Friday, May 25, 2012

Chocolate Macaroons

The macaroon marathon continues... This time I am talking about Chocolate Macaroon! So far they are one of my families favorites, I've made them twice so far! The chocolate macaroon recipe is very similar to the vanilla one, with the variations of adding cocoa power to the dry mix and a chocolate filling instead of vanilla butter cream. One of my favorite parts about making macaroons is the piping! It didnt take long before I got the hang of it. I choose to use a large plastic bag with the tip cut off instead of a fancier pastry bag because I think it works just as well and has minimal clean up, because you just throw the bag away afterwards! The tricky part is that you dont want the batter to ooze out unless you are piping so you have to be ready and pipe them all at once. I have both of my baking dishes prepped with parchment paper and then I squeeze and swirl out the batter to make the macaroon. I generally use two hands.  The batter is really sticky and unforgiving so its important to get it right the first time and while you practice your piping skills if they come out a little messy dont worry they will still taste good. Also make sure you have an even number since because the cookies are getting sandwiched together.

The filling for these guys is pretty easy I diverted from the recipe a bit and boiled cream and then added the chocolate in until I got a nice chocolate sauce. Once chilled a bit it spread nicely on the cookies!

The recipe for the vanilla macaroons and chocolate ones are below!

Adapted from Macaroons - The Ideal Bite-sized Treat book.

Vanilla Macaroon
3/4 cup ground almond flour
1 cup confectioners sugar
2 extra large egg whites
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Filling
4 tbsp unsalted butter softened
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup confectioners sugar sifted


Sift almond flour- which tends to be a bit clumpy with confectioners sugar- I have tried both sifting and not sifting both are fine

Seperate 2 egg whites and beat with electric mixer until it holds soft peaks. Gradually add in sugar and vanilla.

Using a spatula fold in the try mixture of almond flour and sugar into wet egg whites 1/3 at a time.
The batter should be shiny thick and ribbon like.

Prepare 2 baking sheets with parchment paper

To fill the pasty bag or large baggie I recommend propping it up in a bowl and then scooping it in with a spatula. Cut a small corner off of the baggie and work the batter down. Place your index finger and thumb together to form a circle and pipe out the batter in circles that size.

Bang the cookie sheets on the table or workspace a few time and let sit for 25-30 mins.  Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Bake cookies for 10 minutes.

Remove from parchment paper and let cool

For the filling
Make sure the butter is soft and beat until creamy, add in the vanilla and beat some more. Gradually beat in the confectioners sugar until smooth and creamy.

Sandwich the cookies together once the cookies have cooled and enjoy!


For chocolate macaroons

Add 2 tbsp of unsweetened cocoa to the dry mix

all instructions are the same

Filling
3 1/2 oz of semisweet chocolate chips
2/3 cup heavy cream

Heat the cream until it boils then pour the cream over the chocolate and stir until smooth. Chill for 10-15 mins in the fridge before filling the cookies

Sandwich the cookies together once the cookies have cooled and enjoy!


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