We all know what a macaron is, a kind of small sandwich that comes together through a ganache of different flavors. What is not so well known is that its origin dates back to the 16th century and that at that time they were small sweets made of almonds and egg white. It was not until the 19th century that a well-known French confectioner joined two of those sweets, sealing them with a cream. Today it is one of the most popular French sweets in the world.
Macarons are also considered a typical Italian sweet and in fact there is a difference in the way they are made between those made in France and those from the transalpine country.
Making macarons is not complicated but exact measurements are required. The following recipe never fails as long as the indications and the indicated measures are followed. All ingredients must be measured with a scale, it is important.
INGREDIENTS :
- 205 grams (7.23 oz) of icing sugar
- 95 grams (3.35 oz) of almond flour
- 75 grams (2.65 oz) of egg white (obtained from 2 or 3 eggs)
- 50 grams (1.8 oz) of dark chocolate at 70% minimum
- 50 ml (1/4 cup) of liquid cream for cooking or for whipping (with more fat)
- Colorant to simulate chocolate color or chocolate powder (a tablespoon of the second, approximately, and for the colorant see the manufacturer's instructions)
- Lemon juice
- Salt
First, we mix 155 grams (5.46 oz) of icing sugar and the ground almonds, previously sifted (we will use the other 50 grams (1.8 oz) of icing sugar to make the meringue).
Then we mount the egg whites with the rods. To make them firm before you add a pinch of salt and a few drops of lemon juice. We must add the icing sugar (50 grams/1.8 oz) to the whipped egg whites little by little, without stopping beating.
Once we have the meringue very firm, we add the mixture of icing sugar and ground almonds that we had made at the beginning. Mix well, moving from top to bottom until everything is well homogeneous. It is time to add the tablespoon of chocolate powder or food coloring.
Now we are going to load this mixture, which will form the two cookies of the macaron, in a pastry bag with a wide nozzle. We place a baking paper on the oven plate and on top of it we are placing the cookie dough with the help of the sleeve, sufficiently separated from each other and trying to make them the same size.
Let them rest in the air for about 1 hour. While we preheat the oven to 150 degrees (302 F).
Once the resting time has elapsed, we bake them for 20 minutes. Once the baking time has elapsed, we extract them and let them cool completely before taking them off the paper. Be careful that they are not too baked, as you already know that each oven is a world. If you see that they are browning too much, remove them even if the 20 minutes have not elapsed.
While they are baking it is time to make the ganache. The ganache is a mixture of hot cream with chocolate, in equal parts. The resulting cream will be used to bind the cookies.
In a saucepan, pour the cream and heat it, avoiding it to boil at all times. Add the dark chocolate cut into pieces and melt completely into the cream. Let it cold down.
Now comes the magic moment, the one in which we join the two cookies with the ganache. Worth the effort.