Macarons – The delicate French invention.

[gfron1]

I double panned, but I always have my 'high altitude' excuse. I've got a second round in the oven right now.

[Lisa2k]

First off, I just want to start by saying I'm a newbie, and this is my first post. I've been reading the messages here on and off for several years, and finally decided to join in, since, in my opinion.. egullet is the best 'all things culinary' message forum on the net.

That said..Jeff, the flavor combo of your macarons sound spectacular, not to mention they look beautiful.

I was thinking of doing a colorful array of macarons for a party, starting with a bright green pistachio, possibly filled with a whipped white chocolate ganache. I would love to incorporate some great pistachio paste I made into the meringue, and was wondering if it would be better to whip it in with a swiss meringue, since it's more stable or just egg whites and sugar?

[AmritaBala]

GORGEOUS!!!! BRAVO!

Some questions, though...

1. what is your measure of 1 unit?

2. why egg white powder in an italian meringue....and also, for which measure of a unit would i need 1 tsp of egg white powder? ( using it sounds like a genius idea, btw)

3. do u cook the syrup to 110 or 118?

Ive been having SO many problems with my macarons. Lop sided feet, crusty, crunchy, dry. They used to be perfect. then suddenly, one day, they just went INSANE. it is depressing, i tell you!

[Lisa2k]

I just realized, the above question about adding pistachio paste to the actual macaron cookie wasn't worded correctly. What I want to know is, since I've only used ground pistachios, almonds and castor sugar in my macarons, is it possible to use pistachio paste along with the almond-castor sugar meal and , and if so, can it be added to a more stable swiss or italian meringue during beating, or just the egg whites as I add the sugar? OR, would it be better to add some pistachio paste to the almond-castor sugar meal, and give it a whiz in the robocoupe, then fold in as usual?

I'm sorry for the persistance, but I really want to incorporate this wonderful paste into the actual cookie, and not just the filling. I spent almost an hour with the mortar and pestle getting a perfectly, slightly sweet (simple syrup), smooth paste, and it's so incredibly flavorful, as all the oils just exploded out of those nuts.

[AmritaBala]

Hmmm...that's a tough one! I would suggest using Italian meringue if you wanna add the paste to the shell. It might bomb if you use french or swiss meringue. I suggest adding no more than 2 tbsp of the paste to your almond "putty".

I actually bought some Sevaron Pistachio paste the other day and I think its the most disgusting thing on earth. It has only 20% pistachios and the rest of the stuff is made up of sugar and ethanol...gross! I think I'll stick to making my own, like you do. However, the last time I made it, it still had numerous coarse bits of nuts in it..

[Lisa2k]

Thanks so much for the advice, Amrita. I'll definitely be heeding it.

Having said that..I couldn't agree more about a good portion of the pistachio pastes you can purchase. None of them are anywhere near as good as when you make it yourself (well, that's the old culinary adage). As for the coarse bits..this is why my wrist and forearm are currently sore. I wouldn't stop until I crushed every one of those bits into a silky powder before adding anything else. Ouch, but worth it.

Finally, I checked out your Flickr page, and your macarons (and pretty much everything else you create) are incredible. The flavor combos you come up with are so creative and mouth watering, not to mention, they look gorgeous! I wanted to grab the lime macarons, with the lime gelee, right out of the photo!

[AmritaBala]

Thanks for the lovely comments, Lisa

However, i've been having extremely terrible results with macarons for the past 2 weeks or so. (

They end up lop sided or have feet which look like sunhats! I used to boil my syrup to 118 and it worked for a great deal of time, then I suddenly had this sunhat problem. I then changed my temp. to 110 celsius and it worked for a great deal of time as well. However, the same sunhat problem is happening to me again!!! How stupid/spooky/annoying is that??

Sometimes, one side doesn't have feet but the other side's feet explode, so the macaron resembles a baseball cap

[Lisa2k]

Amrita, I'm going through that with an upside down Chocolate-Chai-Chile flake (My 3C cupcake) cupcake recipe I've been using for years! Suddenly, even though I hadn't changed a thing, not even brands of baking powder/soda, flour, sugar etc..or technique, they started flattening and spreading on the top. Granted, since it's upside down, I just cut the flat rim off, but it's not as light and fluffy as it always was. Sometimes strange things happen in baking, and it's inexplicable! I've also tried adjusting time and temp, playing with the ingredient amounts etc..but no dice. I guess I'll have to wait until those ornery baking gods let it go and give it back to me. Someone else is getting their love now.

Is your latest problem maybe due to the weather? Maybe there's a teeny bit of humdity lurking somewhere? I made some macarons last night, and some domed a bit, while others had raggedy tops, which has never happened before, but it's drizzly and slightly humid, so I'm hoping that's all it is.

[khilde]

Amrita, I too have been having the lopsided macaroon problem -- I had about 5 batches over a week or so that ALL turned out lopsided -- I even tried different recipes. I have had success with them before, so I have NO idea what the problem is. However, if anyone DOES know what causes a lopsided macaroon, I would be most thankful for the information!!

[alanamoana]

uneven heat in oven?

[iii_bake]

have you changed the tray, the tray position, the lining, the oven, the oven setting 9 including fan vs without fan?

These things affect the result a lot.

Not sure if this helps though,

Still, happy baking ( huh)

iii

Edited April 2, 2008 by iii_bake (log)

[AmritaBala]

Amrita, I too have been having the lopsided macaroon problem -- I had about 5 batches over a week or so that ALL turned out lopsided -- I even tried different recipes.  I have had success with them before, so I have NO idea what the problem is.  However, if anyone DOES know what causes a lopsided macaroon, I would be most thankful for the information!!

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have you changed the tray, the tray position, the lining, the oven, the oven setting 9 including fan vs without fan?

These things affect the result a lot.

Not sure if this helps though,

Still, happy baking (   huh)

iii

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Another strange thing is that they are coming out hollow and CRUNCHY. god, CRUNCHY!...

I've tempo. switched to french meringue since I NEED to make macarons (im selling them)....and the STRANGE thing is, they do not turn out lop sided! And the good thing is they soften quickly once you fill them as well.

However, as we all know, french meringue doesn't produce consistent results, so I really need to find out what I'm doing wrong with my italian meringue macarons!!! (.....

I bake them for 10 minutes on fan setting...without using the fan, I find that the feet dont rise properly...

Edited April 2, 2008 by AmritaBala (log)

[lennyk]

I would guess uneven heat also, does the lopside happen on the same side of the oven ?

the way this macaron thing works is that after it is piped

the surface dries with a crust which the sugar helps(similar to a brownie)

then the heat causes the tiny air bubbles in the batter to expand but since the top surface is now sealed due to the crust the batter expands from the bottom and hence the foot forms.

if you were to bake them without drying to get a crust and sticky to touch most likely they will fail and the surface will be like a sponge which expanded then contracted with a lot of tiny holes which are the bubbles which came through the surface.

the hollow void inside is probably the trickiest to pinpoint or get right since it would most likely be formed when the bubbles expand inside and burst/join and eventually form a bigger bubble or air gap inside, could also be related to how overmixed or undermixed the batter was which would cause too many bubbles to join together and form the big void inside.

I can get them to come out pretty ok now but my times are much different, dunno why, could be my oven is inconsistent with regulating temp. Italian is the way for me.

I have to bake them at about 350 to get a proper rise with foot and 15 mins to get the inside the right softness, anything less and its almost uncooked, this is with both single tray and doubled up trays.

If I do 2 trays, one above the next in the oven the lower tray comes out much different than the top so I have to pull them and swap at the right time.

Edited April 2, 2008 by lennyk (log)

[gfron1]

Lenny - I really appreciate that explanation. Completely makes sense but I hadn't thought it through before. I'm assuming when you say 15 minutes, you're talking about a 1-2 inch macaron, and not the larger ones. Is that correct?

[lennyk]

yeah about 1 1/2 inches

my oven is not a convection though, I have never used a convection oven

[AmritaBala]

hey lenny.

awesome explanation...thanks!

Anyway, I tried using french meringue for the 3rd time in 2 days today. Perfect, I must say. I am getting used to this lazy method (less clean up, really!).....

They aren't hollow, though I do find it more difficult to get smooth tops...they also tend to use the same amount of nuts but produce a way smaller amount of macarons than italian meringue....

Also, there seem to be little air bubbles on top of the macaron after they're piped...I don't have this problem with Italian, though. Any solutions ?

Other than that, there aren't any problems. Which brings me to think that the problem with my italian meringue is the sugar's temp? I used 110 celsius for ages and it worked perfectly. Then after things started to go wonky, I tried 120 celsius like pierre herme mentioned in his recipes. Those turned out EVEN worst.

I don't wanna rely on french meringue since results aren't consistent. However, I do find that they dont take as long to soften once filled and dont need to be kept out of the fridge for 5 mins to soften before eating. Not to mention, they take on food coloring very easily and produce vivid colored macarons..

Am I starting to annoy you? =op

[lennyk]

are you tapping the sheet from below after piping ?

Also shake the sheet from side to side and back and forth hard, it will help smoothen a little

I usually hold one baking sheet in each hand and use the corner of one to hit the other from below by holding one above the other and just turning my wrist with the lower one so the corner or edge of it hits the sheet above.

It also helps to whack the bowl on the ground with a carpet or mat to clear some of the bubbles in the batter before filling the bag

btw do you guys use any cream of tartar with the egg whites ?

[AmritaBala]

are you tapping the sheet from below after piping ?

Also shake the sheet from side to side and back and forth hard, it will help smoothen a little

I usually hold one baking sheet in each hand and use the corner of one to hit the other from below by holding one above the other and just turning my wrist with the lower one so the corner or edge of it hits the sheet above.

It also helps to whack the bowl on the ground with a carpet or mat to clear some of the bubbles in the batter before filling the bag

btw do you guys use any cream of tartar with the egg whites ?

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Yes, I do bang it voilently on the counter...hehe........I think I need to fold the batter properly...

Also, do you macarons stay "matte'' once out of the fridge? I hate condensation which turns it glossy!!

And when I have tartar on the hand, yes, I do use it. If not, then I just use salt..a large pinch. I find that it stabilizes the meringue a littler (esp. in french)....and cuts the sweetness of the macaron.

[AmritaBala]

Here's my attempt at french meringue

Passiofruit, espresso, salted caramel

[khilde]

Amrita,

First of all, your macaroons are gorgeous!! Second, I think we might be on to something here -- every Italian meringue macaroon recipe I've tried has come out lopsided -- I always use double pans. I've changed the temperature, changed from convection, changed recipes, etc. I've only had luck with the French macaroon recipes -- altough I've had different problems with them as well. But it is always the Italian meringue macaroons that turn out lopsided. So, it must be something about the Italian meringue ... but what??

[schneich]

we freeze the macs to help them GET glossy... also we found out that the result is far far better if you bake em on damp baking paper and not on silpats... :-) perfect result every time, and yes we use a sugar reduced italian meringue...

cheers

t.

[gap]

I'm asking questions of you on multiple threads here schneich, but when you say bake on damp baking paper, do you dampen the baking paper first and then pipe onto the damp paper or do you pipe onto dry paper and then dampen the paper after? Wouldn't mind giving this technique a go

Cheers

[raagamuffin]

we have successfully been doing macaroons on untreated parchements and as long as the recipe is not too we they tend to come out of the sheet well.

In case of chocolate macaroons ,where the italian meringue recipes have and edge,the macaroons tend to be sticky (also,meaning more gooey and fun to eat).

[lennyk]

Amrita,

you macs look really good, in fact I hardly ever get my feet to look like that, my feet always extend a bit outwards unlike yours which have a nice rise and dont stick out much.

[raagamuffin]

Amrita,

you macs look really good, in fact I hardly ever get my feet to look like that, my feet always extend a bit outwards unlike yours which have a nice rise and dont stick out much.

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