French Macaron Recipe
Ingredients
4 oz powdered sugar
2 oz almond flour
2 oz egg whites aged overnight in the fridge and brought to room
temperature
1 pinch salt
granulated sugar
1/8 tsp cream of tartar
1drop gel food coloring
0.5 tsp vanilla extract
Buttercream
2.5 ounces powdered sugar sifted
1 ounce pasteurized egg whites
pinch salt
0.25 teaspoon vanilla
2.5 ounces unsalted butter
Instructions
For Macarons
In 300ºF and line a 0.5 baking sheet with the macaron template and
parchment paper or use a silicone macaron mat with built in template
Sift together the powdered sugar, salt, and almond flour, twice if not
blended.
Pulse the mixture in a food processor 8-10 times to make the almond
flour mixture even finer and texture and to blend the ingredients
together.
Whip the egg whites on low to frothy consistency and slowly add the
sugar in thirds while mixing on low.
Once the egg whites turn white and you can see some lines forming in
the surface from the whisk, add cream of tartar, whipping on medium
until soft glossy peaks form.
Add the vanilla to the meringue during
the soft peak stage. Then continue whipping on medium-high until
you get stiff but shiny peaks that start gathering and bunching on the
inside of the whisk.
Add 1/3 of your almond mixture to the meringue. Fold your spatula
under the batter and around the edges and then cut through the
center until almond flour is mixed in. Continue with the rest of the
almond flour and folding until homogenous.
Gently press the spatula on top of the batter while you turn the bowl
to take out some fo the air from the meringue. Continue folding
around the outside edge until the batter forms a ribbon and moves
like lava.
Your meringue is ready when it forms a ribbon off the spatula and the
batter that settles almost dissolves all the way back into the rest of
the batter but still leave a bit of a line.
Place parchment paper onto your sheet pan. Pipe small rounds about
1" in diameter.
Drop the pan onto the table 5-6 times from about 5" above the table to
release bubbles. Use a toothpick to remove big pockets of air trapped
under the surface. Use a very small amount of water on your fingertip
to smooth any rough spots.
Allow them to dry, uncovered until a crust forms on the surface. About
20-70 minutes or until a dry film develops over the surface of the
cookie. For humid areas put a space heater nearby to help dry the
cookies faster.
Bake at 290ºF for about 15-20 minutes or until lightly browned.
Smaller cookies will bake in 10 minutes, larger cookies will need to
bake longer. If not quite baked, bake for an additional 1 minute.
Cooled cookies should pull away from the parchment paper without
sticking. If they do stick, they were not baked enough.
Let cool fully before removing from the parchment and filling with
buttercream. Cookies can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 6
days. Shells can be frozen for 6 months in an airtight container.
For the buttercream
Place egg white, powdered sugar and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer
and whip on high for 5 minutes. Then add in softened butter and
vanilla and whip until light and creamy.
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