I just heard a tale that January 2 is the feast day of St. Macarius who
was a 4th century merchant specializiing in sweets, candies and
macaroons before he became a monk, and his nickname is 'St.
Macaroon'---where I can go to find out more, Google not being useful.

In article >,
Patrick Porter > wrote:
>I just heard a tale that January 2 is the feast day of St. Macarius who
>was a 4th century merchant specializiing in sweets, candies and
>macaroons before he became a monk, and his nickname is 'St.
>Macaroon'---where I can go to find out more, Google not being useful.

Well, your saint did exist -- he is Saint Macarius of Alexandria or
Macarius the Younger, to distinguish him from another, older contemporary
of the same name. But he has nothing to do with the name of the macaroon.

Below you will find material from the <Oxford English Dictionary> on the
etymology of both "macaroon" and "macaroni" -- they ARE related; together
with some biographical snippets on the two saints Macarius.



Macaroon:
[< Middle French macaron (mid 16th cent. in senses 1 and 2) < Italian
maccarone, macarone, obs. or regional variants of maccherone, singular
of maccheroni MACARONI n.: see further note on sense development of
the Italian word s.v.
Since the French word is not recorded before the 16th cent., quot. a1425
at sense 1 may represent direct borrowing from Italian.]

Macaroni:
[< Italian maccaroni, macaroni, obs. or regional variants of maccheroni
(15th cent.), plural of maccherone (14th cent.; 13th cent. in
post-classical
Latin (ablative plural) macaronis; 11th cent. in Italian as Mackarone in
isolated early use as a name for a foolish person); of uncertain
origin. Cf.
French macaroni (1650; 1820 in sense 6), and the earlier MACAROON n.
With sense 2 cf. MONKEYRONY n.

Macaroon, :continued:

1. = MACARONI n. 1. Originally in pl. Obs.

a1425 (a1399) Forme of Cury 95 in C. B. Hieatt & S. Butler Curye on
Inglysch (1985) 119 Makerouns [1780 Pegge: Macrows]. Take..a thynne
foyle of dowh, and kerue it on peces, and cast hym on boillyng water &
see it wele. Take chese and grate it and butter imelte, cast bynethen and
aboven as losyns. 1659 G. TORRIANO Florio's Vocab. Ital. & Inglese,
Macaroons, or macarons, macaroni, vermicelli, lasagne, tagliolini. 1679
Acct. Viner Fregt (P.R.O.:HCA 15/15) f. 12, For 30 Rottollos of
Maccaroons.
1704 J. PITTS Acct. Mahometans iii. (1738) 24 What they call Mackaroon is
some Paste made only with Flour and Water. 1738 G. SMITH Curious Relat.
II. 302 A Sort of Pudding, which they [in Malta] call Macron. 1753 E.
CHAMBERS Cycl. Suppl., Macaron, the name of a sort of vermicelli, a paste
made of flour and water, and formed into the shape of the barrel of a
quill, or the guts of small fowls.

2. a. A small sweet cake or biscuit consisting chiefly of ground
almonds
(or coconut), egg white, and sugar. Also: the mixture used for baking
this.

1611 R. COTGRAVE Dict. French & Eng. Tongues, Macarons, Macarons;
little Fritter-like Bunnes, or thicke Losenges, compounded of Sugar,
Almonds, Rosewater, and Muske. 1615 G. MARKHAM Countrey Contentm.
II. ii. (1668) 98 To make Jumbals more fine and curious..and nearer to the
taste of the Macaroon. 1630 J. TAYLOR Great Eater of Kent in Wks. I. 146/1
Whether it bee..Fritter, or Flapiacke, or Posset, Galley-Mawfrey,
Mackeroone, Kickshaw, or Tantablin. 1672 N. GREW Anat. Veg. i. 3 The
inner Coat [of the bean]..so far shrinking up, as to seem only the
roughness of the outer, somewhat resembling Wafers under Maquaroons.
1688 R. HOLME Acad. Armory III. 83/2 Mackrooms, a kind of roul of sweet
Bread. 1725 R. BRADLEY Chomel's Dict. con s.v. Tourte, You may also put
a pounded Macaroon into the Artichoke Cream. 1747 H. GLASSE Art of
Cookery xv. 141 To make Maccaroons. 1779 Farmer's Mag. 4 311 Put to
your curd half a pound of almonds blanched..or half a pound of dry
mackaroons beat very fine. 1848 J. GRANT Adventures Aide-de-camp
xxviii. (Rtldg.) 227 Little maccaroons, sweet as sugar and almonds could
make them. 1873 Young Englishwoman Mar. 130/2 One [mantle]..is
fastened in front with brandenbourgs, finished off with macarons and
round balls of the same style. 1875 `A. R. HOPE' My Schoolboy Friends
138 We were regaling on macaroons. 1911 LEITER & VAN BERGH Flower
City Cook Bk. xxiv. 128 Tortoni pudding, Scald 1 pint milk..; add 1
tablespoon of flour..; 1 egg and 1 cupful sugar... Add pound chopped
almonds, 7 macaroons..and a little vanilla. Cool. Add 1 pint whipped
cream. Freeze. 1952 P. BOWLES Let it come Down xiii. 141 The cocoanut
macaroons I used to make..and the cookies. 1988 E. FEINSTEIN Mother's
Girl iii. 44 Coconut macaroons..were prepared by my father's cook.

b. attrib.

1747 H. GLASSE Art of Cookery xvi. 142 With Mackeroons, Mackeroon
Cheesecakes. 1783 F. BURNEY Diary 9 Dec., I had no more power to
prevent it than this macaroon cake in my hand. 1836 T. HOOK Gilbert
Gurney I. 297 A Jew boy, selling macaroon cakes. 1898 W. C. GULLY in
Daily News 21 July 7/5 A Marchpane is an edifice in macaroon work. 1911
F. M. FARMER Catering for Special Occasions v. 110 Fill mold to overflow
with Macaroon Cream, adjust cover, pack in salt and ice, using equal
parts, and let stand three hours.

3. slang. [Cf. Italian maccherone, which has a similar use.] A
buffoon; a
blockhead, a dolt. Also (regional): a fop (cf. MACARONI n. 2).

a1631 J. DONNE Satires iv. 117 Like a bigge wife, at sight of lothed
meat..; so I sigh and sweat To heare this Makeron talke in vaine. 1633 R.
B. In Memory in J. Donne Poems 401 A Macaroon, And no way fit to speake
to clouted shoone. 1754 Dict. Arts & Sci. III. 1961/1 From whence it is
remarked, that the merry-andrews of all nations are called by the national
character: thus, in England, they are called jack-puddings;..in Italy,
macaroons, &c. a1825 R. FORBY Vocab. E. Anglia (1830), Macaroon, a fop.
1942 P. WYLIE Generation of Vipers 18 A thundering rebuke to the
reliability of the cluck beside it [sc. the radio set] and the macaroon
singing over it. 1974 V. C. STRASBURGER Rounding Third 2 What a
macaroon this guy must be.


From the online version of hte old <Catholic Encyclopedia>:

Macarius:
The name of two celebrated contemporary Nitrian monks of the fourth
century:

Macarius the Alexandrian

Also called ho politikos either in reference to his city birth or polished
manners; died about 405. He was a younger contemporary of Macarius
the Egyptian, but there is no reason for confounding or identifying him
with his older namesake. More than any of the hermits of the time he
exemplified the spirit of emulation characteristic of this stage of
monasticism. He would be excelled by none in his austerities. Palladius
asserts "if he ever heard of any one having performed a work of
asceticism, he was all on fire to do the same". Because the monks of
Tabennisi eschewed cooked food in Lent he abstained for seven years.
Once, in expiation of a fault, he lay for six months in a morass, exposed
to the attacks of the African gnats, whose sting can pierce even the hide
of a wild boar. When he returned to his companions he was so much
disfigured that he could be recognized only by his voice. He is credited
with the composition of a rule for monks, though his authorship is now
generally denied.

Macarius the Egyptian (or "Macarius the Elder")

One of the most famous of the early Christian solitaries, born about A.D.
300; died 390. He was a disciple of St. Anthony and founder of a monastic
community in the Scetic desert. Through the influence of St. Anthony he
abandoned the world at the age of thirty, and ten years later was ordained
a priest. The fame of his sanctity drew many followers, and his monastic
settlement at his death numbered thousands. The community, which took
up its residence in the Nitrian and Scetic deserts, was of the semi-
eremitical type. The monks were not bound by any fixed rule; their cells
were close together, and they met for Divine worship only on Saturdays or
Sundays. The principle which held them together was one of mutual
helpfulness, and the authority of the elders was recognized not as that of
monastic superiors in the strict sense of the word but rather as that of
guides and models of perfection. In a community whose members were
striving to excel in mortification and renunciation the pre-eminence of
Macarius was generally recognized. Several monasteries in the Libyan
desert still bear the name of Macarius. Fifty homilies have been preserved
which bear his name, but these and an "Epistle to the monks", with other
dubious pieces, cannot be ascribed to him with absolute certainty.

[Note: Saint Macarius the Younger (the Alexandrian) is named in the
Roman Martyrology on 2 January, Saint Macarius the Elder (the Egyptian)
on 15 January; in Byzantine liturgical calendars, both Saints are
commemorated on 19 January.]

Hist. Lausiaca, xvii; Hist. monachorum, xxviii; a Coptic Life was edited
by
AMELINEAU in Monuments pour servir a l'histoire de l'Egypte chretienne au
IVe, Ve, VIe et VIIe siecles (Paris, 1895), Syriac tr. by BEDJAN in Acta
sanctorum et martyrum syriace, V, 1895; BUTLER, The Lausiac History of
Palladius, II, 193; ZOCKLER, Askese u. Monchthum (Frankfurt, 1897), 226.
For the homilies ascribed to MACARIUS see P.L., XXXIV, 409 sqq.; cf.
BARDENHEWER, Patrology, tr. SHAHAN (St. Louis, 1908), 266 sqq.

PATRICK J. HEALY

**********

Modern text from a website:


MACARIUS the Younger
Also known as Macarius of Alexandria
Memorial: 2 January
Profile:
Successful merchant in fruits, candies, and pastries in Alexandria, Egypt.
Convert to Christianity, he gave up his business in 335 to be a monk and
hermit in the Thebaid, Upper Egypt. For a while he lived near Saint
Anthony the hermit, and some amazing stories grew up around the two,
some of which are found in a separate file.

After several years, he travelled to Lower Egypt, and was ordained, and
lived in a desert cell with other monks, practicing severe austerities.
For seven years he lived on raw vegetables dipped in water with a few
crumbs of bread, moistened with drops of oil on feast days.

Once spent 20 days and 20 nights without sleep, burnt by the sun in the
day, frozen by bitter desert cold cold at night. "My mind dried up because
of lack of sleep, and I had a kind of delirium," the hermit admitted. "So
I
gave in to nature and returned to my cell."

Spent six months naked in the marshes, beset constantly by viscious
blood-sucking flies and mosquitoes, in the hope of destroying his last bit
of sexual desire. The terrible conditions and attacking insects left him
so
deformed that when he returned to the monks, they could recognize him
only by his voice.
Poet. Friend of wild animals. Healer. Exiled for a while with Saint
Macarius
the Elder and other monks to and island in the Nile by the Arians because
of his orthodoxy, but he was later allowed to return. Wrote a constitution
for the monastery at Nitria named after him, and some of its rules were
adopted by Saint Jerome for his monastery.
Born: early 4th century at Alexandria, Egypt
Died: c.401
Patronage: confectioners, cooks, pastry chefs.
Representation: flies; flies stinging a desert hermit; hermit with lamp;
hermit with lantern; hermit leaning on a crutch in the form of a tau staff
while conversing with a skull.




--
Regards, Frank Young
703-527-7684
Post Office Box 2793, Kensington, Maryland 20891
"Videmus nunc per speculum in aenigmate... Nunc cognosco ex parte"

Thank you so much for this wonderful mountain of macaroonic
knowledge---very helpful!

phbp

>> I just heard a tale that January 2 is the feast day of St. Macarius
>> who was a 4th century merchant specializiing in sweets, candies and
>> macaroons before he became a monk, and his nickname is 'St. Macaroon'
> Well, your saint did exist -- he is Saint Macarius of Alexandria or
> Macarius the Younger, to distinguish him from another, older contemporary
> of the same name. But he has nothing to do with the name of the macaroon.
> From the online version of the old <Catholic Encyclopedia>: [...]

> Macarius the Alexandrian [...]
> died about 405. He was a younger contemporary of Macarius the
> Egyptian, but there is no reason for confounding or identifying him
> with his older namesake. More than any of the hermits of the time he
> exemplified the spirit of emulation characteristic of this stage of
> monasticism. He would be excelled by none in his austerities. [...]
> Once, in expiation of a fault, he lay for six months in a morass,
> exposed to the attacks of the African gnats, whose sting can pierce
> even the hide of a wild boar. When he returned to his companions he
> was so much disfigured that he could be recognized only by his voice.

The encyclopaedia has understated this. Robert Chambers' _Book of
Days_, quoting Butler's _Lives of the Saints_, says that the fault
he was expiating was that he'd swatted a gnat that bit him.

W.E.H. Lecky's _History of European Morals_ has a splendidly sarcastic
chapter on early Christian ascetic loonies. John Tavener has written
an opera about one of them (Mary of Egypt) and genuinely seems to
believe they were a Good Thing, but then he would, wouldn't he.


> But he has nothing to do with the name of the macaroon.

I don't see anything in what you quote to decide it either way. The
almond/sugar/egg cake has no obvious link to any pasta-like dish, so
why not an independent etymology? Somebody celebrating the feast of
St Macarius by a dish related to his early occupation could easily
have got the name and the food associated.

========> Email to "j-c" at this site; email to "bogus" will bounce <========
Jack Campin: 11 Third Street, Newtongrange, Midlothian EH22 4PU; 0131 6604760
<http://www.purr.demon.co.uk/purrhome.html> food intolerance data & recipes,
Mac logic fonts, Scots traditional music files and CD-ROMs of Scottish music.

"bogus address" > wrote in message
...

> > Macarius the Alexandrian [...]
> > died about 405. He was a younger contemporary of Macarius the
> > Egyptian, but there is no reason for confounding or identifying him

He also invented macaroni and the "Macarena" dance.

He's also blamed^h^h^h^h^h^h credited with the invention (or discovery as
the case may be) of the Macintosh computer and/or its OS but his heirs deny
this strenuously.

--
Bob
Kanyak's Doghouse
http://kanyak.com

>>> Macarius the Alexandrian [...] died about 405. He was a younger
>>> contemporary of Macarius the Egyptian
> He also invented macaroni and the "Macarena" dance.
> He's also blamed^h^h^h^h^h^h credited with the invention (or discovery
> as the case may be) of the Macintosh computer and/or its OS but his
> heirs deny this strenuously.

Well his heirs had enough trouble denying there was a MacArian heresy,
so you can understand them not wanting to tangle with Bill Gates as
well as the Pope.

There is probably a market niche for a Heretics' Cookbook. St John
Chrysostom gives us an alleged Gnostic recipe for foetus pate and the
Cathar "perfecti" were vegetarians so there was a fair range to choose
from.

========> Email to "j-c" at this site; email to "bogus" will bounce <========
Jack Campin: 11 Third Street, Newtongrange, Midlothian EH22 4PU; 0131 6604760
<http://www.purr.demon.co.uk/purrhome.html> food intolerance data & recipes,
Mac logic fonts, Scots traditional music files and CD-ROMs of Scottish music.

I think I'll mark down January 2 as St. Macaroon's Day and have a bogus
excuse for a blowout of amaretti and macaroons and all things related---

And speaking of which: what IS related? 'Ossi di morti' maybe? What
else? What else would a 4th century Egyptian sweet merchant have sold?
Its near Twelfth Night/Three Kings Day, so what traditional items might
go along with that?

Say the Three Wise Men paused in Alexandria to pick up some sweeties to
take to Bethlehem along with the gold, frankincense and myrrh.

phbp

(Patrick Porter) nattered on thusnews:22237-40010A49-
:

> Its near Twelfth Night/Three Kings Day, so what traditional items might
> go along with that?

Whatever it is, remember dates and honey.

Of course, that's good advice for a lot of sweets.

> I think I'll mark down January 2 as St. Macaroon's Day and have
> a bogus excuse for a blowout of amaretti and macaroons and all
> things related---
> And speaking of which: what IS related? 'Ossi di morti' maybe?
> What else? What else would a 4th century Egyptian sweet merchant
> have sold?

Perhaps much the same as what you'd find in an Istanbul pastry/sweet
shop today, only with more honey and less or no sugar? None of that
stuff (baklava, halva etc) needs New World ingredients or technologies
unknown to the Pharaohs. Wheat varieties from 2000 years ago should
make flaky pastry with no problem.

But we don't seem to have almond/egg/sugar macaroons cited, at least
in English, before 1611, which would leave a 1000-year uncertainty
about when any association with St Macarius might have been made.

Anybody know of any evidence of a cult of St Macarius? Churches
dedicated to him? - the statues and paintings round the walls would
presumably leave you feeling itchy and hungry at the same time.

========> Email to "j-c" at this site; email to "bogus" will bounce <========
Jack Campin: 11 Third Street, Newtongrange, Midlothian EH22 4PU; 0131 6604760
<http://www.purr.demon.co.uk/purrhome.html> food intolerance data & recipes,
Mac logic fonts, Scots traditional music files and CD-ROMs of Scottish music.

I don't know why we couldn't form our own cult of St. Macarius---he was
the patron of sweet makers and chefs. Maybe we should have a group fast
the day before and eat celery dipped in brine, then go wild with the
baklava at midnight.

"bogus address" > wrote in message
...

> Anybody know of any evidence of a cult of St Macarius? Churches
> dedicated to him? - the statues and paintings round the walls would
> presumably leave you feeling itchy and hungry at the same time.

Here's what Google fetches up:
http://tinyurl.com/3alw6

One particularly promising link:
http://www.geocities.com/NapaValley/..._macarius.html

<quote>

St. Macarius : Patron saint of cooks, confectioners and pastry chefs

AKA : Macarius of Alexandria

</quote>

http://www.catholic.org/saints/stindex.php?lst=M lists eight Macarii:

St. Macarius
St. Macarius
St. Macarius
St. Macarius & Julian
St. Macarius of Jerusalem
St. Macarius the Ghent
St. Macarius the Great
St. Macarius the Wonder-Worker

--
Bob
Kanyak's Doghouse
http://kanyak.com

"Patrick Porter" > wrote in message
...
> I don't know why we couldn't form our own cult of St. Macarius---he was
> the patron of sweet makers and chefs. Maybe we should have a group fast
> the day before and eat celery dipped in brine, then go wild with the
> baklava at midnight.

Potential problem: This is the global internet. At any given hour it's
midnight *somewhere* in the world.

--
Bob
Kanyak's Doghouse
http://kanyak.com

In article >,
"Opinicus" > wrote:

> "Patrick Porter" > wrote in message
> ...
> > I don't know why we couldn't form our own cult of St. Macarius---he was
> > the patron of sweet makers and chefs. Maybe we should have a group fast
> > the day before and eat celery dipped in brine, then go wild with the
> > baklava at midnight.
>
> Potential problem: This is the global internet. At any given hour it's
> midnight *somewhere* in the world.

Why is that a problem?

--
Remove NOSPAM to email
Also remove .invalid
www.daviddfriedman.com

"David Friedman" > wrote in message
news:ddfr-A75F31.22093713012004@sea-
> > > the day before and eat celery dipped in brine, then go wild with the
> > > baklava at midnight.
> > Potential problem: This is the global internet. At any given hour it's
> > midnight *somewhere* in the world.
> Why is that a problem?

We'd have to "go wild with the baklava" at one-hour intervals 24 times.

(Of course for some people this might not be a problem.)
;-)

--
Bob
Kanyak's Doghouse
http://kanyak.com

David Friedman wrote:
>
> In article >,
> "Opinicus" > wrote:
>
> > "Patrick Porter" > wrote in message
> > ...
> > > I don't know why we couldn't form our own cult of St. Macarius---he was
> > > the patron of sweet makers and chefs. Maybe we should have a group fast
> > > the day before and eat celery dipped in brine, then go wild with the
> > > baklava at midnight.
> >
> > Potential problem: This is the global internet. At any given hour it's
> > midnight *somewhere* in the world.
>
> Why is that a problem?

No problem at all - carte blanche to party 24 hours a day, I thought!



--
Kate XXXXXX
Lady Catherine, Wardrobe Mistress of the Chocolate Buttons
http://www.diceyhome.free-online.co.uk
Click on Kate's Pages and explore!

Allright then---next January 2 I will post a reminder, and there can be
twenty four hour global liberty with macaroons and baklava etc. in
honour of this venerable holy. We can make this a global festival event:
parade floats covered with tends of thousands of macaroons; marching
bands paved over with dates and almonds and pistachios. It'll be great.

Patrick Porter wrote:
>
> Allright then---next January 2 I will post a reminder, and there can be
> twenty four hour global liberty with macaroons and baklava etc. in
> honour of this venerable holy. We can make this a global festival event:
> parade floats covered with tends of thousands of macaroons; marching
> bands paved over with dates and almonds and pistachios. It'll be great.

I will post my wonderful almond macaroon recipe for folk to try. In
swap, I'd like a coconut one! I like those big squashy coconut
macaroons, but they are very different from our traditional ones. I see
I shall have to make traditional ice cream to go with the macaroons, to
use up all the egg yolks!
--
Kate XXXXXX
Lady Catherine, Wardrobe Mistress of the Chocolate Buttons
http://www.diceyhome.free-online.co.uk
Click on Kate's Pages and explore!