Ah, macarons!! Since this summer, I no longer see them the same way. And yet, I know these little creatures are hyper temperamental… Last August, I practised many times. The goal: to make around 300 shells for the wedding of a couple of friends. I couldn’t get anything right, nothing presentable, a nightmare! And yet, I hadn’t changed my recipe and the weather conditions were optimal. It was finally thanks to the help of Delphine, the winner of the amateur macaron competition in Paris last year (I came 3rd with my calamansi, vanilla and lime macarons) that the macaron tower was able to come to life. I went to bake at her place and after a few hours of work, all the shells were done. They were as pretty as could be and hyper regular, in short, I was delighted! I’ll never be able to thank you enough. Mutual support between amateur bakers is priceless <3
In the end, same recipe, same technique… hard to understand what wasn’t working at my place. I think my oven isn’t as reliable as it used to be…
The pretty shells all ended up in the freezer while waiting for the wedding at the beginning of September and I still used a few of my own shells, the prettiest ones (well, the least botched!) to make a new recipe.
So I present to you my almond and vanilla macarons and even though I’m not too keen on the former, I really wanted to test Nestlé Dessert’s almond chocolate. The almond flavour is definitely there; if you’re a fan, go for it! With the roundness of the vanilla, it was perfect.
Ingredients & Method
3 components · Full recipe
Shells
Ingredients
- 65 g (2.3 oz) egg whites
- 75 g (2.6 oz) caster sugar
- 75 g (2.6 oz) icing sugar
- 75 g (2.6 oz) almond flour
Method
1
Blend the icing sugar and almond flour together, then sift.
2
Whisk the egg whites to stiff peaks, adding the caster sugar in 2 stages, and beat at maximum speed to achieve the “bird’s beak” consistency.
3
Fold in the almond flour and icing sugar mixture and work the batter with a flexible spatula (this is the macaronage stage). The mixture should be glossy, smooth, and form a ribbon as it falls. Once the right consistency is reached, transfer the batter to a piping bag fitted with a plain tip. Don’t hesitate to use a tall glass to support your piping bag — that way you can use both hands.
4
Pipe small domes of about 3 cm (1.2 in) in a staggered pattern onto a sheet of baking paper or a silicone mat. I used a hairdryer to form a skin on the first tray of macarons. After 5 minutes, the surface was no longer sticky and I put them in the oven. The other 2 trays dry in the open air while the first tray bakes. Bake at 120°C / 250°F for 20–22 minutes. Once out of the oven, leave to cool before peeling off the shells. The shells are done when they come away very easily. To allow for more filling, hollow out the shells before they cool completely.
Step by step
Not quite comfortable with macaron shells yet? I’ve put together two full step-by-step picture guides to help you get it right every time:
Almond and vanilla whipped ganache
Ingredients
- 80 g (2.8 oz) Nestlé almond chocolate
- 50 g (1.8 oz) liquid cream
- 85 g (3 oz) cold liquid cream
- 1 tsp neutral honey (such as acacia honey)
- 1 vanilla pod
Method
1
Break the almond white chocolate into pieces in a bowl (you can melt it slightly in a bain-marie or microwave).
2
Put the 50 g (1.8 oz) cream, the honey, and the split and scraped vanilla pod in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Then cover and leave to infuse for 15 minutes.
3
Remove the vanilla pod, then heat the cream again.
4
As soon as the cream starts to simmer, pour one third over the almond chocolate and stir to create an emulsion. Then add the second third and the third third to obtain a smooth, homogeneous mixture.
5
Add the 85 g (3 oz) cold cream and mix gently.
6
Cover with cling film directly on the surface and refrigerate for several hours (ideally, overnight).
Assembly
Ingredients
- None
Method
1
Sort your macaron shells so that the ones you pair together are the same size.
2
Whip the ganache like a chantilly cream, then transfer to a piping bag fitted with an 8–10 mm plain tip.
3
Fill half of the shells with the almond and vanilla whipped ganache and sandwich with the other shells.
4
Refrigerate the macarons and wait at least 24 hours before eating them.
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