French Macarons - Easier than you may think!

I don't know when the macaron craze came about but it would seem that just about everyone is making them, or at the very least, talking about them. There are a few places in town that sell them and they are sooooo expensive, like $2.50 or more per cookie.

My goal this Christmas was to make an attempt at making them myself. I really didn't think that I would be successful. I had done some reading online and other bloggers were very specific about the technique to be followed and the instructions were quite lengthy. Well, to my surprise I actually managed to make these and it wasn't a day-long saga.

Here's how you make them (recipes with quantities to follow):

Place the ground almonds and confectioners' sugar in a food processor and process until the mixture is fine and powdery. Sift the mixture into a bowl through a large strainer.

Using a stand mixer whip the egg whites until you have soft peaks. Gradually beat in the superfine sugar a little at a time. Beat until the mixture becomes a firm and glossy meringue and it looks like shaving cream. This would also be the point when any additional flavors or colorings would be added and mixed in.

Add one-third of the almond mixture to the meringue. Using a spatula, fold the dry mixture into the meringue until combined. Add the next third and repeat the process. Finish off with the remaining third and repeat the folding motion once more. Continue mixing until the batter is smooth and glossy. Don't undermix or overmix - overmixing leads to a runny batter and undermixing leads to a tough one. Once combined, you're pretty well good to go.

Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Pour the batter into a large pastry bag fitted with a round tip. Pipe circles onto the prepared baking sheets.

Tap the underside of the baking sheet firmly with the palm of your hand to remove any air bubbles and settle any small peaks and bumps. This action also helps the frilly foot (or pied) to form during baking.

Let the macarons stand at room temperature for 30 minutes to let the surface of each macaron dry and form a slight crust.

Bake the macarons at 325F, 1 baking sheet at a time for 10-15 minutes. The macarons are ready when they have a crisp shell. Carefully peel them away from the parchment paper and let the macarons cool completely on a wire rack.

The next, and final, step is to spread a filling of your choice between the wafers.

I made three varieties of macarons - vanilla macarons, hazelnut chocolate macarons and peppermint chocolate macarons. The recipes were from the book 'Macaroons: 30 recipes for perfect bite-size treats' that I picked up at Winners for a mere $5.99. (note that the book calls them macaroons... Yes, these cookies suffer the same fate as yams/sweet potatoes. Some people call them macaroons and others call them macarons)

Vanilla Macarons

• 3/4 cup ground almonds
• 1 cup confectioners' sugar
• 2 extra large egg whites
• 1/4 cup superfine sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• Filling:
• 4 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup confectioners' sugar

Hazelnut Chocolate Macarons

• 1/2 cup ground almonds
• 1/4 cup ground hazelnuts
• 1 cup confectioners' sugar
• 2 extra large egg whites
• 1/4 cup superfine sugar
• Filling:
• 1/4 cup hazelnut spread (I used my homemade Nutella)

Mint Chocolate Macarons

• 3/4 cup ground almonds
• 1 cup confectioners' sugar
• 2 extra large egg whites
• 1/4 cup superfine sugar
• 1 tsp peppermint extract
• green food coloring paste
• Filling:
• 4 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
• 2 oz chocolate, melted and cooled.

I'd say that for my first try at these I did a pretty good job. By the third batch I felt like I could really whip these up quickly if I needed to.