French Macarons with Chocolate Ganache Filling

Making French Macarons has been in my to-try list since I started blogging...but I've read so much about how finicky it is to make. I even remember reading in one article that "making French Macarons takes skill and is not advised for novice bakers". That intimidated me and I decided to just set aside my dream of being able to serve my daughters homemade French Macarons. I was already contented of just buying these treats from a nearby store at $1.50 per small piece (1 inch in diameter) or $12 per dozen...and I never thought I would ever dare to try making them myself! Thanks to my friends at Baking Partners, especially to Vidhya of A Portion to Share and Swathi of Zesty South Indian Kitchen who chose the theme for this month's challenge. Because of them, I was inspired to turn a long time dream into a reality...and now I know that making French Macarons at home is totally do-able and actually not that hard! The troubleshooting guide from Foodnouveau and  howtocookthat's YouTube video provided me everything a first timer French Macaron baker should know! 

I followed a simple French Macaron recipe from Martha Stewart which only requires a few ingredients. I couldn't find almond flour so I decided to just make use of blanched slivered almonds and ground them myself. I've read before that grinding blanched almonds in a food processor won't work. They need to be ground in a special way that prevents them from becoming oily, so I thought I'd use a coffee grinder. Well, it worked well for me. 

All the tutorials I've read suggested that to be more accurate, weighing the ingredients is better compared to just measuring them in cups. I stick to using cups though, but I see to it that everything is exactly measured. I must say that I really had a great first time experience in making French Macarons, and I've learned that if you just measure everything accurately and not over beat the meringue nor over mixed the batter, even the most novice baker can make good French Macarons! The only difficulty I had was shaping them into equal sizes. I even printed templates for 1 inch circles and put them between the cookie sheet and the non-stick parchment paper that I lined it with...but my macs still came out in different sizes. :) Oh well, you can't expect much from a first timer, right? But my daughters said my macs tasted a lot better compared to these ones they usually eat. 

That's really so nice to hear! Now, I'm inspired to make French Macarons more often...and next time, I promise I'll do better! (^.^)




Ingredients:

Makes 14 pcs. 1 1/2-in French Macarons Sandwiches

For the Macarons:

• 1 cup confectioners' sugar
• 3/4 cup almond flour (I ground blanched slivered almonds)
• 2 large egg whites, room temperature
• Pinch of cream of tartar
• 1/4 cup superfine sugar
• gel food color of your choice (do not use liquid food color coz this will affect the consistency of the batter)

For the Chocolate Ganache:

• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 3 1/2 oz. dark chocolate, finely chopped (preferably 70 percent cacao)
• 1/2 oz. (1 Tbsp) unsalted butter, softened

Instructions:

1. If grinding blanched slivered almonds like I did, be sure to grind them finely then sift it twice. Pulse confectioners' sugar and almond flour (or finely ground almonds) in a food processor until combined. Sift mixture 2 times.

2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Whisk whites with a mixer on medium speed until foamy. Add cream of tartar, and whisk until soft peaks form. Reduce speed to low, then add superfine sugar. Increase speed to high, and whisk until stiff peaks form, about 8 minutes.  Add gel food color and continue mixing for 1 more minute. Sift flour mixture over whites, and fold until mixture is smooth and shiny.

3. Transfer batter to a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch plain round tip, and pipe 3/4-inch rounds 1 inch apart on parchment-lined baking sheets, dragging pastry tip to the side of rounds rather than forming peaks. Tap bottom of each sheet on work surface to release trapped air. Let stand at room temperature for 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees. Bake 1 sheet at a time, rotating halfway through, until macarons 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 macarons cool on sheets for 2 to 3 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack. (If macarons stick, spray water underneath parchment on hot sheet. The steam will help release macarons.)

4. Prepare the chocolate ganache. Bring cream to a boil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Pour cream over chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Let stand for 2 minutes. Add butter, then whisk mixture until smooth. Let cool, stirring often. Allow to set for about 10 minutes before using as filling.

5. Sandwich 2 same-size macarons with 1 teaspoon filling. Serve immediately, or stack between layers of parchment, wrap in plastic, and freeze for up to 3 months.

Check out what other Baking Partners members have shared on French Macarons! I'm sure you'll learn a lot from them!

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