French Macarons

Whenever I have to pull cookies or anything warm from the oven, it always reminds me of my Biochemistry Lab Undergrad days with my lifelong lab partner Ms. Christine Vu. I could never hold test tubes, or anything for that matter, right out of the heated water bath without tongs because my skin was always so sensitive. Christine on the other hand would just pick it right up with her bare, glove covered hands. That was an on going thing for us for about 2.5 years. Ah, memories.

If Christine saw me now handling the hot hot hot cookies/cakes/cupcakes from their pans without even flinching, she would be very proud of her Noey. Although I still use oven mittens when removing anything from the oven. I'm not THAT crazy... lol.

Anywho...

I'm a baker that doesn't like to eat what I bake.
Is that weird?
I don't think so.

Ok, maybe it is a little bit.

My lovely cousin Dee has been craving french macarons. Surprisingly, I've never made them for my family. So I took it upon myself to try Miette's recipe from their cookbook.

DISCLAIMER These popular sandwiches are not too difficult to make although the instructions may suggest otherwise. I promise once you're through with making both types of macarons you'll have an appreciation as to why they charge so darn much for them :)

Parisian Macarons
makes eighteen 1-inch sandwich cookies

ingredients
1.5 C (7.5 oz) whole almonds, with skins
2.25 C (10 oz) powdered sugar
3 Large egg whites
1.5 tsp cream of tartar

1. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper. Use a 1.5-inch bottle cap as a template, draw 1-inch circles in rows on the paper, about 1 inch apart. You should have room for eighteen circles on each sheet.

2. Place half the almonds and half of the powdered sugar in a food processor. Process for 30 seconds, until the almonds are finely ground. Pour the mixture into a separate bowl, and repeat the process with the remaining almonds and powdered sugar. Set aside.

3. In the bowl of a stand mixer, or with a hand mixer, fitted with whisk attachment, combine the egg whites and cream of tartar and whisk on high speed until very stiff peaks form, 3 to 4 minutes.

4. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold about one-third of the almond mixture into the egg whites. Fold in the remaining mixture in two more additions, just until the ingredients are completely combined.

5. Fit a pastry bag with a medium (1/2- or 5/8 inch) round tip, or any size/shape tip you want, and fill the bag with the meringue. Pull up the cuff and twist it to seal and tighten the meringue down into the cone. Purge the bag of air bubbles by squeezing the bag until there is a burst of air and meringue sputters out of the bag. Keep the bag tightly twisted so that the meringue doesn't come back up on your hands. Using the template as a guide, pipe 1-inch circles, 1/2 to 3/4 inch high, onto the baking sheets. Set the baking sheets aside in a protected area and let the cookies stand at room temperature for 2 hours 1 hour. This allows the macarons to develop their distinctive crust and a "foot" or base on the bottom.

6. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

7. Bake the macarons until set but not browned, 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer the baking sheets to wire racks and let the macarons cool completely on the pans. When they are cool, use your fingers to carefully lift half of the cookies from the parchment and turn them upside down. Using a pastry bag fitted with a medium (1/2- or 5/8-inch) round tip and filled with either the buttercream or ganache, squeeze a nickle-size dollop of filling onto each of the upside-down cookies , and then top with the remaining macarons to complete the sandwich cookies.

8. Store the macarons in airtight containers for up to 2 weeks.



Original Recipe
taken from Bakerella

Ingredients
For the shells:
90 gr egg whites (roughly 3 egg whites)
25 gr to 50gr (2 Tb to 1/4 cup) granulated sugar
200 gr ( 1.5 cups + 2Tb) powdered sugar
110 gr almonds ( 3/4 cup) (slivered, blanched, sliced, whatever you like)

Prep the eggs: 48 hrs in advance, separate the whites from the yolks and place the whites in a super clean bowl. Leave at room temp, uncovered or loosely covered with a towel at least 24 hrs. Refrigerate after that if desired. You can use eggs that have been “aging” for up to 5 days. This doesn't really work for me, mainly because I'm impatient so I use fresh eggs and it works fine.

Prepare the macarons:
Place the powdered sugar and almonds in a food processor and give them a good pulse until the nuts are finely ground. Sift a couple of time to remove bits and pieces. Regrind if necessary. You can also use a coffee grinder for the nuts. Once your nuts and powdered sugar are mixed together, rub them in between your fingertips to break the bigger pieces.

In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the egg whites to a foam, (think bubble bath foam) gradually add the sugar until you obtain a glossy meringue (think shaving cream). Do not overbeat your meringue or it will be too dry.

Add the nuts and powdered sugar to the meringue, give it a quick fold to break some of the air and then fold the mass carefully until you obtain a batter that falls back on itself after counting to 10. Give quick strokes at first to break the mass and slow down. The whole process should not take more than 50 strokes. Test a small amount on a plate: if the tops flattens on its own you are good to go. If there is a small beak, give the batter a couple of turns.

Fill a pastry bag fitted with a plain tip (Ateco #807 or #809) with the batter and pipe small rounds (1.5 inches in diameter) onto parchment paper or silicone mats lined baking sheets. Let the macarons sit out for 30 minutes to an hour to harden their shells a bit.

If using convection: preheat the oven to 280F. If using regular electric or gas, preheat the oven to 300F. When ready, bake for 18 to 20 minutes, depending on their size. Let cool.

Prepare the ganache:
1/2 cup heavy cream
8 oz semi-sweet chocolate morsels.

Heat the cream in a small pot until just before boiling. Place morsels in a medium bowl and pour cream over. Let sit for a few seconds and then stir until smooth. Let cool slightly and spoon a small amount on the bottom of a macaron and then sandwich with another cookie.

xoxo,
Noeybakes