RWood

My husband will think he died and is in bacon-haven. Looks yummy. It is really good. I only made a gallon the first time, and it sold out over the weekend. I just made another gallon yesterday. We'll see how long that one lasts .

I've done both, can't really say I've noticed it makes a difference.

I really don't know what to do. I looked around on the web and a lot of people said that what I was seeing was probably due to too high of a temperature in the oven. I had noticed that my oven tends to over shoot the set temperature by about 25F and since I usually bake macarons at 350F that could be a problem. I reduced the temperature to 300F and kept a very close eye on the macarons and the temperature as they baked. The top photo shows the macarons in the oven after about 4 minutes of baking. It looks like the top shell has formed and the foot is starting to ooze out of the sides of some of the macarons. The second photo shows the end of the bake at about 15 minutes. I just don't know what to do. This is worse than when I baked at 350F. I used to be able to make macarons, but I'm ready to give up! Help!!! I wish I could be of help. I've made these things for years and thousands of them, sometimes they just screw with you. I had that happen at Christmas. I set out to make Christmas presents, and I had so many not work. I was not pleased by all the nut flour that was wasted. The day after I started again, and I found that I wasn't whipping the whites stiff enough (I use the French meringue method). After that, every batch came out perfect. But, a couple of weeks ago, I needed to make some for my step-sister's mom, and the same problem, even whipping the whites just like before. I have some old whites in the fridge, I'm thinking about experimenting today for the heck of it. Maybe I can figure out the problem. I'm just a novice at macarons, but I'm a thorough researcher and here are my thoughts, based on what I've read: 1. Macaron recipes vary, thus techniques / directions vary: what works for one, may very well not for another. For instance, I read that if you can lift the macaron off the baking sheet while it is in the oven, it's done. This is not the case for the recipe in this link: http://www.eatlivetr...rk-in-progress/ I baked one tray for an extra four minutes. This resulted in very hard cookies. The advice of Mardi using her recipe above is right on: once the macs are cooled, they are easy to remove from parchment paper...take them out at 16 minutes even if they stick. 2. The best temperature for macs varies according to the recipe. Mardi's method/recipe was spot-on at 300 degrees Fahrenheit. When I baked a tray at that temp (using a thermometer in my oven, rack in the middle), the cookies were excellent; the first tray that went in at a slightly higher temp produced tough cookies. 3. Resting the macs is essential. But the best way to tell when they are ready is by touching them; if they are no longer sticky and don't make an indentation, they are ripe for baking. 4. Beating the egg whites to stiff, of course, is essential. There is a difference between a "normal" stiff peak and the "stiff" necessary for macarons. Someone explained it best: if you can hold the bowl of whites above your head without it falling on you, it's stiff enough. Also, some recipes say fold gently, others say get the air out! Mardi, again, was spot-on as the batter with more vigorous "folding" tended not to be hollow and had more dainty feet. 5. When I bake pie crusts, I keep a cookie sheet in the oven while the oven is preheating; this very hot sheet helps to set the pie crust more quickly than simply putting the pie crust on an oven rack or on a cold cookie sheet (less bubbling). Mardi suggests doubling on on the baking sheet for macarons. This probably helps to set the macarons too. 6. Weigh everything on a cooking scale, digital preferable. 7. I always keep several dozen eggs in my fridge for two weeks; I also keep a dozen on my counter on a daily basis so they cook quickly for breakfast since they are at room temperature. They are still "good" for consumption. All I did for Mardi's recipe was use the eggs that were on my counter; at least seven days old in my house between fridge time and counter-top time. I'm not sure if this is the same as aging egg whites by separating them and keeping them in fridge for a few days, but...they are "old" eggs. Since you've used the same recipe for a while, perhaps your oven needs to be calibrated. Did you get new baking pans, try a new brand of sugar or almond flour, change your type of coloring agent, baking in a different place, is a storm brewing? Good luck, hoped this helped and keep us posted! paulaq I know part of the problem at home is I have a crappy gas oven. I have always double panned, and I did find that the direction the pans sit in my oven at home made a difference as well. Narrow end of the pan in instead of the wide side caused them to bake better. My oven causes the ones on the outer corners to rise unevenly. The temperature setting on my oven is digital, so I found that 300-310 seems to be pretty good. I should probably get an oven thermometer for the heck of it just to see how accurate it is. Now, at work, I have a pretty good convection oven with a control for the fan. I have very few flops there, and this oven set at 300 with a low fan seems perfect there. I also bake them on a silpat instead of parchment. It seems the bottoms are smoother and they come right off. At home I have a 1/2 sheet silpat, and tend to use parchment more there. The batches I made at Christmas that came out perfect had no resting time. I piped and put them in the oven. I think a lot of it has to do with the particular recipe as you mentioned. I've found that a recipe with a ratio of the powdered sugar and almond meal being closer together, than say double the amount of powdered sugar, works better for me. I've used Pierre Herme's formula a few times, and it can be hit or miss too, but his is the only Italian meringue method that has even remotely worked for me.. I like the French meringue version better. I'm going to try the whole drying out of the almond flour thing. Sometimes it does seem a little moist. I've found that Honeyville Farms almond meal is very finely ground, and it works very well. I usually grind the almond and powdered sugar in my Cuisinart, then sift. I have very little left in the sifter when using their brand. Also L'epicerie has both pistachio and almond flours that are very fine as well. I've used both paste and powdered colorings, and don't really see much difference. I don't make mine a really dark color, I prefer pastel, as many people I've given them too seem to prefer as well. So, I'm not drowning them in color. And, I do fold rather vigorously. You do need to knock the air out, especially if it's whipped really stiff. So many answers, yet who knows what will work . Who would think that something that has only 3 ingredients could be so temperamental?

I really don't know what to do. I looked around on the web and a lot of people said that what I was seeing was probably due to too high of a temperature in the oven. I had noticed that my oven tends to over shoot the set temperature by about 25F and since I usually bake macarons at 350F that could be a problem. I reduced the temperature to 300F and kept a very close eye on the macarons and the temperature as they baked. The top photo shows the macarons in the oven after about 4 minutes of baking. It looks like the top shell has formed and the foot is starting to ooze out of the sides of some of the macarons. The second photo shows the end of the bake at about 15 minutes. I just don't know what to do. This is worse than when I baked at 350F. I used to be able to make macarons, but I'm ready to give up! Help!!! I wish I could be of help. I've made these things for years and thousands of them, sometimes they just screw with you. I had that happen at Christmas. I set out to make Christmas presents, and I had so many not work. I was not pleased by all the nut flour that was wasted. The day after I started again, and I found that I wasn't whipping the whites stiff enough (I use the French meringue method). After that, every batch came out perfect. But, a couple of weeks ago, I needed to make some for my step-sister's mom, and the same problem, even whipping the whites just like before. I have some old whites in the fridge, I'm thinking about experimenting today for the heck of it. Maybe I can figure out the problem.

I finally got around to making a bacon ice cream. It came out soooo good . I used a basic base made with brown sugar and baked the bacon with dark brown sugar. I think what made it extra good is that I used the house cured bacon at work . It's so good on it's own, I knew it would come out great. The top got mushed from the lid before I could get the picture.

Perhaps you can suggest what went wrong with my butter ganache. As I said previously, lumps formed when I added the (supposedly) tempered milk and dark, then I added the brandy. I put the bowl over warm water and used the immersion blender to make it (mostly) smooth. It was quite soft in texture when I spread it in the frame (and, by the way, the quantity Greweling calls for was not sufficient to fill the frame, which made it impossible to get it completely level). I hoped the ganache would be firm today, but it was still soft. I was able to cut it, but not neatly, and dipping the pieces was very difficult. The texture of the filling makes it wonderful to eat, but it was much too difficult to work with. I assumed that using tempered chocolate would make it set firmly. I'm thinking the lumps formed because the chocolate was indeed tempered, but why didn't it set up? Perhaps you can suggest what went wrong with my butter ganache. As I said previously, lumps formed when I added the (supposedly) tempered milk and dark, then I added the brandy. I put the bowl over warm water and used the immersion blender to make it (mostly) smooth. It was quite soft in texture when I spread it in the frame (and, by the way, the quantity Greweling calls for was not sufficient to fill the frame, which made it impossible to get it completely level). I hoped the ganache would be firm today, but it was still soft. I was able to cut it, but not neatly, and dipping the pieces was very difficult. The texture of the filling makes it wonderful to eat, but it was much too difficult to work with. I assumed that using tempered chocolate would make it set firmly. I'm thinking the lumps formed because the chocolate was indeed tempered, but why didn't it set up? I would guess that putting the bowl over warm water caused the chocolate to go out of temper. I would think it lumped because something was too cold. When I've used Greweling's method for butter ganache, I've mixed the sweetener with the butter and whatever else I'm flavoring with. I place the bowl of butter on my scale, then scoop the tempered chocolate out of the machine. I just dump it on there to get the weight, and mix it in. I've never done it gradually, just doesn't work for me to "stream" it in. Never had any lumps I couldn't get rid of by stirring well. And yes, Greweling's amount is not accurate to fit in the size frame he says, at least for one layer. I very rarely slab ganache though. I use it for filling molds. You can see it start to set up fast if it's done properly.

In my experience, if the chocolate isn't tempered in a butter ganache, it won't set up. Greweling goes into all the technical reasons why. I prefer butter ganaches, the mouth feel is much better, to me anyway. And, they set so much quicker, I can seal molds right away. As long as the butter and glucose are at room temperature and mixed very well, I've never had any trouble mixing them together. Liquids will make it lump at first, but as long as it's not too cold, it will mix in.

Most of the molds are about 1/2" tall. Chocolat Chocolat in Montreal has a lot of molds, but with the exchange rate, the prices vary. They do provide the dimensions of the molds, which is helpful. I've bought most of mine from BakeDeco. They seem to have the best prices. Tomric and Chef Rubber seem to be the most expensive. There's no difference that I've seen in them. I only have one that has a metal back, and I got it from someone online. No difference in metal or plastic in how they come out. In my experience, most of the chocolates I've made weigh about 1/2 oz, give or take.

Beautiful! So, do you know what was the cause of all the difficulties? Beautiful! So, do you know what was the cause of all the difficulties? Thanks! Yes, I have found that if the meringue is not very stiff, they just flop. It also eliminates (for me) the need to let them rest. All these when straight in the oven. The only time they rested was while I was piping. Having a stable meringue makes a world of difference. I wrote down every little step so that if it's a while till I make them again, I won't go through all that.

I finally kicked these things in the butt, and ran off my macaron hex . I wasted so much product, I was not a happy camper. From top, clockwise: Pecan with Bourbon Buttercream Raspberry Peanut Butter Chocolate Hazelnut with Praline Buttercream Salted Caramel (I made Pierre Herme's Salted Butter Caramel for this filling, and while it tastes great, it is not stable at room temp for very long. I'm gonna re-think this one) Espresso Coconut in the middle

Thanks! But, the macaron gods don't like me at home this weekend. I've been trying to make Xmas gifts, and they are so not cooperating. At work, no problem, could be the oven is better. Gonna give it one more shot today, if no go, no macs .

Macarons for a holiday party at work. The customer wanted almond and raspberry.

I've used this one for years, and it works great. It's from David Lebovitz I believe. I add grated parmesan to it before and it made it even more flaky. I've found I like the way it comes out of the food processor the best. 11-1/4 oz. (2-1/2 cups) all-purpose flour 2 Tbs. sugar 1/2 tsp. salt 8 oz. (16 Tbs.) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces and chilled 5 oz. (about 2/3 cup) ice water In a large bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, and salt. Cut in the chilled butter using a stand mixer, a food processor, or a pastry blender until the butter is evenly distributed but still in large, visible pieces. Add the ice water all at once to the flour and butter. Mix the dough just until it begins to come together (if using a stand mixer or a food processor, be especially careful not to overmix the dough). Gather the dough with your hands -- don't worry if you see streaks of butter -- and shape it into two disks. Wrap the disks in plastic and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

I will be following your experiments closely as I already love this recipe. One question (or two)- what is the "ice cream stabilizer" and how critical is it to the recipe? I will be following your experiments closely as I already love this recipe. One question (or two)- what is the "ice cream stabilizer" and how critical is it to the recipe? I don't think the stabilizer is necessary. I just use it because I have to make a lot of ice creams, and it does help prevent crystallization and makes the texture smoother. The one I'm using now is from Albert Uster and has different "gums" and sodium alginate. I checked the tiramisu this morning, and the texture straight out of the freezer was still very good, but all the alcohol may contribute to it not freezing too hard either. Once this batch runs out, I'll give it another shot. Our shipping guy got carried away on ordering mascarpone, so I have some to get through

OK, so I messed around with the tiramisu ice cream today. I ended up winging it for the most part. The texture was perfect, flavor wise, very close to the original. This is what I can remember I did (I hope ). 4 cups 2% milk pinch salt 8 yolks 1 1/2 c sugar + 1/3 cup sugar 3 cups mascarpone 1/2 c kahlua 1/4 cup rum 1 T ice cream stabilizer Mocha Ripple (from book) I made an anglaise with the 2% milk, 1 1/2 c sugar, yolks and stabilizer. I whisked together the mascarpone, 1/3 c sugar, rum, kahlua. Whisked into the anglaise base. Layered it out of the machine with the mocha ripple. I think I will still work on it, I want the mascarpone to come through a little more, so I may decrease the yolks still and increase the mascarpone. I also felt I should get some marsala in there. Texture wise though it's very nice.

Sift the flour over the batter in three or so batches. I fold in with a large balloon whisk. I find it helps break up the flour lumps better than trying to fold in with a rubber spatula. Never made a genoise with cream either, only butter. After folding in the flour, I remove a cup or so, whisk it into warm butter, then fold that back in, with whisk as well. This prevents the butter from sinking to the bottom of the batter, and having to fold too much to get it incorporated. I believe the recipe I use had cake flour and a small amount of cornstarch. I haven't made it in a while, so would have to look it up.

I have to stock up the ice creams at work next week, so I'll give this one a shot and see what happens.

Well, I still make a custard base, then add the mascarpone after. I think the problem was that mascarpone is so fatty, and this recipe just purees it with either cream or half and half. (sorry, don't have book in front of me). I have a heavy duty ice cream maker at work, and maybe it churned it so fast it caused a problem. It churns 3 quarts in about 7 minutes. I like the idea, but need to experiment more.

Flavor wise I liked this, but texture wise, not so much. I made it to go on our ice cream sampler at work, and we all axed it for texture. I felt it was too grainy from the mascarpone. I've made mascarpone ice cream before that had a much better mouth feel. I'm going to go back and try it again, only using my recipe for the base. But, it does taste just like Tiramisu.

Kim, I looked and I think I used an Ateco 825 star tip.

Anyone ever try it? I've started a new job, and this was one of the chocolates they had brought in to try. They had bags of the 60% that I have used for brownies, truffles and ganache for cakes. It's easy to work with and emulsifies very easily when making ganache. We get it from Italfoods, haven't seen it anywhere else. I asked the rep to send some of the white and milk to try. Not being a fan of white, I really like the flavor of this one. Not too sweet either. Only drawback some people may have with it is they use organic ground vanilla bean in it. So, there are little specks. I attached a picture. I melted some yesterday and it's viscosity is very fluid, so it may mold well. I'll have to try it and see. I don't mind the little specks of vanilla. It might make an interesting molded chocolate. I made my usual passionfruit ganache with it, and it was very tasty. Still have to taste the milk chocolate.

A few cupcakes from a wedding this past weekend.

I used to make the whisper cake a lot in a bakery I worked in, and I believe we used Callebaut. It always worked well.

RWood – what did the quinoa add to the cupcakes – texture, taste?Not much of anything that I could tell really. There was a slight texture thing going on, but I wasn't really sure what the point of it was. I think it was more confusing that anything. A lot of the people were thinking it was gluten-free, made with quinoa flour, and I had to explain that it was just added to a regular cupcake.

So, after 6 trials and 2 days production, I finished 900 quinoa cupcakes for Cooking For Solutions at the Monterey Aquarium this weekend. The client we worked with sent a recipe, but it was a bust, so I had to come up with a substitute. They are just a yellow cake with cooked quinoa added. I frosted them with a chocolate stout frosting and topped them with crumbled bacon and chocolate sprinkles. They seemed to be a hit, but we had about half leftover. Better too much than too little I guess. There's way too much food there anyway, so people taste so much they get full fast. Just glad it's over.