More macarons

Earlier in the week I made some macarons in three different colours and flavours. I made some blue, green and yellow ones filled with homemade lemon curd, dark chocolate ganache and a white chocolate - raspberry ganache. The majority of them went off to a friend, but I put some aside for today's celebrations -> my son Tiger's 7th birthday! The recipe is the same as for the pink macarons.

This time I was a little absent minded, so I forgot to take pictures of the blue and the yellow macarons, but I did manage to remember to take a few snaps of the green batch!:)

Pale green macarons with a white chocolate center

Macaron shells drying

Fillings:

Lemon curd 

100ml lemon juice
zest of 2 lemons (unwaxed)
3 egg yolks
80grams granulated sugar
80grams gelling sugar

+50grams butter (cubed and at room temperature)

Place all ingredients apart from the butter in a non stick saucepan, bring to boil while stirring constantly (I used a plastic whisk). Once the mixture is boiling, let it simmer on a low heat until thickened approx. 5 mins. Pour the hot liquid into a bowl and place the bowl in cold water. Using an electric whisk, whisk until fluffy. Continue mixing on a low speed while adding the butter pieces little at a time until butter is fully incorporated and the curd looks pale and shiny. Store in a clean jar in the refrigerator up to two weeks.

Dark chocolate ganache 

100grams good quality dark chocolate
80ml double cream (full fat 35%)

White chocolate - raspberry ganache

80grams raspberry - white chocolate (organic and fairtrade by Pirkka)
70grams white chocolate
100ml double cream (full fat 35%)


   
For the ganaches you need to bring the cream to the boil and pour it on top of the finely chopped chocolate, carefully mixing with a spatula until smooth and silky. If the mixtures seem runny, place to cool in the fridge until suitable consistency is reached. I speeded things up by mixing the dark chocolate ganache with an electric whisk, once it had cooled in the fridge for some 30 minutes. It became a little lighter in colour, but much easier to pipe on to the macaron shells.

Enjoy!

Pink macarons - Rosa macarons

My sister Sara wanted to surprise her friend with something sweet for her birthday, so she asked me if I could show her how to make macarons. I have baked macarons a couple of times before, but I never really can tell whether the outcome will be a success or not. The macaron only has a couple of ingredients and is simple in theory, but it requires a little patience, correct measuring and a bit of time. This recipe yields about 30 macarons (if they all come out good). Always use a kitchen scales for measuring the ingredients.
We decided to make these macarons pink, both shells and filling.

Recipe for the macaron shells:

100gr egg whites (approx. 3 egg whites)
110gr ground almonds
200gr icing sugar
25gr caster sugar/granulated sugar
(food colouring if desired)

I normally use regular large sized eggs and separate the yolk and white well in advance, preferably 24h before use. If you are pressed for time or want an easier way out (and don't mind the cost) shops in Finland now also sell egg whites in a tetra pak. This is a handy option, especially if you don't intend to use the yolk in cooking or baking and are reluctant to chuck them. (waste not want not ;))

Egg whites ready to use

 



Start by separating the egg whites, covered with cling film in the fridge well ahead (or 24h before baking). I had these shop bought egg whites, so I only needed to measure the whites and leave them to get to room temperature for a couple of hours.

Use the kitchen scales and measure the other ingredients. Sieve the icing sugar and ground almonds separately. I had Sallinens ground almonds, and I have to say that they were pretty coarsely ground so I sieved the almonds maybe twice to get only the finest of the almond powder. Mix the icing sugar and almonds together in a bowl and set aside. Start by whisking the egg whites and add a little of the caster sugar. While whisking the whites keep adding the sugar little by little until properly mixed. Add colour at this stage if desired. Make sure not to whisk the whites too hard.
Carefully fold the almond/icing sugar in with the egg whites. The batter should be loose, but not runny. If it seems too hard, try to slowly mix it a little looser.
Transfer the batter into a piping bag and pipe the macarons on baking trays covered with parchment, to about the size of two euro coins. Tap the trays against the table to remove any air bubbles in the uncooked macarons.

Uncooked macarons drying on the tray.

Let the macarons rest approx. 30-60 minutes before baking.
Heat the oven to 140 degrees (centigrade). Bake the macarons in the middle of the oven for about 15 minutes. Cooking times may vary depending on the oven and consistency of the macarons. This usually works for me!:)
The macarons should not brown while baking, so if they do the oven might be too hot. Let the baked macarons cool completely before trying to remove them from the baking sheet.
I chose to fill these with a strawberry flavoured butter cream which I mixed with a little whipped cream to make it nice and smooth. Other fillings that I like using are, lemon curd (shop bought or home made) chocolate ganache, butter cream or jam.

Sweet pink macarons baked and filled and ready to go!

 

 

The macarons can be stored unfilled in an airtight container or frozen with or without filling.