Macaron Madness

Delicate, crispy and sweet morsels filled with luxurious ganache or jams. It's defined as the trump card of any baker's repertoire.

Macarons are small morsels of deliciousness, but it can also come with a load of blood, sweat and tears- hopefully tears more so than the other two.. I am definitely not saying I've mastered them, but after a fair few attempts I'm ready to pass on the few tips and tricks that have worked for me.

I'm going on the pretence that everyone knows what a macaron is, but just in case, a macaron is a French sandwich cookie that is made up of ground almond, icing sugar and beaten egg whites. The thing that makes it interesting is that the flavour possibilities are endless, ranging from the more traditional pistachio macarons to the more risqué flavours such as bubblegum.

So here goes my top ten tips for the 'perfect' macaron:
1) Be prepared
Make sure that you have all your ingredients weighed and ready for you. This seems like a pretty obvious step, but the process of making them means that everything happens quite fast one after the other and so you don't want to faff around in between.

2) Aged vs New
There is an age old argument about using aged vs new egg whites. Personally, I prefer aged egg whites but I have seen recipes where it works without. The reasoning behind ageing an egg white, is so that you can dehydrate it as much as possible- this allows for a stiffer meringue, i.e. a stiffer macaron mixture! However, I have to confess I only break them the night before or morning of because I felt that two days was a little extensive.

3) Slow and steady wins the race
Like Nigella would say "slowly pour in the sugar syrup", this is not because I want you all to channel your inner domestic goddess but because you ensure that the sugar is well beaten in. It also helps to avoid ending up with a hot and slightly sweet egg mix. Trust me, this is definitely something I could not come back from.

4) Colouring
We all know that macarons, as delicious as they are, are even more exciting because of the way they are presented. When you walk into a patisserie, the first thing your eye is drawn to is the lines of coloured shells. To colour them, avoid using water based colours because that will alter the texture of your batter. Stick to gel colours! The general rule of thumb is choose the colour according to the flavour, but if Heston Blumenthal is your inspiration then I suppose that won't apply to you. Also, remember that when the colour bakes out it gets lighter, so if you want a darker colour, you need to add more of the colouring.

5) Templates are your best friend
When making macarons, you probably think the nozzle will mean that they turn out a beautiful shape. I am really sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but this takes many attempts. So, as a way of not serving up an assortment of shapes, I highly suggest you print out some circles and put it below your parchment paper before you start piping.

6) Go and make yourself a cup of tea
After having tired over the stove, it is hard not to just want to push them in the oven and hope for the best. Once piped, tap the baking sheet to get rid of the air bubbles/maybe even to vent out your frustrations and let dry. Seems like an odd concept, but drying is when a skin forms on the top so it isn't tacky when you touch it. This will mean the domes will stay intact in the oven.

7) Open the oven door
I know you are thinking whether you have read that right. I think rule number 1 in the baking book is not to open the oven when you are making something, but in this case it is important that you open the oven door quickly so that the steam will escape.

8) Wait..
Right, I'll put my hand up and say I am very impatient when it comes to taking stuff out the oven and decorating, but please don't pull them off your mat. They will stick and you'll be left with a shell and no actual substance.

9) ..And some more
This is just getting cruel now! After your shells (with some substance in) has cooled, fill them with your choice of filling. The ones I have done, I had used ganache and jam but really the world is your oyster here so have fun with it! Sandwich the shells together and place them in an airtight container in the fridge. That's right.. Don't eat them fresh because they won't taste the best that they could. Leaving them overnight means that you are left with a bite of perfection.

10) Storing
The last thing to address is storing. If you are making them straight away and eating them then, congratulations! But for those who are extra keen and want to prepare well in advance, the macaron shells do freeze really well. Keep them in an airtight container in your freezer and take them out a night before to defrost before filling them.

I've posted a link to the Scran Line link that I use and hopefully you guys will find it as interesting! Just follow the link for all the other parts!

Lots of Love,
Kaya xo