My failed macarons led me to spot a humidity issue many overlook

I baked macarons last week and they came out all cracked and ugly. Turns out, I had pasta boiling on the stove at the same time. The steam made my kitchen too damp for the shells to set right. I tried again on a drier day and they were perfect. Now I see how easy it is to mess up with extra moisture in the air.

3 comments

3 Comments

miles6741mo ago

Feel this deep in my soul! I once tried to bake meringue cookies while my humidifier was blasting in the next room. I could not figure out why they turned into sad, flat puddles instead of cute little clouds. I basically steamed my own dessert.

dylanr101mo ago

You ever have humidity turn your pancakes into weird, rubbery discs too?

wright.rowan12d ago

Steamed my own dessert" is a perfect way to put it. I had a similar thing with a bag of bread flour. Left it in a cupboard that backed onto the bathroom wall. Forgot about it for a month. When I finally went to make pizza dough, the flour had turned into one solid, weird brick. It basically baked itself from the shower steam. Had to throw the whole thing out.