Ohh La La

Macarons 

Ingredients: 

Method: 

Preheat the oven to 170 degrees Celsius, and place your silicone Macaron mat onto a baking tray, or line two baking trays with baking paper. If you are using baking paper I would recommend drawing 2cm circles on the reverse side so when you are piping they are all the same size. 

Place the icing sugar, ground almonds and half of the egg whites into a bowl and mix until they form a thick paste. 

Next make a sugar syrup. To do this place the caster sugar and water into a pan on a medium temperature, and heat until all the sugar has melted. *Using a wet pastry brush you can wipe down sugar on the sides of the saucepan so they do not stick or burn. 

Once the sugar has melted, turn up the heat and boil until it become syrupy and reaches 115 degrees on a food thermometer. 













Meanwhile, in a large, clean bowl mix the other half of the egg whites until they reach medium stiff peaks. 

Now this is the tricky bit...Gradually add the sugar syrup into the egg whites whilst mixing, and try not to pour the syrup directly onto the whisk as this will splatter it around the edge of the bowl. Whisk the mixture until it becomes thick and shiny. *This part is crucial as if you do not get the mixture thick enough the Macarons will collapse. At this stage you can add any food colouring of your choice. 

Next add the meringue mixture to the almond and icing sugar paste, and stir gently until they are completely combined. 

Place the mixture into a piping bag, that has been prepare with a plain circle nozzle. If you are using baking paper you can use a small amount of the mixture on each of the corners to stick the paper to the baking tray. 

Pipe your Macarons until they just about reach the outside of your circles but leave enough room for them to spread a little in the next step. 

Once you have piped all of your circles you can tap the baking tray on a work surface a couple of times to remove any air bubbles, and to flatten any peaks left from piping. 

Leave the Macarons to stand for around 30 minutes to an hour to allow them to form a skin. You can test this by lightly touching one of them after 30 minutes to see if they still feel wet, or stick to your finger. 

Place in the oven for 12-15 minutes, or until firm. You will know they are done if they easily life off the mat or baking paper. Leave to cool. 

For the filling I just used whipped cream with a small amount of vanilla however, you could get creative and use a buttercream, a ganache or a jam to make these even more exciting! 

Place the whipped cream into a piping bag prepared with a star tip nozzle (I used my Wilton 2D) and pipe a small mount of cream onto one Macaroon, and sandwhich another on top using a gentle pressure. 

And there you have it, my delicious and delicate Macarons that are bound to impress any guests, or to even give as a gift. Happy Baking!