MACAROONS (based on French meringue)
Have you ever tried macaroons? Then you know how delicious they are.
To make French macaroons take a lot of time, but when you taste them, it will have been worth it. Here you have a macaroon's recipe based on French meringue (the French meringue is easier to make than the Italian, but we will also publish the recipe based on Italian meringue). Are you having a party? Macaroons are perfect as sweet tapas.
Ingredients (make around. 25-30 u.)
75 g egg whites
100 g sugar
95 g almond flour (you can prepare it yourself by scalding and grinding the almonds)
100 g icing sugar
Tricks!
1.- It's very important to aim the almond and the icing sugar, we actually do it twice, once when preparing all ingredients and then when we mix with the meringue.
2.- To let the macaroons dry befote you set them in the oven is one of the most important steps to prevent macaroons from cracking. We recomend you to be patient and let the macaroons dry the time they may need.
The ingredients are to make about 25-30 units complete macaroons (i.e. 50-60 macaroon shells).
Start by aiming together the icing sugar and the almond flour.
Put the egg whites in a bowl and whisk a bit until fluffy, add the sugar carefully and whisp during approx. 7-8 minutes until you get a stiff meringue (do not over mix). If you want to put some color to your macaroons, do it now, use paste colors and add as much as you need until you get a color that is slighly darker that the color you want to have (the colors become weaker in the oven). Aim carefully the almond mixture in the previously prepared meringue, and mix together by hand, using a spatula, fold approx. 45-50 times until you get a honney consistency of the batter.
Prepare a piping bag fitted with a round tip in a glass and fill up ca. 3/4 parts of the bag at a time. Pipe macaroons on baking paper in the size you want (make sure there is space between them, about 1.5-2 cm). There is advisable to draw circles on parchment paper so you know how many you are getting, and that your macaroons are uniform in size.
When you are done with piping all the macaroons, hit the baking tray on the table once or twice to make sure that possible bubbles comes to the top of the macaroons.
Let the macaroons rest on the counter until they are dry (this step can take from 30 minutes to several hours depending on the humidity in your kitchen). You will know that your macaroons are dry because they develope a dry "skin" on the top, so you can touch with your finger and the batter will not stick.
Bake in pre-heated oven at 150 ˚C for 15-18 minuts, over-and-under heat ( the time it takes to be ready depends on your oven).
Let your macaroons cool of on the tray before you lift them carefully.
Fill with your favorite filling, do not use fillings with a high water content.