3 Macaron Recipes Every Girl Needs To Try Baking With Her Girlfriends
Macarons get such bad press about being difficult to make. While these delicate and finicky sandwich cookies may not be the easiest thing to make, the experience of baking a set of them could bring about a lot of fun.
Now, there are a ton of macaron recipes on the Internet claiming to be the easiest recipe of them all. Entering a Google search and witnessing tons of listicles rolling out could be a little overwhelming, making it harder to settle for one easy recipe for you to master.
We have narrowed down to three fun recipes that we think you will love. To make your baking experience a lot more fun, gather your girlfriends on a lovely sunny Saturday for a bonding baking session. Read on to find out more!
#1 STRAWBERRY MACARON
For the macarons:
150g almond flour
146g powdered sugar
104g egg whites
174g sugar
1g pink gel food colouring
Sift the almond flour mixture and powdered sugar through a fine-mesh sieve into a large bowl. Add in 54g of egg whites in sections and whisk to combine into a thick paste.
Add in sugar to a pot of water and heat it to 120°C. Stir the sugar until it dissolves, being careful not to splash over the sides of the pot.
In a separate large bowl, whisk 60g of egg whites until it starts to get slightly foamy. Slowly pour the syrup between the bowl and the whisk. Continue whipping for about 8-10 minutes and until the bowl is cool to the touch.
The meringue will be stiff, but a whisk dipped into the meringue and lifted will have a peak that slightly bends.
Next, fold the whipped meringue into the almond mixture, in 3 additions. Continue folding until the mixture falls off the whisk like lava, forming a thick ribbon, that you can draw a number 8 with.
Add it a dollop of pink gel food colouring. Mix well to combine but remember to not over-whip.
Now, fill the prepared piping bag with the macaron batter. Pipe the macarons onto the prepared parchment lined baking sheet by pressing out 1.5-inch circles about 1 inch apart. Rap the sheet against the counter 5-10 times to remove any large bubbles.
Place the baking sheets into a preheated to 160°C oven. Bake for 12 minutes.
For the strawberry buttercream:
2 whole strawberries
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ cups unsalted butter, room temperature
1-½ cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons milk or cream
For the filling, pulse strawberries with vanilla extract in a food processor until pulped and slightly chunky. Add in butter and process until smooth and combined.
Add in powdered sugar by 1/2-cupfuls and pulse until fluffy and all elements are evenly distributed.
Pour in milk and continue to pulse, using a rubber spatula to stir at intervals to aid in blending, until it is combined well and a smooth fluffy frosting results.
To assemble, when macarons are completely cooled, pipe or spoon filling onto one macaroon and pair up with a similar-sized one to top.
#2 CHOCOLATE ESPRESSO MACARON
For the macarons:
1 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup almond flour
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon fine salt
2 large egg whites, at room temperature
5 tablespoons granulated sugar
Line a baking sheet with high-quality parchment paper. Fit a large pastry bag with a 1/2-inch plain tip.
Combine the powdered sugar, almond flour, cocoa powder, and salt in a food processor. Pulse several times to combine. Continue to process until the mixture is very fine, about 30 seconds. Sift with a fine strainer into a large bowl.
Place the egg whites in the clean bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat until fluffy and white, about 1 to 2 minutes. Gradually add the sugar and continue beating until stiff shiny peaks form, about 1 to 2 minutes more. Do not overwhip.
Fold the dry ingredients into the egg whites in three separate additions. Do not overmix. Fold just until there are no large lumps or white streaks left.
Transfer the batter to the pastry bag. Pipe out 1 1/4-inch round about 1-inch apart onto the baking sheet. Rap the sheets against the counter until the macaron surfaces become flatter, helping to create the foot. Let the rounds sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes, or until a matte skin forms on top of the macarons and they are no longer sticky to the touch. Meanwhile, arrange an oven rack to the middle position and preheat the oven to 180°C.
Bake for about 14 minutes, or until the macarons are smooth, firm, and dry with "feet," rotating the sheet halfway through. Do not overbake. Transfer the sheet to a cooling rack and cool completely.
For the ganache:
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 teaspoon espresso powder
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature and cut into chunks
Place the chocolate and espresso powder in a large bowl. Heat the cream in a small saucepan over medium heat until it just comes to a boil.
Pour the hot cream over the chocolate. Let stand for one minute then add the butter and stir the mixture until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth.
Chill the ganache until it is firmed but still spreadable, about 30 minutes.
#3 Raspberry MACARON
For the macarons:
10g freeze-dried raspberries
100g almond flour
100g powdered sugar
70g egg whites
50g sugar
Red gel food colouring
In a medium bowl, sift together almond flour, powdered sugar and 3 tablespoons of powdered raspberries.
In a large mixing bowl with whisk attachment, beat the egg whites on medium speed until foamy. Slowly add sugar one tablespoon at a time. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat until hard peaks form.
Add food colouring and beat on medium speed for one more minute.
Sift the almond flour mixture over the whipped egg whites. Gently fold the mixture running the spatula clockwise from the bottom, up around the sides and cut the batter in half.
Transfer the batter into a pastry bag with a round tip. Pipe out 1-inch rounds about an inch apart on two baking sheets lined with parchment paper.
Tap the baking sheets firmly on the counter a few times to get rid of any air bubbles. Let the macarons rest and dry for 15-30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 150°C. Bake the macarons for 18-20 minutes.
For white chocolate raspberry buttercream:
80g unsalted butter
50g powdered sugar
60g white chocolate
5g freeze-dried raspberry powder
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Pinch of salt
In a mixing bowl with whisk attachment, beat the butter and powdered sugar until fluffy, about 2 minutes.
Melt the white chocolate chips in microwave according to package directions. Add the melted white chocolate, raspberry powder, lemon juice and pinch of salt to the whipped butter mixture. Beat until the filling is smooth and well combined.
Found the perfect recipe for you and your girl gang to try out? Share this post with them, pronto!
Photo Source: Little Red Book
Text By: GirlStyle Singapore
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