Pistachio Macarons
I always hate being asked to pick my favorite thing to bake because how can I pick just one thing?! Well, it turns out that if pressed the answer is going to be macarons.
Macarons are a labor of love and in truth it has taken me several years to get the hang of making them. But I truly enjoy each pain staking step of the process. Another great thing about macarons is that you can pretty much adapt them to any flavor you’d like!
I love these pistachio macs because it combines the traditional almond flavor with that nuttiness of the pistachios.
What you’ll need for the macarons:
– 100 grams egg whites (just shy of 1/2 cup)
– 100 grams granulated sugar (1/2 cup)
– 80 grams almond flour, sifted (3/4 cup)
– 105 grams powdered sugar, sifted (1 cup)
– 25 grams finely ground pistachios, sifted (3 T)
– 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
– Electric green food color (optional)
What you’ll need for the buttercream:
– 1/2 cup butter, room temp
– 240 grams powdered sugar (2 cups)
– 25 grams ground pistachios (3 T)
– 1 Tablespoon milk
– 1/4 teaspoon salt
What you’ll do:
– Line 2 12×16 sheet pans with parchment or a silpat. Fit a large piping bag with a #10 piping tip
– Combine your egg whites and granulated sugar in a heat proof bowl. Add about an inch of water to a small pot and bring it to a simmer. Place your bowl with the egg whites and sugar over the bowl and whisk until the sugar has dissolved (I dip my finger into the bowl to see if I can feel any granules).
– Once the sugar has dissolved, immediately transfer to a larger bowl and whisk until stiff peaks form (you’ll want to use a stand or hand mixer for this).
– Once you have stiff peaks, add your remaining sifted ingredients, extract, and several drops of food color. Fold to combine with a rubber spatula. Once you see that everything is incorporated, begin to beat the batter against the side of the bowl as this will make it less thick (this technique is called macaronage). You’ll know that your batter is the correct consistency when you can draw a figure 8. (To make a figure 8, get some batter on your spatula. Allow it to slowly fall off your spatula – about an inch or so above the rest of the batter- while drawing the number 8. If you can do this a couple times without the batter breaking off from itself, then you’re good to go!)
– Transfer about a third of your batter to your piping bag and begin to pipe out your cookies (you’ll get 48 all together, give or take a few depending on your size). You’ll want to hold the bag straight down while piping as this will ensure that you make a perfect circle. Be sure to leave some space between each as they will spread out a bit as they settle. Once you have filled a sheet, tap the sheet against your counter to allow any bubbles to pop. Continue these steps until you run out of batter.
– Allow your macarons to rest for 20 – 40 minutes (this could taken even longer depending on the humidity of your house). This will give them time to form a skin on the top. You’ll know it is ready to bake when you can lightly tap the surface and nothing sticks to your finger.
– Preheat your oven to 325F. Once ready, bake for 5 minutes, rotate the tray, and bake for another 4 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely before trying to lift them.
– While your macarons are cooling, make your icing by adding all of the ingredients to a bowl and mix on a medium setting for a couple minutes. Transfer to a piping bag fitted with a coupler.
– Once your macarons have cooled, flip over every other cookie and pipe on a dollop of icing. Take the remaining cookies and gently press onto the cookies with the icing until the icing reaches the edges.
– ENJOY!
A few notes:
– I recommend having everything pre-measured out before starting. Macarons take patience and attention to detail so having everything ready to go can make things run a bit more smoothly.
– For the ground pistachios, I went ahead and ground the amounts needed for both the macs and icing at the same time, sifted it, and used the more finely ground half for the macs.
– Watch this video to see a good example of the figure 8 test.
– If you are new to piping, I highly recommend using some sort of guide to help. I use these mats from Amazon, but you can also print off a template (or trace our your own!) and slide it under your parchment.
– If you are having trouble piping consistent circles, try counting in your head. Think: “Pipe 1, 2, 3, 4.., Stop.” The number you count to will vary depending on the size you pipe and how hard you squeeze your bag, but you get the idea.
– If you’re getting a peek on the top of your circles, stop squeezing out batter before flicking away. Think: “Pipe, pipe, pipe, stop piping. Flick away.”
– When you’re checking to see if your macarons are ready to bake, don’t jam your finger into them. You want to use a very gentle touch, as if you were lightly applying ointment to a painful cut or burn. (Not the best food friendly visual but hopefully you see my point. Lol!)
– If you like in a humid area, it helps to place your drying macs under a ceiling fan.
– I was always told that you’ll know your macarons are done when you can lift them off the tray. It wasn’t until I stopped listening to this technique that my macarons stopped being over baked. That may work for someone some where, but not for me and not for this recipe.
Follow this link for my Fruity Pebble Macarons!