Macarons Recipe

How to make it

---

• Mix confectioners' sugar and almond flour in a food processor until combined. Sift mixture until no lumps are left.
• Preheat oven to 375F. Whisk whites with cream of tartar with a mixer on medium speed until soft peaks form. Reduce speed to low, then add sugar. Increase speed to high, and whisk until stiff peaks form, about 8 minutes after you added the sugar. Mix in food coloring and flavoring. Sift flour mixture over whites, and fold until mixture is smooth and shiny.
• Transfer batter to a pastry bag or a zip lock bag with a hole cut in one end. Do this by fitting the bag into a cup, then spoon in the batter. Pipe 3/4-inch rounds 1 inch apart on 2 doubled up baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Tap bottom of each sheet on work surface to release trapped air. Reduce oven temperature to 330F. Bake 1 batch at a time about 10 -15 minutes. After each batch, increase oven temperature to 375F, heat for 5 minutes, then reduce to 330F.
• Let macaroons cool on sheets for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack. (If macaroons stick, spray water underneath parchment on hot sheet. This will release macaroons.)
• Sandwich 2 macaroons with 1 teaspoon filling. Let macarons sit one day (if you can) to let the flavors intensify. You can also freeze macarons for 3 months. For filling see Ganache or Buttercream Recipes by Martha Stewart.
• Tips
• Use aged egg whites (about 2 days at room temperature), sometimes microwaving the eggs for 30 seconds instead can work as well
• Make sure you sift all of your ingredients thoroughly! No Lumps!
• If you can help it, try to cook in a an area with low humidity, or with the air conditioner running
• Don't over mix the eggs! This can lead to a watery meringe. Mix about 8 minutes after all of the sugar has been added.
• Don't over mix dry ingredients! Mix quickly, by folding the ingredients in.
• Play with temperatures and times, everyone's oven is different.
• When the cookies come out of the oven, spray water underneath the parchment paper while they are cooling, this way they come off the paper easier.
• These cookies are fragile! Handle with care!
• Over mixing when adding dry ingredients can also cause a watery batter
• Some find that letting macarons sit for 15 minutes before baking will help prevent cracking, however I have not noticed a significant difference