Taste Of Oklahoma: Collinsville Patisserie Brings Perfected Macarons To Main Street

A Collinsville baker is bringing a challenging French dessert to the shelves of her newly opened bakery.

Courtney Horn said her baking skills started as a childhood passion now morphed into meticulous recipes that she has perfected.

Macaronage Sweets and Patisserie offers more than just macarons but those are the star of the show.

Courtney says every day in her shop feels like a dream, and she hopes to continue sharing her sweets with her community as long as she can.

In Courtney Horn's kitchen, diligence and perfection is the only way.

That’s because something as simple as a tiny change in the temperature may ruin her sweets.

"The moisture affects it, the way you mix, the batter, the quality of the eggs can affect the batter."

Courtney owns Macaronage Sweets and Patisserie, a bakery on Main Street in Collinsville.

Her staple is in the namesake: macarons, and they just happen to be one of the most difficult and fussy desserts out there.

"The macarons take 24 hours. You bake the shells first, you fill them, and they sit in the fridge and absorb the moisture from those creams," she said.

Courtney offers a huge variety of flavors that change weekly.

She’s filling these frosted animal cookie macarons with buttercream.

Each shell flavor gets its own special filling, like this chocolate ganache.

Her finicky macaron recipe is an authentic French one that is 7 years in the making.

“I'm self-taught," she said. "I started at home, and someone mentioned to me that they were difficult to make, and I thought, I’m going to take on the challenge.”

Courtney got her start with a mobile patisserie to take her treats on the road. She sold them at local shops until she opened her own a couple of months ago.

“It was amazing; my kids love helping, and my son lives to hold the door open. My daughter is the first one to come here and tell you what flavors we have," she said.

Courtney bakes a lot more than the macarons.

She makes snickerdoodles, and her lemon cloud cookies have a cake-like texture that floats away on your tongue.

“Made with lemon zest, cream cheese, powdered sugar to give it that crinkle top.”

Her creme brulee is made with real vanilla bean and it’s all about the show as she adds sugar and gives it a torch tableside.

Courtney said owning the bakery has brought a big learning curve, and it’s a ton of work but it allows for flexibility.

“I wake up, take the kids to school, come to work, go to pick 'em up, and we come here and hang out."

She urges anyone who has tried a macaron and not liked it to give hers a chance before they knock the French treat.

“I’m big on flavor. I want you to be wowed when you taste it."

But whether it's the macarons, cupcakes, muffins or anything else she might have going in the oven, Courtney says the joy from customers, and the support from her small town, makes her feel like she’s in a dream.

“It's the perfect place to be. I couldn't be in a better town with a better community. Everyone is so loving and supportive. It's made my dreams come true."

Story ideas: Kristen.Weaver@griffin.news

Food Instagram: @Kristeats