Lemon meringue macaron (recipe)

After several (okay fine, maybe it was more like a dozen...) frustrating attempts, countless reading of other foodie blogs, watching youtube tutorials, and investing in 'how to make macaron' cooking books ..... I FINALLY DID IT!!!!

You should have seen me, the neighbours probably heard me! I was jumping up and down, screaming my head off, pretty much like this. After goodness knows how many attempts, I finally had little perfect macaron's that had feet and macaron's that didn't look like they had exploded from the inside out.

So, what was I doing so horribly wrong? EVERYTHING that's been suggested out there, so: aging the egg whites, using flat sturdy baking trays, not underbeating or overbeating the mixture, using paste food colouring and not liquid, making sure your oven's at the right temperature, letting the macaron's form a skin, drying out the almond meal, not making them on a humid day (and the lists goes on), I DID, I listened and I obeyed. I had a mini crisis, started to doubt my ability in the kitchen. 

There's one thing that all these other blogs, tutorials, books, and masterchef's have failed to mention. Make sure you don't buy cheap home brand baking paper! It's so obvious isn't it? What makes me so annoyed is that it's such a small problem that could have been so easily fixed and would've saved me so many hair pulling moments. 

Theoretically, when the macaron is in the oven, the heat causes the air in the mixture to expand. Now because the macaron has formed a nice, firm-to-touch skin, instead of the air escaping out the top, the air gently forces the macaron slightly up off the baking tray, forming a nice frilly 'foot'. 

So because my macaron's were nice and firmly stuck to the baking sheet (thanks to my budget saving baking paper!..and by budget i mean a saving of like $2) my macaron's couldn't 'lift off' so to speak. Instead, all the pressure got built up inside the macaron's and eventually found a little gap to spurt out the side.

Anyway, enough of me ranting over failed macarons! Instead, I shall write out the recipe that worked for me, filled with all the tips and hints I learned whilst trying to discover what I was doing wrong!

Recipe for macaron shells:

Adapted recipe from Mad about Macarons - Jill Colonna for lemon meringue macarons(I highly recommend this book! great pictures and recipes for lots of different flavours. She even has a Tikka Macsala macaron recipe!)

Equipment:

- Electronic digital scale

I cannot STRESS the importance of this. Don't do what I did and think you may as well give it a go...the ingredients need to be weighed precisely to the gram

- electric whisk (hand or stand machine)

- a large silicone spatula

- a piping bag with a plain nozzle (8-10mm)

- a flexible plastic scraper 

- flat baking trays lined with greaseproof baking paper

After my rant above I'm sure I've convinced you about the importance of a good baking paper. Flat baking trays are important for even looking macaron shells
- a sieve
- two mixing bowls

Ingredients: (I have divided the original recipe in half because a) it's easier and quicker to work with and b) less wastage if you get it wrong! You'll get approximately 20-30 macaron's)
- 75g egg whites, aged for 4-5 days at room temperature
- 50g caster sugar
- 90g pure almond meal
- 135g icing sugar (not icing mixture!)
- yellow food colouring paste

Method:
1. Sift the almond meal and icing sugar together in a large bowl. Mix well until combined. Set aside.
2. Using the electric mixture, whisk up the egg whites in the second bowl. Start at a slow speed, and then gradually increase. Once the egg whites are frothy, slowly add in the caster sugar until glossy firm peaks. Add in a couple of drops of food colouring towards the end of mixing until desired colour is reached
3.  Mix all of the egg whites in with the dry ingredients using a large spatula. Mix well.
Contrary to what most people think, you do not need to be gentle at this stage. You don't need to fold the mixture, just mix it like you were a big batch of cookies.  After all this isn't a pavlova we're making, but a biscuit. Make sure you mix well to ensure a smooth macaron shell result. The mixture should be quite stodgy at this stage.
4. Using the flexible plastic scraper, 'work' the mixture. This involves pressing down on the mixture with the scraper, moving back and forth. This is to press out the oxygen from the egg whites. NB you shouldn't need to 'work' the mixture for more than a minute or two! any longer and it will be overmixed
As you work the mixture, the batter becomes less stodgy. The more you work the batter, the more liquid-y it will become. The mixture is ready when it falls off your plastic scraper in a ribbon and should fall back into the mixture with a magma (lava) like consistency. If you overmix your macaron's will be flat, if you undermix and the mixture is too stodgy they may crack.
5. Transfer the mixture into a piping bag with the plain nozzle attached. You may find it easier to support your piping bag in a tall glass. Place the bag flat on the kitchen bench and use the scraper to push out all the mixture to the tip of the piping bag. 
6. Pipe out the mixture into ~20c round pieces onto the lined baking trays. 
7. Leave for 30-60minutes for the macarons to set. They will be ready to put in the oven once they are no longer sticky to touch. Whilst they are setting, preheat oven to 160degrees fanforced. 
8. Bake in the centre of the oven, one tray at at time for about 10-12 minutes.
They are ready when they no longer wobble if you gently try and move the top from side to side
9. Once cool, gently remove from the paper. 
I find it easier to peel the paper away from the macaron, rather than taking the macaron off the paper. 
Alternatively (if you're too impatient for them to cool), carefully remove the baking sheet with the macarons on them, splash some water on to the hot tray, replace the baking sheet (with the macarons) back on to the wet tray, wait a few minutes, and the macarons should pop right off!

What to do with all those left over egg yolks? How about crème brulee for desert?

Recipe for lemon filling:

Recipe again from Mad about Macarons - Jill Colonna

NOTE: this recipe is for the original quantity of macarons (as I halved the macaron shell recipe). So feel free to either halve this recipe, or make some more macarons!

Ingredients:
- 100g unsalted organic butter, softened
- 180ml full milk
- few drops of lemon extract
- 1 egg
- 20g caster sugar
- 20g custard powder
- finely grated zest of an unwaxed lemon

Method:
1. Cream the butter with the electric hand whisk and set aside.
2. Scald the milk with the lemon extract in a saucepan
Scalding refers to the stage JUST before boiling. Small bubbles should appear around the sides.
3. In a separate bowl, using the electric hand whisk, whisk together the egg, sugar and custard powder
4. Now using a hand whisk, gently pour in the hot lemon milk into the egg mixture whilst constantly whisking. Pour everything all back into the pan and whisk constantly over a medium heat until the mixture thickens. Once the mixture has thickened take off the heat and cool. Place some cling film directly on top of the cream to prevent a skin from forming
5. When cool, whisk in the softened, creamed butter and the finely grated lemon zest and then transfer to a piping bag and pipe away!
Don't fill the cream all the way to the edges of the macaron. Remember that when you sandwich the biscuits together the cream will ooze outwardly a little bit.


ONCE ASSEMBLED, LEAVE IN THE FRIDGE AND WAIT ATLEAST 24 HOURS BEFORE SERVING. SERVE AT ROOM TEMPERATURE
I know, I know, after all that work you still have to wait 24 hours?! But trust me...in that 24 hours, all the flavours and moisture from your filling will have infused into the macaron biscuit, resulting in that wafer crispy outer shell that breaks into an amazing gooey lemon flavoured centre.

Successfully conquered macarons? How about turning it into a macaron tower for a special occassion?