Macarons: first attempt failed
Good morning folks! It’s already Friday? So fast! I still have a couple of things pending at the moment!
We started off the day with a bowl of cereal mixed with milk, blackberries and raisins. Before that, I went for a short run. I’m feeling a little PMS-sy and working out helps. Imbalanced hormones sucks :(
The other day, I baked my first chocolate macarons but they didn’t turn out as I expected! I used this recipe. I thought making macarons would be that simple. It seems that whatever meringue-like stuffs that I bake always fails!
Practise makes perfect, so I will give it another try next time. But not so soon. Macarons are a tad too sweet for me.
The macaron is a traditional French pastry, made of egg whites, almond powder, icing sugar and sugar. This sweet pastry came out of the French courts’ baker’s oven as round meringue-like domes with a flat base – From Wiki
I had a hard time getting them off the paper. I only managed to save about 8 pieces. I should have used parchment paper instead. Apparently, wax paper is not really meant to be used in baking (?), as it’s more for wrapping sandwiches etc.
I’m so looking forward to the weekend. My parents are arriving tomorrow. How great is that! Have a great weekend everyone!
Recipe for Chocolate Macarons adapted from here.
Ingredients
- 50g Icing Sugar
- 15g Cocoa Powder
*Sift together
- 25g Finely Ground Almond
- 35g Egg White (about 1 egg white, I used my stash, which I froze and thawed)
- 30g Sugar
Method
Prepare 2 11 x 14 inch baking tray, lined with silicon coated parchment paper (draw circles behind the parchment if required). Preheat oven to 160 degrees C.
Add the ground almond to the icing sugar mixture, break up clumps if any.
In another clean and dry bowl, whisk the egg white till frothy. Add in sugar in 2 additions and whisk till soft peak.
Add in the ground almond mixture into whisked egg whites in 2 addition, fold till incorporated. Lift the spatula to see if it falls ribbon-like. The batter should look shiny, slightly thick, not runny.
Load the batter into a piping bag with round tip. Pipe into circles. Bake for about 5 to 8 minutes. The feet will start to form. Lower down the temperature to 110 degrees and further bake for another 15 minutes. Set aside to cool and remove from paper.
Pair them up and sandwich with Swiss meringue buttercream or dark chocolate ganache (I used both). Refrigerate before serving.
July 10th, 2009 at 2:44 pm
There will be a next time … and it will be better :D
July 10th, 2009 at 3:21 pm
I’ve never tried macaron, I got scared the first and only time I watched its preparation on TV. It seemed so complicated and required the exact measuring of ingredients. Yours look good for a first attempt.
Have a great weekend!!
.-= morinn´s last blog ..I should be creating a wishlist =-.
July 10th, 2009 at 3:31 pm
@ Morinn
I’ve never seen how they make macarons. Taste-wise, mine were okay maybe … But texture-wise? hmmm not good haha.
July 10th, 2009 at 10:24 pm
I have never made macarons but I read a lot of stuff on the preparation and recipes of macarons.
“The secret to making good macarons is to stir the batter to just the right consistency. Stir too little, and your macarons won’t have feet and will have a peak on their tops. But stir too much, and you’ll end up with flat, cracked, tough and chewy macarons. The best way to check for the correct consistency is to test if peaks in the batter quickly dissolve. I’ve also read that the batter should be mixed just until it ‘flows like magma.’ After the macarons have been piped, it’s important to let them rest until they’ve formed a skin.”
I saw those tips on macarons. I hope it helps.
Plus I’ve watched a video on how macarons are made.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SHcIE0higBM
What is interesting in this video is the way they get the macarons off the paper without the macarons sticking and breaking.
And check out this blog.
http://tartelette.blogspot.com/2009/02/recipe-index.html
Scroll down to the “Macarons, petits fours, small bites”. Those macarons photos are amazing!
Reading your post makes me wanna try making macarons. Hahaha. But I have a feeling they won’t turn out good! I’m not adventurous enough to try. Not yet. Lol.
.-= Angele´s last blog ..Sheer lemon heaven =-.
July 13th, 2009 at 2:23 pm
@ Angele
I should have read more and watched a youtube video before attempting to make the macarons :P I think my batter was too thick. Thanks for the links. The Macarons from tartelette blog are so ‘pretty’ :)
Yeah, you should try!
October 10th, 2009 at 5:29 am
Don’t give up. I went through a lot learning how to make them and it’s definitely worth the effort!
.-= El´s last blog ..Macarons: A Love Story in Three Parts =-.