Macarons! A tiny almond based cookie that requires to be handled with lots of love and care. I’m not a big fan of them. My first memory eating one was in Paris when my sister and I decided to pay €25 for a box of 8 macarons. And i was disappointed. I guess I’m more of a gooey big brownie -person and a tiny cookie did not do it for me.
I’ve also always failed when trying to bake these time consuming sweets. My first time successfully presenting a properly baked, fully puffed and shiny batch was at Le Cordon Bleu. We made pistachio macarons to use as decorations for our moose cakes. What made me succeed? Following the recipe. Every single step. And paying great attention to the demonstration.
However, when baking these chocolate and coffee macarons I realised maybe I do like them after all. When browsing through Pinterest for recipe ideas I discovered the endless flavour combinations. Toasted hazelnut, salted caramel, strawberry cheesecake, pistachio - it all sounds SO good. And since I did succeed this time and my macaron confidence is boosted I’m here to tell you everything I’ve learned.
A pro tip for all my swedish readers is to listen to THIS episode of Bakpodden. They go through all the tip and tricks in depth to succeed with your baking.
Since I‘m not to familiar with macarons I decided to bake these chocolate ones from two different recipes with two different methods - using French and Italian merengue.
For the French method you make your meringue mixing egg whites and gradually adding the sugar until the meringue starts to firm up. Continue to whip until the meringue forms stiff peak. In portions ad your sieved dry ingredients to the merengue. Before baking the macarons they need to dry at room temperature for 30 minutes or until they form a skin. This will help them puff in the oven.
The method I preferred is the Italian one. Probably because I made 20 batches of Italian merengue this weekend for ordered easter cakes. I’m comfortable with this method and the result turned out so much better - lesson learned? Go with the method you vibe with and you’ll do great.
- read the recipe carefully
- make sure you weigh your ingredients properly
- do not! by any chance! let water or fat come in contact with your meringue
- do not over bake your macaroons, they are done when you can touch them without them breaking
Recipe: (Chocolate macaroons)
1. Sieve the dry ingredients twice. I sieved them on a baking paper once and them sieved them all into a bowl
2. Ad your 55 grams of egg whites to the dry ingredients and combine until it creates a paste
3. Start foaming the other 55 grams of egg whites in a free standing mixer
4. Cook water and sugar in a pan until it reaches 120 degrees C
5. Pour the sugar syrup to the egg white foam while mixing on slow speed
6. Increase speed and mix until the merengue is glossy and stiff peak
7. Ad portions of the merengue to the paste and fold the two together until it reaches the right consistency - you want it to flow with a honey like consistency and be able to draw the number 8 with the batter without it breaking.
8. Pipe your macaroons on a tray with baking paper and bake in the middle of the oven for 14-18 minutes
Recipe: (Chocolate and coffee ganache)
20 g freshly ground coffee beans
1. Warm the double cream up in a pan
2. Melt the chocolate in a banmarie
3. Gradually ad the warm cream to the chocolate while stirring
4. Ad the sieved ground coffee
5. Cool down on a tray in room temperature until it becomes a Nutella like consistency
6. Time to pipe your macaroons
These macaroons were something extra! So good! Happy baking!
