you’re looking for a pistachio macaron, this isn’t what you want.” Albert Heijn wins.
Raspberry macarons
Will Albert Heijn also win the prize for the best raspberry macarons? The jury starts with Jumbo’s macaron. It stands out that the filling is darker than the cookie. “It looks like jelly,” Robbert observes. Then a bite. “Ugh, no, this is really very sweet strawberry jam,” says Sharon.
Lauretta isn’t happy with this flavor either: “That they sell this…” “After eating it, your whole mouth still tastes like it,” says Rick. No, this is a real disappointment. It can get worse. Vomar’s raspberry macaron may look deliciously jammy, but it turns out to be truly disgusting. It’s the first time the jury genuinely—and unanimously—pulls a disgusted face.
Then Dirk’s macaron. Rick: “This is much better.” Lauretta thinks it tastes like a swirl in a tub of ice cream (and that’s a good thing), while Robbert finds it somewhat chemical-tasting, but overall it’s perfectly acceptable. Albert Heijn’s raspberry macaron is once again a real hit. “Tasty, there’s a tartness to it,” says Robbert. Sharon: “The tartness sets this macaron apart from the rest, and the cookie is tasty too. You can taste the raspberry flavor—a perfectly good macaron.”
Yay and nay
Of course, supermarket macarons pale in comparison to macarons you buy in France, even if there’s an Eiffel Tower pictured on the packaging along with the words “macarons from Paris.” But the jury says: if you’re going to buy macarons at the supermarket, get the tastiest ones at Albert Heijn. And if you really love white chocolate, buy Vomar’s pistachio macarons. That’s exactly what Robbert is going to do tomorrow.
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