It’s “MacarON” not “MacarOON”!

While I have been in love with France for most of my life, I did not taste the magical macaron until about 10 years ago. It was life changing. So delicate and delicious. Only France would produce such a sophisticated dessert. Also, only France would have a dessert that is so delicate that the dessert’s success depends on humidity levels and the perfect amount of mixing (varies every time!). Of course this high maintenance lady would be obsessed with a high maintenance dessert!  

As soon as we determined December would be cookie month, I knew I would try my hand at this magical dessert. My friend, Suzanne, and I took a macaron cooking demonstration class at The Kitchen Conservatory put on by the ladies of The Tipsy Goat. We had the best macarons at that glass! My favorite was the red wine ganache. Exquisite. I used their basic shell recipe for two of my macaron batches. My first batch was for my family’s annual chili dinner where we collect gifts for a family in need. I co-hosted with my Aunt Theresa, and decided this would be my opportunity to try my hand at macarons! I used the basic vanilla shell and then filled the macaron with two types of butter cream: vanilla and peppermint. I then decorated with some edible glitter. I only had one Siltpat, so I used parchment paper for the second pan. For some reason, the shells on the parchment paper spread a bit while the shells on the Siltpat stayed true to size and looked like a classic macaron. Wow. These were amazing. My parents said it was their favorite challenge yet!  

My macarons were such a hit that my mom asked me to make them for Christmas Eve! Her requests were for a pistachio cherry mascarpone macaron (could not find cherry oil or even cherry extract, so I used almond extract and beetroot food coloring) and a chocolate ganache. She even let me borrow her magazine with the recipes! I dedicated the day before Christmas Eve to making macarons and cleaning the house since we were to host Christmas Day Brunch. We had just gotten some snow, and this was when I realized how much humidity made a difference. The first time I made macarons was a very dry period, and the shells only took about 15 minutes to dry. In total, I would say it took me less than 2 hours to make the shells. Well, on this snowy day, it took 7 hours to make the cookies. The first batch took about two hours to dry, and I was getting pressed for time as we had plans to see “The Last Jedi” with Dan and Srishti that night, after an hour of drying I had to bake them even though they were not fully dry. The result? Cookies that formed feet (yay!) but were relatively hollow and stuck to the Siltpats (boo!). However, they tasted amazing. My mom said they were better than our favorite pastry shop in St. Louis. I was flattered but disagreed.

Lessons Learned: 1. Don’t make macarons when it is humid outside. 2. Don’t rush it. In a pinch for time? Macarons are NOT in the cards for you. 3. Use silicone mats for all of your macaron baking 4. Don’t stress if they are not perfect. They will still taste amazing. The Tipsy Goat folks are professional pastry chefs, and they said they have had to throw batches out. 5. Have fun! Ingredients: Basic Macaron Shell: * 4 oz almond flour * 8 oz powdered sugar * 1/4 tsp salt * 4 egg whites (important that they are at room temperature) * 1/4 cup sugar (I used caster sugar aka really fine sugar. Mary Berry uses caster sugar) * 1 tsp vanilla extract * Optional: Gel food coloring (I did use food coloring in my basic shells) Pistachio Shell: * 3 large egg whites at room temperature * 1 cup roasted salted pistachios * 2 cups confectioners sugar * 2 TB sugar (I used caster sugar here, too) * Leaf green gel food coloring Buttercream: * 4 oz softened butter * 8 oz powdered sugar * 1/4 tsp salt * 1/2 tsp vanilla ( For peppermint, do half peppermint and half vanilla. Add more peppermint to your liking) * 1 TB heavy cream Almond Mascarpone: * 8 oz mascarpone cheese * 1 tsp confectioners sugar * Several drops of almond extract. Add more or less to your liking. * Several drops of beetroot food coloring - add until you get the color you desire. Dark Chocolate Ganache: * 1/2 cup heaving whipping cream * 1/2 cup dark chocolate morsels Directions Basic Shell: * Place Siltpat mats on cookie sheets * Sift almond flour, powdered sugar, and salt in a large mixing bowl * Whisk egg whites on medium speed using an electric mixer until foamy * Slowly add in sugar as the egg whites continue to whisk. * Whisk on high speed until soft peaks form (egg whites flop over when whisk is held right side up). This is when you add in the vanilla. * Continue whisking until stiff peaks form (egg whites stand straight up when whisk is held right side up) * Pour egg whites into dry mixture * Fold mixtures together making sure to “smoosh” the mixture after each round of folding. * Once the mixture becomes a batter you will need to start testing to see if it is ready: scoop some batter on the spatula and batter should fall in ribbons back into the bowl. After 10 seconds the ribbon should meld back into the batter but show its outline. I test after each “fold and smoosh” at this point until I pass the test! * Once the batter is ready you will need to fill a piping bag with a large round tip with the batter. * If using a Siltpat with macaron or cookie outlined, pipe the batter until it reaches the outline of the circle. If you have a plane mat, pipe until the circle is about 1.5 inches in diameter. Leave about 1.5 - 2 inches in between shells * Once the pans are filled, you will need to slam the pans down 5-7 times to get all of the air bubbles out. Pop any remaining bubbles with a tooth pick (I used a fork) * Leave the pans out for the shells to dry. You will know they are dry as they will form a “skin” on top and will be dry to touch. The time varies based on humidity. I would allow an hour to be safe, unless it’s humid - but you should not make them on a humid day! * Preheat oven to 300 degrees while the shells dry. * Bake dry shells for 15-18 minutes, turning the trays half way through. You will know they are done when the shells have formed “feet” and do not jiggle when the pan is gently wiggled. * Shells must dry completely before being removed from the mat. * You can fill as soon as they are cooled or store them in the refrigerator or freezer. * When ready to fill: match up shells that are similar in size. Pipe filling onto the bottom of one shell. Top with its match to form a macaron! Pistachio Shell: * Place Siltpat mats on cookie sheets * Pulse 1 TB confectioners sugar with the pistachios in a food processor until very fine ground. * Add remaining confectioners sugar until just combined. * Whisk egg whites on medium speed using an electric mixer until foamy * Slowly add in sugar as the egg whites continue to whisk. * Whisk on high speed until soft peaks form (egg whites flop over when whisk is held right side up). This is when you add in a few drops of the food coloring. The color lessens the more it is mixed, so continue to add food coloring until you get the desired color. * Continue whisking until stiff peaks form (egg whites stand straight up when whisk is held right side up) * Pour egg whites into dry mixture * Fold mixtures together making sure to “smoosh” the mixture after each round of folding. * Once the mixture becomes a batter you will need to start testing to see if it is ready: scoop some batter on the spatula and batter should fall in ribbons back into the bowl. After 10 seconds the ribbon should meld back into the batter but show its outline. I test after each “fold and smoosh” at this point until I pass the test! * Once the batter is ready you will need to fill a piping bag with a large round tip with the batter. * If using a Siltpat with macaron or cookie outlined, pipe the batter until it reaches the outline of the circle. If you have a plane mat, pipe until the circle is about 1.5 inches in diameter. Leave about 1.5 - 2 inches in between shells * Once the pans are filled, you will need to slam the pans down 5-7 times to get all of the air bubbles out. Pop any remaining bubbles with a tooth pick (I used a fork) * Leave the pans out for the shells to dry. You will know they are dry as they will form a “skin” on top and will be dry to touch. The time varies based on humidity. I would allow an hour to be safe, unless it’s humid - but you should not make them on a humid day! * Preheat oven to 275 degrees while the shells dry. * Bake dry shells for 15 minutes. You will know they are done when the shells have formed “feet” and do not jiggle when the pan is gently wiggled. * Shells must dry completely before being removed from the mat. * You can fill as soon as they are cooled or store them in the refrigerator or freezer. * When ready to fill: match up shells that are similar in size. Pipe filling onto the bottom of one shell. Top with its match to form a macaron! Buttercream Icing: * Beat butter in an electric mixer until light and fluffy * Slowly beat in the rest of the ingredients until fluffy Almond Mascarpone: * Combine Mascarpone and sugar until well mixed. * Add almond extract and continue to mix until desired taste. Let the mixture sit out for a bit to warm up the filling to make it easier to pipe. Dark Chocolate Ganache: * Combine cream and chocolate in a double boiler until chocolate has melted and well combined with the cream. * Remove from heat and place in refrigerator until cool enough to pipe. Recipes courtesy of The Kitchen Conservatory and “Teatime” magazine.