Let's Talk French Macarons

Baking By stresseddesserts Updated 4 Sep 2013 , 5:12am by ellavanilla

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playingwithsugar Posted 15 Sep 2010 , 1:29am
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I was in New York City yesterday. I'm not normally a fan of macarons, but I had the best darn macarons I've ever tasted. They were made by Chef Herve Poussot from the Almondine Bakery in DUMBO. So tender, so light, not at all like the communion wafers I've had at other places.

I want more.

Theresa icon_smile.gif

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Marvan704 Posted 17 Sep 2010 , 3:08pm
post #32 of 59

Hola, I am dying to bake French macaroons. For months I have been reading books and blogs about the topic but my problem is the humidity. I live in Puerto Rico and the humidity is very high. The ingredients (the almonds or almond meal) are very expensive here and I dont want to fail and lose all that money!!!What do you recommend?

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Bluehue Posted 17 Sep 2010 , 3:27pm
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Quote:
Originally Posted by luv2bake6

If i were to trace circles on the parchment paper, how big should they be?
Also, does anyone have the measurements of ingredients in cups and tsp? I don't have a scale in the house. Thanks.




You don't have a location listed in your profile so can you tell us what country you live in so as i know whether to post in metric or imperial...
There is a differance.

Bluehue.

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jonahsmom Posted 17 Sep 2010 , 3:30pm
post #34 of 59

I was wondering the same thing as luv2bake6 as far as cups and tsps - so I'll be watching. I know everything I've read says that weighing is best, but wondering if anyone has pulled it off successfully the other way! icon_smile.gif

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jonahsmom Posted 17 Sep 2010 , 3:31pm
post #35 of 59
Quote:
Originally Posted by TracyLH

Quote:
Quote:

In France Cookie Monster is just known as: MACARON



icon_smile.gif




That is AWESOME!!! Cookie Monster has and will always be my favorite. Love this!!!!

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luv2bake6 Posted 17 Sep 2010 , 7:28pm
post #36 of 59
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bluehue

Quote:
Originally Posted by luv2bake6

If i were to trace circles on the parchment paper, how big should they be?
Also, does anyone have the measurements of ingredients in cups and tsp? I don't have a scale in the house. Thanks.



You don't have a location listed in your profile so can you tell us what country you live in so as i know whether to post in metric or imperial...
There is a differance.

sorry, in the US

Bluehue.


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butterlove Posted 19 Sep 2010 , 4:45am
post #37 of 59

Hi Marvan704,

I am living in a high humidity area too. I have seen people around here make macarons with some success though so there must be a way. I live on the Equator.

It's probably a good idea to control the temperature of your work area by working in an airconditioned kitchen/ room with closed windows?

At any length, refer to some of the Macaron Masters that I've referenced in an earlier post on this thread and see what they have to say.

The good thing about macarons is that while it may be difficult to make pretty ones, I'm told they they still taste pretty good crushed up and made into some other sort of dessert or used as a multi-coloured topping. It won't all go to waste.

Goodluck.

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BORIKS03 Posted 3 Oct 2010 , 6:22pm
post #38 of 59

great thread

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butterlove Posted 4 Oct 2010 , 3:27am
post #39 of 59
Quote:
Originally Posted by luv2bake6

If i were to trace circles on the parchment paper, how big should they be?
Also, does anyone have the measurements of ingredients in cups and tsp? I don't have a scale in the house. Thanks.




I think the classic circles for macaron piping are about 3.8cm / 1.5 inches in diameter and many recommend using a #807 or #809 piping tip.

I think it's okay to make them smaller or larger or any shape you like. I have seen many people make them heart shapes, bear faces, and even gingerbread men-shaped. The fancier tricks are harder to pipe.

Pierre Hermes made a huge one with two little ones attached to look like Mickey Mouse.

I found a great tip by Humble Pie who says that it is better to err in the way of overbaking of macarons rather than underbaking them. They end up crispy but this crispiness can be resolved by filling them and aging (maturing) them in the fridge for a day or two and then bringing them back to room temperature when serving. Apparently, this is what the patisseries do - sell matured macarons.

This tip was fascinating.

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stresseddesserts Posted 9 Feb 2011 , 12:59am
post #40 of 59

Okay I've been experimenting for a while now. Here are some of my tips!

*Aged egg whites* I put the egg whites in a container uncovered for a few hours in the fridge, then cover them up and leave it for a few days
(this will give you a big foot)

*Almond flour must be air dried (dont store in containers or sealed bags).

*In the day of making Mac's use aged egg whites and 1 fresh egg white (still from shell)

*Use powdered color

*Do not overmix

*Pipe macs on a silpat or any other baking mat (still works fine with parchment paper)

*Tap tray & let them air dry for 30m

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KakeMistress Posted 9 Feb 2011 , 1:28am
post #41 of 59

just the subject of Macarons makes me cringe LOL. For my daughters 6th Birthday I wanted to make rasberry Macarons with cheesecake filling and then stamp a picture of a butterfly on top of them with food coloring. I decided that I would practice a few days before her birthday, ohhhhhh that poor fateful day I was all excited and amped up had my eggs sitting on my stove from the night before as well as my other items I needed. That day i did 6 batches as that was the number I had PLANNED on making. Not a SINGLE one came out from any of the batches. I was so frustrated and upset that I finally had an emotional breakdown on my husbands chest. All he could do was laugh because I looked so "pitiful and pathetic" he tried to explain it as "well honey they are fancy cookies" and then thats when I lost it I started whining like an emotionally disturbed 5 year old saying that I was fancy too and I should be able to make the fancy cookies. icon_eek.gif Not my proudest moment but after that I decided that I would stick with the 3 tiered cake I was already working on and forget about the macarons for the birthday party.

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MaryAllison Posted 9 Feb 2011 , 1:37am
post #42 of 59

Sur la Table offers a class on macarons. It was very informative and removed all hesitation. I highly recommend it!

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stresseddesserts Posted 9 Feb 2011 , 1:52am
post #43 of 59
Quote:
Originally Posted by KakeMistress

just the subject of Macarons makes me cringe LOL. For my daughters 6th Birthday I wanted to make rasberry Macarons with cheesecake filling and then stamp a picture of a butterfly on top of them with food coloring. I decided that I would practice a few days before her birthday, ohhhhhh that poor fateful day I was all excited and amped up had my eggs sitting on my stove from the night before as well as my other items I needed. That day i did 6 batches as that was the number I had PLANNED on making. Not a SINGLE one came out from any of the batches. I was so frustrated and upset that I finally had an emotional breakdown on my husbands chest. All he could do was laugh because I looked so "pitiful and pathetic" he tried to explain it as "well honey they are fancy cookies" and then thats when I lost it I started whining like an emotionally disturbed 5 year old saying that I was fancy too and I should be able to make the fancy cookies. icon_eek.gif Not my proudest moment but after that I decided that I would stick with the 3 tiered cake I was already working on and forget about the macarons for the birthday
party.





That happened to me! I made 3 batches non came out, then used 4th batch with some of my tips plus measuring the ingredients with a scale! It worked!

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butterlove Posted 9 Feb 2011 , 4:07am
post #44 of 59

Hi Kakemistress,

I completely sympathise with you on your MacFail. It is a crazy cookie to make.
Reminds me of the many times I have dropped a cake hot out of the oven en-route to the counter. I think a Mac fail is more sophisticated than being a Cake Klutz like me.
I haven't tried making macarons yet and am planning a spectacular fail myself but they tell me even failed macs taste pretty good. I just want to try and see how wonderfully terrible at making them I can be
I commend you on your epic effort (6 batches IS epic!) and wish you all the best with future macs.

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KakeMistress Posted 10 Feb 2011 , 1:29am
post #45 of 59
Quote:
Originally Posted by butterlove

Hi Kakemistress,

I completely sympathise with you on your MacFail. It is a crazy cookie to make.
Reminds me of the many times I have dropped a cake hot out of the oven en-route to the counter. I think a Mac fail is more sophisticated than being a Cake Klutz like me.
I haven't tried making macarons yet and am planning a spectacular fail myself but they tell me even failed macs taste pretty good. I just want to try and see how wonderfully terrible at making them I can be
I commend you on your epic effort (6 batches IS epic!) and wish you all the best with future macs.





LOL I dont think there will be future batches, my husband tried the Failed ones and didnt even like the taste of them icon_cry.gif I just wanted them cause they were supposed to be pretty pink raspberry cookie, white cheesecake filling and then I was going to use black food coloring to use on the butterfly stamp I wanted to stamp the macs with. Oh well, I cant make sugar cookies either to save my life, and as my husband says you cant be good at anything, I just have a hard time failing LOL.

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JGMB Posted 10 Feb 2011 , 4:17pm
post #46 of 59
Quote:
Originally Posted by KakeMistress


and as my husband says you cant be good at anything,




He'd better NOT say that to, or your CakeCentral buddies will jump to your defense!!! icon_lol.gificon_lol.gif

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KakeMistress Posted 11 Feb 2011 , 1:55pm
post #47 of 59
Quote:
Originally Posted by JGMB

Quote:
Originally Posted by KakeMistress


and as my husband says you cant be good at anything,



He'd better NOT say that to, or your CakeCentral buddies will jump to your defense!!! icon_lol.gificon_lol.gif




LMAO I ment EVERYthing. I probably had him and my daughter talking to me at the same time and I wasnt really paying attention.

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KDuncan51 Posted 11 Feb 2011 , 3:54pm
post #48 of 59

I've been making macarons for awhile now and have had moderate success but they have not been perfect. I usually get them to either look perfect on the outside but a little hollow on the inside (using a silpat) or they're perfect on the inside but misshapen on the outside (parchment that puckers). Has anyone tried "reusable parchment" for macarons? I see it on Amazon and am intrigued. It seems to be a cross between a silpat and parchment? Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

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izzybee Posted 22 Feb 2011 , 1:27am
post #49 of 59

I have mastered a recipe, but now I don't know how to package them! Any ideas?

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scp1127 Posted 22 Feb 2011 , 7:35am
post #50 of 59

You can package them in fancy gift boxes. Just wrap or put them on top of foodsafe paper. There are tons of sites offering boxes in bulk. I found some that match my regular packaging.

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Nusi Posted 22 Feb 2011 , 8:36am
post #51 of 59

there is a recipie on cake journal that looks good

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Sunny3760 Posted 8 Mar 2013 , 4:31pm
post #52 of 59

Does anyone know the best way to make a macaron tower?  I've seen them stuck to styrofoam with toothpicks, but that doesn't seem like a good idea. Thanks for your help!

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GingerPopsSA Posted 12 Mar 2013 , 7:44am
post #53 of 59

After I tried them out of town for the first time I decided I had to be able to make them, since no one where I live was making them at the time. I did a lot of reading up on them, and it does seem over whelming at first but it's not that difficult. I find that these are the most important factors when making them:
 

  1. Use finely ground almond flour and make sure you sift it. If you let big bits of almond get into it you will have cookie lookalike macs. Another point is that when the ground almond particles are big they don't trap the liquid well. This often causes an ugly macaron "foot" that sticks out at the bottom.
  2. Don't use almond flour that looks oily - store it in the freezer or a cool dry place.
  3. I sift my icing sugar into the sifted almonds, then whisk the 2 together and sift in small batches into another bowl. This combines it pretty well and means you don't have to sift it another 4 times to mix it properly.
  4. Don't overheat or underheat your syrup for the meringue. Underheat it, and your Macaron's bottom half may not stay attached and your macarons shell will not stay crisp for long. Overheat it, and your macarons won't flatten out nicely leaving a possibly lumpy top part. 
  5. Let them dry out a bit. I normally let them sit for about 30 to 40 minutes first, and then put them into an oven preheated to 220 degrees C and switch the oven off. It only needs about 11 minutes and then pop the oven onto a low temp eg 145 -150C for another 14 minutes.
  6. Piping with the right technique will save you a lot of heartache. Bluehue recommended using a traced stencil of sorts which will help a lot. You could also permanently mark your macaron trays with a non toxic marker which will save you those additional 5 minutes each time you make macarons.
  7. I don't wet the counter when I pull the sheets of baked macarons onto it. I find that it you just allow the macarons to cool right down before moving them, they come off clean by themselves.

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GRAMSB123 Posted 26 Mar 2013 , 6:08pm
post #54 of 59

Hi I know this is a little late in answering but I just found this site I thought you might like for boxes for Macarons...

brpboxshop.com

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pquinene Posted 29 Mar 2013 , 8:14pm
post #55 of 59

Here's a video I did of macarons on YouTube:  The Ultimate French Macaron recipe using French meringue

 

Here isa link to the written recipe:  PaulaQ's Macaron Recipe

 

For an enjoyable read on Kindle, here is a link to my book, Macarons Math, Science, and Art.......more details.

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havealittle Posted 31 Mar 2013 , 3:39pm
post #56 of 59

Just stumbled upon this thread....I have never mad macarons, but have been fascinated by them. I was wondering...could you use the containers of egg whites that you can buy in the store, instead of cracking eggs? Just curious....

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ellavanilla Posted 27 Aug 2013 , 5:47pm
post #57 of 59
Quote:
Originally Posted by havealittle 

Just stumbled upon this thread....I have never mad macarons, but have been fascinated by them. I was wondering...could you use the containers of egg whites that you can buy in the store, instead of cracking eggs? Just curious....

 

Nope. Pasteurized egg whites won't make a fluffy meringue. They just don't inflate. 

 

Does anyone have a tip for adding the right amount of food coloring? I used red and my cookies were barely pink after baking

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jennicake Posted 27 Aug 2013 , 9:16pm
post #58 of 59
Quote:
Originally Posted by ellavanilla 

Quote:
Originally Posted by havealittle 

Just stumbled upon this thread....I have never mad macarons, but have been fascinated by them. I was wondering...could you use the containers of egg whites that you can buy in the store, instead of cracking eggs? Just curious....

 

Nope. Pasteurized egg whites won't make a fluffy meringue. They just don't inflate. 

 

Does anyone have a tip for adding the right amount of food coloring? I used red and my cookies were barely pink after baking

I always use pasteurized egg whites (don't want to waste yolks) and have no trouble making macarons.  I agree with your comment about not getting a fluffy meringue, but the egg whites do deflate when they are mixed with the almond flour... maybe thats why some of us still have luck with pasteurized whites?

 

Powdered food coloring should help.  I got a nice shade of blue that way

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ellavanilla Posted 4 Sep 2013 , 5:12am
post #59 of 59

Quote:

Originally Posted by jennicake 
 

I always use pasteurized egg whites (don't want to waste yolks) and have no trouble making macarons.  I agree with your comment about not getting a fluffy meringue, but the egg whites do deflate when they are mixed with the almond flour... maybe thats why some of us still have luck with pasteurized whites?

 

Powdered food coloring should help.  I got a nice shade of blue that way

 

 

I"m going to try both, thank you!

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