I figured it out! The key(s) to making perfect French macarons every time. These are naturally gluten free, but they are not low sugar (I am working on that version)!
First, I'd like to mention that these are not "macarOOns." A macaroon is a cookie made with egg whites and shredded coconut, whereas a "macarOn" is a sandwich cookie made with egg whites and almond flour. The English pronunciation of macaron is still macaron... it doesn't become macaroon. Now that I got that out of the way...
THESE ARE MY FAVORITE TREATS OF ALL TIME. One time in France I literally ate 12-15 of them and then felt sick so then I drank a liter of water and then I couldn't eat dinner because I was full of sugar and water. So, beware. I'm just saying. My favorite flavor is most definitely raspberry. Every time I am in France I find a Paul and get one of their giant raspberry macarons. It is a must.
These are pretty pricey, ranging from $2-6 per cookie. But, I think they merit the price, as they are pretty labor intensive and require some precision and attention to detail. But don't let that scare you!! Once you get the hang of it you'll be churning these bad boys out left and right. Think of all the money you'll save by making them yourself (and all that packaging)! I recently made about 150 cookies for my friend's wedding, and they were a major hit! I made vanilla-almond, raspberry, lemon, and coffee.
Here, I will provide you with the base recipe and options for different flavor switches.
Tips:
- Make sure all equipment is sparkling clean. I mean spotless. Like Monica Geller obsessively clean. Like wash it with soap and hot water and then dump vinegar in your mixing bowl and wipe it with a fresh paper towel and then use that vinegar-soaked paper towel to wipe the whisk and the spatula and set them on a surface that has also been cleaned with vinegar. This is to make sure the egg whites whip properly.
- When you are separating egg white and egg yolk, do it in a separate bowl so that if you accidentally get some yolk into your egg white you don't have to throw away all of the egg whites, just the one that got contaminated with yolk. Again, this is so the egg whites whip properly.
- When I say sift the powdered sugar and almond flour mixture together twice, I mean it! Don't skimp on this, you will get lumpy batter and your cookies won't form properly.
- Make this on a dry day. If it is humid, close your windows and turn on a fan. During the step where you let the cookies rest to form a skin, let the fan blow on the cookies so that they dry out. If they don't form a skin, they won't form a proper pied, or foot. This is key to their aesthetic but also to their crispy outside and chewy insides.
- Use alcohol-based flavoring/ extract.
- Use gel food coloring.
- Use super fine almond flour (like Bob's Red Mill). If you don't have that, pulse it in a blender to grind it more finely.
- Get an oven thermometer if your oven is unreliable and unpredictable (like mine).
- Get a kitchen scale... these just won't work without weighing out the ingredients.
- Get an 18-inch reusable Wilton pastry piping bag with a #12 metal tip.
Cookie Ingredients:
- 4 ounces almond flour (super fine)
- 3.5 ounces granulated sugar
- 7 ounces powdered sugar
- pinch of cream of tartar
- 4 large (4.25 ounces) egg whites at room temperature
- 1 tsp alcohol flavoring
- gel food coloring
Method:
- Preheat oven to 288F. If you don't have a digital oven (I don't) just err on the side of 300 when you turn the dial between 250 and 300.
- Weigh out the almond flour, powdered sugar, granulated sugar, and egg whites in separate bowls.
- Sift the almond flour and powdered sugar together twice until no lumps remain and set aside.
- In a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, beat egg whites with cream of tartar on medium until frothy.
- Add granulated sugar and turn to high.
- Add alcohol flavoring and gel food coloring and beat until glossy stiff peaks form. To test if they are the correct consistency, turn off the mixer and lift the whisk out. Turn it upside down and if the egg white remains stiff enough to stand up straight without oozing back into itself, they are ready.
- Macaronage step. This is a fancy term for mixing the egg white mixture with the almond flour-powdered sugar mixture. Do this in 3 additions. I suggest watching a quick youtube tutorial.
- Once mixed together to the point where the batter ribbons off the spatula like hot lava, they are ready to be piped!
- Load the batter into a *reusable* piping bag with a #12 piping tip.
- Pipe the batter into 1.5 inch diameter circles. I usually count at a rhythm 1-2-3-UP 1-2-3-UP to go from one circle to the other.
- Once piped, bang the baking sheet on the counter hard 5 times, then rotate it 180 degrees and do it 5 more times to get any trapped air out of the cookies.
- Let rest for 15-30 minutes until a skin forms. You'll know they're ready when you touch them and the batter doesn't come off on your finger.
- Bake for 10-15 minutes, rotating once halfway to ensure even baking.
- Allow to cool for 10 minutes on the sheet before removing from paper and cooling completely on a wire rack before frosting and sandwiching.
Buttercream Filling Ingredients:
- 6 ounces butter
- 4 ounces powdered sugar
- 1-2 tsp alcohol flavoring*
- for coffee filling 1 tbsp instant coffee powder
Jam or Curd Filling Ingredients:
- 4 ounces salted butter
- 9 ounces powdered sugar
- 1 tsp alcohol flavoring
- 3-4 ounces jam or curd**
Method:
- Beat butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
- Add alcohol flavoring and/or jam or curd.
- Beat to combine.
- If too thick, add more butter or jam.
- If too thin, add more powdered sugar.
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