Almond Macarons With Vanilla Swiss Meringue Buttercream Food

SIMPLE SWISS MERINGUE MACARONS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
• Use a double boiler and heat and whisk egg whites and granulated sugar until reaches 160 degrees or hot to the touch.
• Add mixture to your mixer and whip until stiff peaks are formed.
• Add almond flour, powdered sugar and any desired flavor ingredient and follow macaronage steps.
• Pipe your mixture onto parchment lined baking sheet in rounds. Lift pan about ten inches above counter and drop a few times to remove bubbles.
• Allow your rounds to sit for about ten minutes. Bake for 18-20 minutes.
• Remove and allow to cool on parchment paper.
• Combine all ingredients in mixer and blend until peaks are formed.
• Pipe filling inside two of your macarons.
• Refrigerate in airtight container until ready to serve.

MIX-AND-MATCH FRENCH MACARONS

Steps:

• Pulse confectioners' sugar and almond flour in a food processor until combined. Sift mixture 2 times.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Whisk whites with a mixer on medium speed until foamy. Add cream of tartar, and whisk until soft peaks form. Reduce speed to low, then add superfine sugar. Increase speed to high, and whisk until stiff peaks form, about 8 minutes. Sift flour mixture over whites, and fold until mixture is smooth and shiny.
• Transfer batter to a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch plain round tip, and pipe 3/4-inch rounds 1 inch apart on parchment-lined baking sheets, dragging pastry tip to the side of rounds rather than forming peaks. Tap bottom of each sheet on work surface to release trapped air. Let stand at room temperature for 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees. Bake 1 sheet at a time, rotating halfway through, until macarons are crisp and firm, about 10 minutes. After each batch, increase oven temperature to 375 degrees, heat for 5 minutes, then reduce to 325 degrees.
• Let macarons cool on sheets for 2 to 3 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack. (If macarons stick, spray water underneath parchment on hot sheet. The steam will help release macarons.)
• Sandwich 2 same-size macarons with 1 teaspoon filling. Serve immediately.

FRENCH ALMOND MACARONS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Sift confectioners' sugar into a bowl. Whisk in almonds; set aside. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or nonstick baking mats (such as Silpats), and mark circles using a 1 1/2-inch cutter dipped in flour.
• Put egg whites in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat on medium speed until foamy, then beat in salt. Beat in granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon at a time, until medium-soft peaks form. Transfer mixture to a large bowl.
• Using a rubber spatula, fold half the almond mixture into the egg white mixture until just incorporated. Fold in vanilla and remaining almond mixture until just incorporated. Firmly tap bottom of bowl on counter to eliminate air pockets.
• Transfer mixture to a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch plain tip (such as Ateco #806). Pipe mixture into marked circles on prepared baking sheets. Bake, rotating sheets halfway through, until macarons are slightly firm and can be gently lifted off parchment (bottoms will be dry), 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool on sheets 5 minutes. Transfer macarons on parchment to a wire rack; let cool completely.
• Spread 2 teaspoons buttercream on flat sides of half the macarons, then sandwich with remaining halves, keeping flat sides together. Refrigerate until firm, about 20 minutes, before serving.

FRENCH ALMOND MACAROONS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or nonstick baking mats. Combine sugar and almonds in food processor fitted with metal blade. Process 3 minutes to grind into a fine powder. If mixture is sticking, scrape down sides of bowl. Add starch and process 1 minute more.
• In another bowl or a mixer, whip egg whites, salt and extract together at medium-high speed until stiff peaks form. Working in 3 additions, fold almond mixture into egg whites, turning over and over until incorporated. Batter will be sticky and thick. Set aside to rest 20 minutes.
• Spoon batter by tablespoons onto prepared pans; cookies will spread to about 3-inch rounds, so leave plenty of room. Bake 1 sheet at a time until cookies are puffed, golden and shiny, 18 to 20 minutes. As soon as cookies come out of oven, remove paper (with cookies on it) from baking sheet. Let cookies cool completely before removing from paper; use a thin metal spatula or knife blade if cookies stick.

SWISS MERINGUE BUTTERCREAM FOR FRENCH ALMOND MACARONS

Steps:

• Put egg whites and sugar in the heatproof bowl of an electric mixer set over a pan of simmering water. Whisking constantly, cook until sugar has dissolved and mixture is warm (about 160 degrees).
• Attach bowl to a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat egg white mixture on high speed until it forms stiff (but not dry) peaks. Continue beating until fluffy and cooled, about 6 minutes.
• Switch to the paddle attachment. With mixer on medium-low, add butter several tablespoons at a time, beating well after each addition. (If frosting appears to separate after all butter has been added, beat on medium-high speed until smooth again, 3 to 5 minutes more.) Beat in vanilla. Reduce speed to low; beat 2 minutes to eliminate air bubbles. Stir with a rubber spatula until smooth.

ALMOND MACAROONS WITH SWISS MERINGUE BUTTERCREAM

Steps:

• Make macaroons:
• Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 300°F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Finely grind almonds with confectioners sugar in a food processor.
• Beat whites with salt in mixer at medium-high speed until they just hold soft peaks.
• Reduce speed to medium, then add granulated sugar, a little at a time, beating, and continue to beat until whites just hold stiff, glossy peaks. Fold almond mixture in 2 batches into whites until just combined, then fold in vanilla and almond extracts. Transfer meringue to pastry bag and pipe 16 (1 1/2-inch-wide) mounds 1 inch apart on each lined baking sheet (32 total). Smooth tops of mounds with a wet fingertip.
• Bake, switching position of sheets halfway through baking, until macaroons are puffed and tops appear dry, 15 to 17 minutes. (Macaroons should be crisp on the outside and chewy on the inside.) Slide parchment with macaroons onto racks and cool 10 minutes, then peel macaroons from parchment, transferring to a rack to cool completely, about 15 minutes.
• Make buttercream:
• Vigorously whisk together whites, sugar, and salt in cleaned mixer bowl set over a 4-quart pot of barely simmering water until sugar is dissolved and mixture is warm. Put bowl in mixer and beat with cleaned whisk attachment at medium-high speed until whites hold stiff, glossy peaks. Continue to beat, scraping down side of bowl with a rubber spatula, until meringue is completely cool to the touch, about 5 minutes.
• With mixer at medium speed, gradually add butter 1 piece at a time, beating well after each addition until incorporated. (If buttercream looks soupy after some butter is added, meringue is still too warm. If so, briefly chill bottom of bowl in a large bowl filled with ice water for a few seconds before beating in remaining butter.) Continue beating until buttercream is smooth. (Mixture may look curdled before all of butter is added but will come back together by the time beating is finished.) Add vanilla and almond extracts and beat 1 minute more.
• Assemble cookies:
• Transfer buttercream to cleaned pastry bag and pipe about 1 tablespoon onto flat sides of 16 macaroons, then top with remaining 16 macaroons.

ALMOND MACAROONS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Put almond paste, sugar, and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium speed until crumbly, about 3 minutes. Add egg white and vanilla. Mix until smooth and thickened, about 3 minutes.
• Drop batter by tablespoons onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, spacing 2 inches apart. Place 2 almond slices on each mound of dough. Bake until cookies are golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool completely on a wire rack. Just before serving, lightly dust cookies with sugar.

ALMOND MACAROONS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325°. In a large bowl, mix the first 5 ingredients until blended. Drop mixture by tablespoonfuls 2 in. apart onto parchment-lined baking sheets., Bake 16-20 minutes or until light brown. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool completely., Drizzle cookies with melted chocolate; let stand until set. Store in an airtight container.

JOHN'S ALMOND SWISS MERINGUE BUTTERCREAM

Steps:

• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter until smooth.
• In the heatproof bowl of an electric mixer set over a pan of simmering water, combine egg whites and sugar. Whisk constantly until the sugar has dissolved and mixture is very warm to the touch, 3 to 5 minutes.
• Attach the bowl to the electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment; beat, starting on low speed and gradually increasing to high, until stiff, glossy peaks form, about 5 minutes. Add almond extract and continue beating until incorporated. Switch to the paddle attachment. With the mixer on medium-high speed, quickly add butter, a few tablespoons at a time, beating until mixture is smooth and has increased in volume. (If the frosting appears to separate after all the butter has been added, continue beating until smooth again.), Reduce speed to low, and continue beating for 2 minutes to eliminate any air bubbles.