Macaroons

Macaroons - Tricky little devils. 

Taste awfully sweet and delicious, but takes a lot of effort and tips to successfully pull this off.

There are many methods to make macaroons, some prefer the traditional way of beating the egg whites, some prefer the swiss meringue method. 

I normally use the traditional method, just because its lesser of a hassle. But this time round, I attempted the swiss meringue method. 

Turns out, the mixture is more stable, making it easier to handle. I would recommend this recipe by Pierre Herme:

(There are two macaroon shell recipes, both are tried , tested and successful.)

Ingredients for the macaron shell- Swiss Meringue

300g Almond Meal

300g Icing Sugar

110g Egg Whites, aged
5g coloring
300g granulated sugar
75g Water
110g Egg Whites, aged

Sieve the almond meal and icing sugar in a bowl. Add the coloring to 110g of egg whites and combine with dry ingredients.

Combine water and granulated sugar in a pot and boil till 118 degrees. Once the mixture reaches 115C, start the mixer on high. Upon reaching 118C, take the pot straight out of heat and pour in a thin stream down the side of the mixer bowl, continuing to whisk on high.

Continue to whisk the meringue until the side of the bowl is no longer hot, but warm to touch.

Add meringue to the almond mixture.
(you can continue to use the whisk attachment here, but do not over beat it)

Pipe the mixture, then set aside for about 30 minutes on till it forms a skin that doesn't stick to your finger.
*I suggest for this recipe, to allow it to dry for 5-8 hours. (After allowing it to dry for 3hrs, I sent them to the oven and they did not have "feets" and they cracked on the surface. -Also dependent on humidity, Singapore is very humid, hence may affect the drying of the skin.

Preheat at 160C and bake for 12 minutes.
(temperature may vary depending on oven)

Allow them to fully cool before peeling them off the silpat/baking sheet.

Ingredients for the macaron shell- Traditional Meringue
500g Almond meal
900g Icing sugar
440g Egg white
120 Castor sugar

Sieve almond and icing sugar and combine in a bowl.
Beat egg whites till soft peaks, then add castor sugar and beat till high peaks.
Fold in the meringue in 3 batches to combine with the dry ingredients. Do not overfold.
Pipe mixture on a baking sheet/silpat and leave it to dry till a skin forms. (Approx. 30-60mins)
Bake at 160C for 12 minutes.

Filling Variety

Rose Flavor:

200g Granulated sugar

75g Water

150g Eggs

90g Egg yolk

400g Butter
4g Rose Essence
50g Rose syrup

Add sugar and water to a saucepan and cool over medium heat to 120C. Whilst syrup is coming to temperature, add the eggs and egg yolks to the bowl of a stand mixer and whisk with whisk attachment till the color lightens, and fluffy.
Add the syrup in a thin a steady stream until cooled.
Change to K Beater attachment, add butter gradually ad beat in rose syrup and essence.
(leave butter in room temperature for 1hr at least, else your buttercream will turn to scrambled eggs)

Salted caramel cream:
this is an amazing recipe, love the taste!

200g Sugar

330g Whipping cream / Creme Fraiche Liquide
30g Salted Butter + 140g Softened salted butter

add 50g of sugar to a saucepan, let this melt then add 50g of sugar. continue till all 200g has been melted. Let the syrup caramelize until dark amber, remove from heat, and add 40g of butter, add cream.

Put the pan back on heat and cook until it reaches 108C. Pour into a dish and cover with a plastic wrap to avoid developing a skin. Cool until cool to touch.

Beat remaining butter for 8-10mins, then incorporate caramel in 2 portions.
beat till light brown.

Whipped White Chocolate and Mint Ganache:



226g of white chocolate
120ml heavy cream
1 tsp peppermint extract
Place the chopped up chocolate into a medium bowl, set aside. Bring the cream just to a boil then pour
over the chocolate. Stirring from the centre outwards mix until you have a smooth ganache. It will be much thinner than usual but thats how you want it.
Chill the ganache in the fridge until chilled then whisk until thickened and is in a pipeable consistency.

Bittersweet chocolate ganache:

230g bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

1 cup heavy cream

60g unsalted butter, room temperature

 Place the chocolate in a medium bowl, set aside. Bring the cram to a full boil in a heavy bottomed saucepan. Whilst the cream is coming to a boil beat the butter with a rubber spatula until very soft and creamy, set aside.

Add half the butter and stir with a spatula until smooth, repeat with the rest of the butter. Once fully incorporated the ganache will be smooth and glossy. Let the ganache cool on the counter until thickened and pipeable.

trick here:

1. Must beat egg whites well, do not over beat it. 

Typically, there is a timing to follow: soft peaks 45secs, stiff peaks 60-80secs. (on high speed, varies on different machine- mine is a kitchen aid/kenwood)

if you see liquids on the bottom of the bowl after peaks are formed, you've over done it.

2. Dry your macaroons after piping. 

Dry under your AC or over a fan. 

(Dry till its not sticky to the touch. Typically about 15-25mins)

3. Buttercream
The butter have to be soft enough when you incorporate it to the swiss meringue else, you will see your buttercream turn to scrambled eggs.


Sprinkle some sea salt on the macaroon shell just before baking if you're planning to make a caramel filling, the sweet and salty contrast is amazing!
Should you want some cocoa powder on the shell, sieve them over the shell before allowing them to dry.

next flavor attempt: hazelnut praline, lemon curd, strawberry