Orange White Chocolate Macarons
These macarons are filled with an orange white chocolate ganache that is perfect for summer!
The first thing you want to do is get all your equipment together. You're going to need a scale, a sifter, a small heavy bottomed pot, an electric mixer with a whisk attachment, a candy thermometer, a stiff spatula, two piping bags, a large piping tip, and a cookie sheet with either a silpat mat or parchment. You can trace 5cm circles onto parchment paper if you don't have a handy mat that already has the circles on it. Just make sure you flip it over so the pen/pencil markings aren't touching the batter.
After that you want to get all your ingredients together. I find it best to go ahead and prep everything before starting. I accidentally added all of the egg whites, instead of half of them, to my tant pour tant once because I didn't set everything out beforehand. You don't want to do that. Almond flour is expensive.
Now we're ready to get started! Sift 150 grams of almond flour with 150 grams of powdered sugar to make your tant pour tant. You might want to go ahead and sift more than that together so you have it on hand.
Add 55 grams of room temperature egg whites to the tant pour tant and mix together with a stiff spatula until you get a paste. If it is REALLY hard to mix then chances are you got your measurements off and your batter is going to be too thick. So if your arm is screaming in pain during this process you might want to just start over. And that is when you'll thank yourself for making that extra tant pour tant.
Your paste should look something like this.
Now it's meringue time. We're doing the Italian method so the first thing you need to do is whisk the other half the room temperature eggs whites in a stand mixer until they form soft peaks. Once that is achieved, turn the mixer down to low and let it run while you make your syrup.
To make your syrup you need to heat up your sugar and water to 118 degrees C/244 degrees F. DO NOT STIR! Just sit tight and stare at the thermometer.
Once it reaches the desired temperature, turn the mixer on high and slowly pour the syrup in. Let this run for about 5 minutes, or until the bowl feels cool and the egg whites are glossy and smooth.
Your syrup will most likely splash around a bit and create little spikes on the whisk attachment and harden around the edge of your meringue. Be careful that you don't get any hard pieces when adding the meringue to your paste.
Add the food coloring and one-third of the meringue to the paste and mix just until combined. Make sure when you add in your gel or powdered food coloring you make it a few shades darker. It's going to lighten after you mix in the rest of the meringue and bake the macarons. Do not use liquid food coloring, it will thin out your batter.
Then mix half of the meringue that's left over until just combined. When mixing the last bit of meringue, continuing mixing until the consistency is like molten lava. It should drop off the spatula. If you do not reach that and the batter just sticks to the spatula, it means your batter is too thick. I don't know if you could tell, but I've had too thick batter a few times.
Now put your batter into a pastry bag fitted with a large piping tip. The tip I'm using is an 808.
Pipe your batter out into the little circles on your silpat mat or parchment paper that you traced circles onto. Each one should be 10 grams. I put my cookie sheet on my scale while I do this to make it easy.
Once you've piped the batter out, drop the pan onto the counter a few times to get some of the air bubbles out.
Now let them set out until they go matte and when you touch them they dent instead of sticking to your finger.
Once your cookies are ready, put them in a 325 degree F oven for 9-12 minutes. You'll know they're done when they're able to pop off the mat/parchment.
While you are waiting, this is the perfect time to go ahead and make your Orange White Chocolate Ganache.
Chop your white chocolate into small pieces, the smaller the better.
Then put the chopped white chocolate in a medium bowl.
Heat the heavy cream until boiling and pour over the white chocolate. Don't stir! Immediately after pouring the boiling cream until the chocolate, cover with plastic wrap, or put a lid on the bowl, and let sit for 2 minutes.
Then add in orange extract and stir until combined. Note, if not all the pieces of chocolate are melted after you've stirred it, then place the bowl over a pot of boiling water and stir until smooth.
Mmmmm... orange white chocolate...
Place into your fridge until set. This will take a while. You want it to be thick enough that it doesn't drip out of the piping bag.
Once your shells are done baking, match up your shells with ones that are the same shape and size.
Pipe a little bit of your set Orange White Chocolate Ganache onto one side.
Press together and voila!
MACARON SHELL INGREDIENTS
150 grams almond flour
150 grams powdered sugar
110 grams egg whites, divided
55 grams water
165 grams granulated sugar
ORANGE WHITE CHOCOLATE GANACHE INGREDIENTS
227 grams white chocolate, good quality, not chips
115 grams heavy cream
1 tsp orange extract
MACARON SHELL INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat over to 325 degrees F. Trace 5cm circles onto parchment paper and place onto a cookie sheet, making sure the side with the pen/pencil markings is on the bottom so it doesn't touch the batter. Or use a silpat mat that is already marked.
Sift together almond flour powdered sugar to make your tant pour tant. Add 55 grams of egg whites to your tant pour tant and mix together with a stiff spatula until you get a paste.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, whisk the other half the egg whites until they form soft peaks. Once that is achieved, turn the mixer down to low and let that run while you make your syrup.
In small, heavy bottomed pot, heat your sugar and water on med-high until it reaches 118 degrees C/244 degrees F. Make sure you do not stir the mixture while it is heating.
Once it reaches the desired temperature, turn the mixer on high and slowly pour the syrup in. Let this run for about 5 minutes, or unil the bowl feels cool and the egg whites are glossy and smooth.
Add the food coloring and one-third of the meringue to the paste and mix just until combined. Make sure when you add in your gel or powdered food coloring you make it a few shades darker. It's going to lighten after you mix in the rest of the meringue and bake the macarons. Do not use liquid food coloring, it will thin out your batter.
Then mix half of the meringue that's left over until just combined. When mixing the last bit of meringue, continuing mixing until the consistency is like molten lava. It should drop off the spatula. If you do not reach that and the batter just sticks to the spatula, it means your batter is too thick.
Put your batter into a pastry bag fitted with a large piping tip. I used an 808 tip. Pipe your batter out onto your prepared tray into the center of each circle. Each one should be 10 grams. I put my cookie sheet on my scale to make it easy. Once your cookies are all piped out, drop the pan onto the counter a few times to get some bubbles out.
Set out until they go matte and when you touch them they dent instead of sticking to your finger. While waiting, make Orange White Chocolate Ganache (see recipe below).
Once your cookies are ready, bake for 9-12 minutes. You'll know they're done when they're able to pop off the mat/parchment.
Match up your cookies with ones that are the same shape and size and pipe a little bit of Orange White Chocolate Ganache onto one side. Gently twist and press together.
Place in fridge for at least 8 hours. Bring to room temperature before enjoying.
ORANGE WHITE CHOCOLATE GANACHE INSTRUCTIONS
Chop the white chocolate finely and place in a bowl. Heat the heavy cream until boiling and pour over the chocolate. Don't stir! Cover with plastic wrap, or put a lid on the bowl, and let sit for 2 minutes.
Add in orange extract and stir until combined. Note, if not all the pieces of melted chocolate are melted after you've stirred it, then place the bowl over a pot of boiling water and stir until smooth.
Place in fridge to set.
