My Tribute to Japan: Matcha Tea Macarons, with Chocolate / Grapefruit Cream, from Hotel Meurice, Paris...and for Wine Lovers, a Tastevin..What is a Tastevin?

Originally, I had planned to post something else...but then I thought it was a good idea to post something reminiscent of Japan..to show we think about the Japanese people, their suffering, their silent despair...

So I remembered I had seen in a French magazine, this recipe by Chef Yannick Alléno, from the Hotel Meurice: his "détox" macarons, where Matcha tea marries a grapefruit / white chocolate ganache...an exquisite blend...refined in its very nature...so I didn't need much more!

Macarons and tea found a perfect nest each in a tastevin. Now, what is a tastevin? Don't worry..I didn't know the meaning of this word until a very special friend gave me these two pieces for my birthday next Monday... The tastevin is a small silver cup used in the past (before the advent of electricity) to view and judge wine (Regular glasses were too deep for accurate judging in faint light) The multifaceted surface allowed light to reflect the visual properties of wine ! You can read more about this here or here

I think these tastevins don't mind having changed for once wine for this new precious cargo...
These macarons, so subtle in their taste, sober in their refinement are (for me) the embodiment of Japanese art and culture....
I don't have but respect for these people, and I honestly hope their tragedy will come to an end soon...
All my prayers with you..Japan! 

To make the macarons, follow my basic recipe here, adding 5gr of Matcha tea to the almond powder.

For the Grapefruit Cream:

*grapefuit juice, 175ml *cream, 350gr *vanilla pod, 1 *gelatin sheets, 3 1/2 *white chocolate, 250gr *grapefruit zest, 1

Put the gelatin sheets in a bowl with cold water. In the meanwhile, chop the chocolate. Put the grapefruit juice, cream, and grains from the vanilla pod in a saucepan and take it to a boil. Rinse the gelatin sheets, and add them to the cream mixture. Combine well. Pour the cream onto the the chocolate. Combine well. Refrigerate for 12 hours. 

(I sprayed these macarons with edible silver spray!)