In America, the macaroon is known more as a chewy mound of shredded coconut which is lightly sweetened and held together by whipped egg whites, but there is another version, the French Macaroon. This is a dainty French cream filled sandwich cookie, which has a smooth outer appearance, is slightly chewy and absolutely chewy.
Serving macaroons in place of wedding cake is becoming the latest trend. They can be made in a variety of colors and flavors and look deliciously decadent on a dessert buffet table. Some brides even go so far as to stack them tall, so that they cake the place of a wedding cake.
It was a Parisian pastry chef, Pierre Desfontaines from café Laduree, who decided to take two humble, ordinary almond based cookies, filling them with chocolate ganache, thereby turning them into a tastefully textured thin, light crusty cookie filled with a silky smooth ganache or fruit gel. This cookie needed a new name worthy of it’s new birth, and is now known as the French Macaroon.
A delicious recipe follows.
9 oz. 250 g Almond flour
14 oz. 400 g Confectioner’s sugar
1 oz. 10 g Egg whites
7 oz. 200 g Egg whites (whipped)
4 oz. 80 g Granulated sugar
Sift the almond flour and confectioner’s sugar together.
Whip the 200 g egg whites to medium peaks. Slowly add the 80 g sugar and whip for about 10 minutes.
Fold the almond flour, confectioner’s sugar into the whipped egg whites. Add the other 10 grams of egg whites. Mix gently until shiny.
Pipe the mix with a plain tip 10 on a parchment line baking sheet. Bake on a double sheet pan in a 350 degree oven.
4 oz. 125 g Heavy cream
4 oz. 125 g Bailey’s Irish Cream
11 oz. 300 g White Chocolate
3 oz. 100 g Butter
1 oz. or 1 sheet gelatin, bloomed in 1 oz. 36 g cold water (sheet gelatin is used because there is a lot of liquid in this filling)
Boil the cream and incorporate the drained gelatin.
Pour in the white chocolate and the butter. Blend to get a smooth and shiny texture.
Add in the Bailey’s Irish Cream. Refrigerate until firm.
It is best to let the egg whites age in the refrigerator at least 1 day before use. This means leaving the egg whites uncovered in the refrigerator so as to allow moisture to evaporate. Before making the macaroons, let the aged egg whites come to room temperature.
Once the macaroons are piped, let them sit at room temperature 30 minutes before baking. This will also allow moisture to evaporate.
Once the macaroons come out of the oven, spritz water between the parchment paper and the sheet pan. This will facilitate loosening the macaroons.
See how the macaroons should look and what to avoid.
The top left macaroon does not have enough filling and the bottom left macaroon is too chunky.
The cookie-to-filling ratio should be between 1:1 and 2:1.
The filling should be smooth, firm (like ganache), light, and not sticky.
Filling should not squish out of the cookie nor should it leave much residue on your teeth.
The texture and surface of the cookie should be very smooth. Bumps show that the almond wasn't ground finely enough or wasn't sifted to take out the chunks. A chunky, lumpy macaroon does not have a smooth and silky mouth appeal.
The crust of the cookie should be thin to provide protection against the soft cookie layer underneath. Biting through the crust should be effortless.
The cookie's texture beneath the crust should be light, just a little chewy, and soft, but not so soft that it's mushy. It's okay if the cookie looks slightly "uncooked."
Make sure that the filling is not too sweet, as the cooking shell itself is very sweet. The filling should complement the sweetness of the shell.
Make the macaroons in a variety of attractive, eye appealing colors.
Posted on 12/10/2017 at 12:00 AM
