- Lower oven seems to be fine at 300. I think I found the sweet spot. Lower oven with silicon baking mats for 15 minutes.
- It seems my initial tendency is to slightly under macaronage, so they would be pretty tall and have nipples. Mixing slightly more seemed to eliminate this problem without introducing new problems..
Variations:
- 2015: Almond with almond buttercream
- 2106: Cinnamon cookie with cream cheese filling "Cinnamon Roll"
- 2017: Lemon and Raspberry with curd centers and cream cheese frosting.
- 2018: Milk chocolate. I experimented with putting cocoa into the shells. I subbed 1 oz of cocoa instead of powdered sugar (in a doubled recipe). They didn't look quite as tidy as the regular shells but were very delicious. And they took an extra minute or so to bake. On the next batch I just did regular shells with brown coloring and dusted with cocoa powder before they set.
- 2019: Mexican chocolate, pistachio raspberry white chocolate, vanilla
- 2020: chocolate caramel
- 2021: cherry chocolate ganache (sauteed frozen cherries with a little butter and sugar, once liquid reduced, blend with cream, and pour over chopped chocolate)
Notes on fillings:
- Curds: Used these recipes for lemon and raspberry. One batch of curd is more than enough to fill the centers of two batches of macarons.
Raspberry: I used two extra egg yolks to make it thicker
12 ounces frozen raspberries, completely thawed
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
3/4 evaporated cane juice (or granulated sugar)
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed grapefruit juice (or lemon juice)
6 large egg yolks
pinch of salt
In a medium, heavy bottomed saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the berries and any juices, sugar, grapefruit juice, egg yolks and salt. Cook over medium, stirring frequently and mashing the berries, until thickened, about 5-10 minutes. Strain through a sieve into a bowl, mashing the berries with a spoon. Discard the seeds and other solids. Give the curd in the bowl a stir, let cool slightly and press plastic wrap onto the surface. Cover and refrigerate until completely cooled.
Lemon
3 lemons
1 1/2 cups sugar (I only used 1 cup)
1/4 pound unsalted butter, room temperature
4 extra-large eggs
1/2 cup lemon juice (3 to 4 lemons)
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
Using a carrot peeler, remove the zest of 3 lemons, being careful to avoid the white pith. Put the zest in a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Add the sugar and pulse until the zest is very finely minced into the sugar.
Cream the butter and beat in the sugar and lemon mixture. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, and then add the lemon juice and salt. Mix until combined.
Pour the mixture into a 2 quart saucepan and cook over low heat until thickened (about 10 minutes), stirring constantly. The lemon curd will thicken at about 170 degrees F, or just below simmer. Remove from the heat and cool or refrigerate. I also strained it through sieve to remove pulp.
- Cream cheese frosting: I found this new recipe with heavy cream which I like better than the butter and powdered sugar variety. Very smooth and very sturdy to pipe (to keep fillings inside). One batch is about perfect for two batches of macarons.
3 1/2 ounces sugar (about 1/2 cup; 100g)
5 ounces heavy cream (shy 2/3 cup; 140g)
1 teaspoon (5g) vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt; for table salt, use about half as much by volume
8 ounces plain, full-fat cream cheese, cold (one 8-ounce brick; 225g)
1. With kitchen temperatures above 74°F (23°C), start by refrigerating the mixing bowl and sugar until they have cooled to 70°F (21°C). At elevated temperatures, these ingredients and equipment can act as a heat source to the cream, preventing full aeration.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, or using a hand mixer, combine sugar, cream, vanilla, and salt. Mix at medium-low speed until sugar is dissolved, about 2 minutes. Increase speed to high and continue beating until cream is about as thick as Greek yogurt, about 2 minutes longer. Begin adding cream cheese 2 tablespoons at a time; this should take about 30 seconds all together. Once it is incorporated, shut off the mixer. The frosting will look a bit curdled, like cottage cheese; this is the result of incomplete mixing rather than over-whipping, so don’t be alarmed.
3. Thoroughly scrape bowl and whisk, then continue whipping on high until frosting is smooth and light, with only a few small flecks of cream cheese (they will disappear into the frosting over time). This may take 2 to 3 minutes with a stand mixer, or more if using a hand mixer. After whipping, the frosting should be about 60°F (16°C). Use immediately or refrigerate until needed.
Notes on fillings:
- Curds: Used these recipes for lemon and raspberry. One batch of curd is more than enough to fill the centers of two batches of macarons.
Raspberry: I used two extra egg yolks to make it thicker
12 ounces frozen raspberries, completely thawed
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
3/4 evaporated cane juice (or granulated sugar)
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed grapefruit juice (or lemon juice)
6 large egg yolks
pinch of salt
In a medium, heavy bottomed saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the berries and any juices, sugar, grapefruit juice, egg yolks and salt. Cook over medium, stirring frequently and mashing the berries, until thickened, about 5-10 minutes. Strain through a sieve into a bowl, mashing the berries with a spoon. Discard the seeds and other solids. Give the curd in the bowl a stir, let cool slightly and press plastic wrap onto the surface. Cover and refrigerate until completely cooled.
Lemon
3 lemons
1 1/2 cups sugar (I only used 1 cup)
1/4 pound unsalted butter, room temperature
4 extra-large eggs
1/2 cup lemon juice (3 to 4 lemons)
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
Using a carrot peeler, remove the zest of 3 lemons, being careful to avoid the white pith. Put the zest in a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Add the sugar and pulse until the zest is very finely minced into the sugar.
Cream the butter and beat in the sugar and lemon mixture. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, and then add the lemon juice and salt. Mix until combined.
Pour the mixture into a 2 quart saucepan and cook over low heat until thickened (about 10 minutes), stirring constantly. The lemon curd will thicken at about 170 degrees F, or just below simmer. Remove from the heat and cool or refrigerate. I also strained it through sieve to remove pulp.
- Cream cheese frosting: I found this new recipe with heavy cream which I like better than the butter and powdered sugar variety. Very smooth and very sturdy to pipe (to keep fillings inside). One batch is about perfect for two batches of macarons.
3 1/2 ounces sugar (about 1/2 cup; 100g)
5 ounces heavy cream (shy 2/3 cup; 140g)
1 teaspoon (5g) vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt; for table salt, use about half as much by volume
8 ounces plain, full-fat cream cheese, cold (one 8-ounce brick; 225g)
1. With kitchen temperatures above 74°F (23°C), start by refrigerating the mixing bowl and sugar until they have cooled to 70°F (21°C). At elevated temperatures, these ingredients and equipment can act as a heat source to the cream, preventing full aeration.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, or using a hand mixer, combine sugar, cream, vanilla, and salt. Mix at medium-low speed until sugar is dissolved, about 2 minutes. Increase speed to high and continue beating until cream is about as thick as Greek yogurt, about 2 minutes longer. Begin adding cream cheese 2 tablespoons at a time; this should take about 30 seconds all together. Once it is incorporated, shut off the mixer. The frosting will look a bit curdled, like cottage cheese; this is the result of incomplete mixing rather than over-whipping, so don’t be alarmed.
3. Thoroughly scrape bowl and whisk, then continue whipping on high until frosting is smooth and light, with only a few small flecks of cream cheese (they will disappear into the frosting over time). This may take 2 to 3 minutes with a stand mixer, or more if using a hand mixer. After whipping, the frosting should be about 60°F (16°C). Use immediately or refrigerate until needed.
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