A few months back, my petite French friend Agnès and I spent a day driving around Austin in search of the most authentic croissant. This important research gave us an opportunity to drink coffee, eat pastries, and chat all day long! We liked it so much, it’s no wonder that we decided to do another “research” project: this time for the best macarons in Austin.

I have good news and bad news for you. The bad news is we couldn’t find authentic French macarons anywhere. Some were very close, but not quite the same. The good news is you can find a lot of delicious macarons in Austin that will make your day brighter. [Read more…]

With over 40,000 followers on Instagram alone, Tiny Pies proves their taste is big, though their pies may be little. This is the story of how a small business from Austin took the nation by storm.

Tiny Pies Idea Is Born

Tiny Pies is a creative endeavor started by the mother-daughter duo of Kit Seay and Amanda Bates back in 2011. The idea of making hand-held pies came from Bates’ son. He loved taking a slice of pie to school, but it always got too messy. “One day he tossed out an idea: ‘Why don’t you come up with something I can eat with my hand?’ We instantly knew it was a really good idea,” Bates explained.

The idea turned into days spent in the kitchen playing around with recipes and testing flavors. Baking together wasn’t new for the pair. Bates baked with her mom for as long as she can remember. And Seay, in turn, used to bake with her own mom. [Read more…]