Recipe for Macaroons with Wild Berries Jam
Crunchy biscuits with a spongy fruity filling
Posted on Monday, 13th of February 2012 by André Correia
Macarons have a reputation for being temperamental, and there’s some truth to that, but once you understand the basics they’re really about patience rather than skill. The key moments are whipping the egg whites just enough (not a second more) and letting the piped biscuits rest before baking so they form that telltale smooth, slightly domed shell. I fill mine with wild berries jam for a tart contrast to the sweetness of the shell, though you can experiment with other fillings once you’ve got the base recipe down. And don’t throw away those leftover egg yolks, they’re exactly what you need for a batch of scrambled eggs the next morning.
Ingredients For two trays
- 5 oz of Egg Whites
- 12 oz of Icing Sugar
- 6 oz of Almond Flour (or Peeled Ground Almonds)
- Red Food Coloring
- Wild Fruit Jelly
Preparation
Beat the egg whites at slow speed while keeping the blades in an upright position (this prevents the egg whites from incorporating too much air). Add 6 ounces of sugar gradually.
Increase the speed of the blades a little. When the whites form a semi-rigid peak taste the mixture, if you do not feel the grainy texture of the sugar then they’re ready.
Sift the almond flour and the remaining sugar into a different bowl and add the dye. Add this mixture to the whites. Form a homogeneous batter incorporating the two mixtures slowly.
Stop mixing when the batter reaches a consistency that’s not too runny or viscous. Place a sheet of parchment paper on the oven trays and use a pastry sleeve to shape the dough into biscuits of uniform size. Let the dough rest in the trays for about 1 hour before baking and keep it away from sources of heat or moisture.
Place the trays in the oven preheated at 300ºF for 12-14 minutes (open the oven every half minute after the 12 minutes mark to check if they’re ready).
After you remove the trays from the oven let them cool down and after a few minutes, carefully remove the macaroons so that the surface doesn’t break, if necessary fold the parchment paper under the macaroons. Fill the flat surface of one of the biscuits with the jam and cover it with another biscuit in order to get a finished macaroon.
You can store the leftover egg yolks and prepare a quick meal of scrambled eggs with sausage and tomatoes.
