Sunday Macaron, take 2!

What to do on a lazy Sunday with a bowl full of icing and an itch to bake?  Whip up some french macarons, of course!  I put together some almond flavored cookies with a touch of lemon, stuffed them with almond flavored icing and voi la, pretty!

If you're looking for the recipe, check out my initial post here.  Don't be intimidated; they're easy!  Here's a step by step.

Step 1: Whip up some old (I mean it!) egg whites and some superfine sugar.

Step 2:  Go to town sifting up almond flour and confectioner's sugar

Step 3:  Take eggs, sift flour on top one more time, add some food color and flavoring, and stir 'til shiny.

Step 4:  Pipe circles onto some parchment paper (or silpat mats if you're fancy like that.)

Step 5:  Bake for about 10 minutes, let cool for 10 more, pipe on your filling of choice, smush together, and enjoy some pretty french cookies!

Pink Coconut Cupcakes - They could be YOURS!

It's time!  The Bloggers Bake for Hope online bake sale is live and open for bids until midnight on May 6.  I've donated the Frost Yourself cupcake kit, which includes the following:

-12 coconut cupcakes
-1 tub of pink coconut icing
-1 disposible piping bag
-1 star tip
-1 baggie of shredded coconut for decorating

A few notes about the auction:
-Minimum bid is $15.00
-I will ship anywhere in the United States (shipping is covered/donated by me)
-100% of the proceeds go to the MA Komen for a Cure organization for Breast Cancer research
-There are more sweets up for auction than just my cupcakes!  Check out the full list here.
-This cause is very near to my heart, if you're interested, you can read why here.

One last incentive - if you are the FIRST person to place a bid on my item, but don't end up winning, I will bake you a batch of French Macaroons - cookie & filling flavor choices are yours!  I'll also ship the french macaroons anywhere in the country.

Click here to bid on the Frost Yourself cupcake kit and show your support for breast cancer research and awareness!

More Macaroons

Since my last batch of macaroons was such a success, I really wanted to try them one more time. Home on Monday for Patriots Day, I was feeling bakey (you know, like crafty...except wanting to bake) and asked the hubs what flavor he would like. His request was initially chocolate with vanilla filling...I overruled the vanilla part and did salted caramel instead. Turns out he liked that idea better anyway!



The salted caramel buttercream filling was a labor. of. love. It took me a while, and felt like a science experiment! I had only made caramel one other time before, and that was a few years back, so I had been a bit out of practice. I snapped this picture when the sugar and water was bubbling and looking pretty in the saucepan:



From here, it just kept bubbling, I kept swirling, then all of a sudden it was turning into a caramel color! The original recipe said to remove from heat once it reaches a "deep amber" color. I think I took this too literally, let my caramel get more and more brown, and then it ended up having a bit of a burnt taste to it. We ended up loving the bitterness to it, but my advice would be to remove your caramel from the heat as soon as it looks amber...don't let it get too deep amber. The recipe (from Foodess) is below, and I followed Martha's recipe for chocolate macaroon cookies.





Did anyone else bake this weekend?

Salted Caramel Buttercream:

Need:

• 1/2 c. sugar, divided


• 2 tbsp. water


• 2 tbsp. + 2 tsp milk (recipe calls for cream, I used 1% milk and it worked just fine)


• 2 egg whites


• pinch of salt


• 1 stick of softened butter


• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Do:

• Put 1/4 c. sugar and water in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Do not stir, that will create crystals of sugar, but you can lift and swirl your pan around occassionaly to prevent sticking to the bottom. It will bubble like crazy, and evenutally turn a nice pretty amber-caramel color.


• As SOON as it turns caramel color, remove from heat and add in milk or cream. When you add the milk, it will turn SUPER bubbly and crazy- stir it quickly until smooth, and then set aside.


• Put the egg whites, salt, and 1/4 c. sugar in a heat-proof bowl over a saucepan with simmering water. Whisk until sugar dissolves and your mixture reaches 140 degrees. Mine stopped heating around 130...I pulled it off and it was fine. Transfer mixture to the bowl of a standing mixer.


• Beat on high until stiff peas form. Add butter 1 tbsp. at a time, and continuously beat on medium.


• Reduce speed to low, and add in vanilla and caramel (you may need to heat up your caramel a little bit at this point- it should be easy to work with but not hot.)


• Beat mixture for an additional 4-5 minutes until smooth. Enjoy!

Sunday Macaroon

What is a better way to celebrate a beautiful Sunday than with a beautiful batch of French Macaroons?  I've been admiring these pretty little cookies for quite some time now; looking up recipes, collecting pictures and wondering if I had what it takes to make a batch.  With a bit of lavender buttercream leftover from last week's cupcakes, today was the day to find out.  I must say, I'm quite pleased with the result!  I introduce my lemon-lavender french macaroons:

These delicate cookies are quite an investment of time and money.  The small bag of almond flour cost $9.99 at my local food store, you might be able to save a few dollars if you make your own.  The egg whites have to sit out of the fridge for quite some time to come to room temperature, and the recipe I followed (from Martha Stewart) requires a TRIPLE sift of the flour & sugar misture.  My sifter is 2" in diameter so that took for-ev-er but the end result made up for it!

In my months of macaroon-marvelling, I've gathered a few tips that I think contributed to the success of this batch today.  First and most importantly - get everything set up before starting, especially the flour-sugar mixture.  You have to get it nice and fine. 

Separate your egg whites while they are cold, and then let them sit out (covered, with the plastic wrap touching the top of the eggs) for at least 2 hours to come to room temperature.  Follow time requests in recipes closely.  My egg whites looked whisked enough to me after about 4 minutes, but Martha said to beat them for 8 minutes and I'm glad I did.  Lastly, before you put your cookies in the oven, gently tap the cookie sheet on your counter or table to release any air-bubbles. 

When you pipe your macaroons, don't worry about the immediate piping lines you'll see, after a minute or two they should smooth out like the ones above.  Carefully watch and adjust your oven temperatures as the recipe says, and after 10 painless minutes you should (fingers crossed) see something like this:

Nice smooth, crispy tops and fluffy, chewy bottoms with pretty, crinkly "feet."  Almost right away you'll be able to pipe some filling on the bottom of one, sandwich it with another, and voila!  Enjoy!

The recipe below is very slightly tweaked from Martha Stewart's recipe, here.  I'd highly suggest checking out her link for additional flavor ideas.  Have you ever made french macaroons?  I'd love to hear what flavors you make (or would love to eat!)

Need:

1 cup confectioners' sugar

3/4 cup almond flour

2 large egg whites, room temperature

Pinch of meringue powder

1/4 cup superfine sugar

3/4 cup lavender-infused buttercream (see my old post here for the recipe)

1/2 tsp. pure lemon extract

6 drops yellow food coloring

Do:

• Mix confectioners' sugar and almond flour in a food processor until combined. Sift mixture 2 times.  Be meticulous about this part!! 
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Whisk whites with a mixer in a spotlessly clean bowl on medium speed until foamy. Add meringue powder, and whisk until soft peaks form. Reduce speed to low, then add superfine sugar. Bump the speed back up to high, and continue whisking until stiff peaks form, about 8 minutes.  Sift flour mixture over whites (this is the THIRD sift...do it meticulously!) and fold until mixture is smooth and shiny.
• Fill up a pastry bag with a plain round tip with the batter.  Pipe 3/4-inch rounds 1 inch apart on parchment-lined baking sheets.  Try your best to not make any hershey-kiss style points on your circles.  You can soften up the tops by running the top along the top of the circle and off, rather than just pulling it up and off.   
• Let stand at room temperature for 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees, tap your baking sheet against the table or counter to release air bubbles, and then bake 1 sheet at a time, until macaroons are crisp and firm, about 10 minutes.
• After each batch, increase oven temperature to 375 degrees, heat for 5 minutes, then reduce to 325 degrees.
• Let macaroons cool on sheets for 2 to 3 minutes, then move to a wire rack. (If macaroons stick, spray water underneath parchment on hot sheet. The steam will help release macaroons.)
• Sandwich 2 same-size macaroons with 1 teaspoon jam. Serve immediately, or stack between layers of parchment, wrap in plastic, and freeze for up to 3 months.