Mmmm.. the sinfully sweet French Macaron! Perfect for tea parties and sweet tooths! Often recognized as the hardest cookie to make. To that I say, pah! We can do it!!
I love making these for special occassions. They are a workout to make, especially if you are poor like me and have no KitchenAid stand mixer {sob}, but after much study and trial and error, I have come up with a fairly fool-proof plan to make these adorable little treats!
You will need:
3 egg whites, room temperature
1/4 cup of white sugar
2 cups of confectioner's sugar
1 cup of almond flour
A pinch of salt
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
Food coloring of choice
Now, I am not an excellent food-blogger yet so I have no step-by-step photos. I know... this seems pointless. But trust me. You can do it!! And when I make these again for my sister's graduation next month, I will remember to take those darned in-between photos!
Preheat your oven to 300 degrees. If you did not set your eggs out ahead of time, you can place them in a bowl of warm water for 5 to 10 minutes to bring them up to room temperature. Once that's done, seperate the three egg whites into a mixing bowl and beat until foamy.
Next add salt, cream of tartat and white sugar. Beat 10 to 15 minutes until shiny and stiff peak forms.
To check for a "stiff peak" you simply run your beater around the batter a few times and lift straight up. Flip it upside down so the batter is pointing at the ceiling. If the point of your batter flops over, it's not stiff!
Once you've achieved a stiff peak, add in food coloring. My tip you be to add more than you think you need because the color will dull upon baking.
In a seperate bowl, sift almond flour and and confectioner's sugar. Discard the lumps. If you do not have a sifter, run your almond flour and confectioner's sugar through a food processor thouroughly.
Fold the flour/sugar mixture into the egg white batter. For me, it's usually about 80 turns.
Hello, biceps!
Transfer your batter to a a pastry bag and pipe out one inch rounds onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Pro-tip: Amazon sells some amazing little products that can help you with the sizing of your rounds. Or if you're like me, you can wing it and match up the sizes later.
Now you need to pick up your baking sheet and slam it down on the counter a few times. This will release any air bubbles inside the batter.
Now... LEAVE IT ALONE!! yep, you heard me. DON'T TOUCH IT. Let it sit for 20 minutes or so before putting it into the oven. The edges need to stiffen before baking.
Once the sides are nice and stiff to the touch, pop them in for 20 minutes, but keep an eye on them for the last five minutes or so. You don't want them turning brown.
They will be very delicate so be careful! Sandwhich them with whatever filling you like! I prefer just a simple buttercream.
Want a macaron?
Oui.
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