First of all, Happy New Year!  I’ve been remiss in updating this blog, I know.  No, I STILL haven’t been back to Ladurée.  But this plays precisely into my point and main reason for maintaining my blog (aside from my own predilection for pigging out on macarons, of course).  I mean, if even I myself find going to Ladurée somewhat of a long journey, I can only imagine how others who don’t quite share my obsession must feel.  If anything, New Yorkers hate inconvenience, and if there is a macaron shop close by work / school / your apartment that is VERY good and perhaps a bit cheaper than Ladurée, why go all the way there anyway?  I have heard that Ladurée is planning to open stores in other neighborhoods, but who knows?

Ironically, my first post of 2012 is not about macarons and does not relate to NYC – rather, it’s about Luxemburgerli, a super yummy macaron-like treat that can only be found at branches of Confiserie Sprüngli in Zurich, Switzerland.

SUPER inconveneint for New Yorkers, I know… but these things are so cute I just had to post about them.

Luxemburgerlis are basically mini macarons.  They are quite literally the same circumference as a bottle cap:

According to Sprüngli’s website, the original recipe was brought over to Zurich by a “young pastry chef from Luxembourg,” which Richard Sprüngli perfected and made his own over 50 years ago.  So the macaron came first; the Luxemburgerli, however, is quite a tasteful (pun intended) and elegant alteration!

I was fortunate enough to visit Zurich on vacation a few weeks ago!  Yummy!  The salted caramel was PERFECT, from the crust to the filling.

Nevertheless, I personally prefer macarons, since I have the satisfaction of taking more than one bite.  Also, like macarons, Luxembergerlis tend to go stale after a couple days, making them difficult to transport.  It’s not every day I board a plane for Zurich, after all, and I’m not sure if ordering online for delivery to the US is possible (or affordable)!  Still, I thoroughly enjoyed my Zurich Luxemburgerli experience!