February 27, 2011

Strawberry Macarons

Posted by HI Cookery under 02 February | Tags: , , , , |
[13] Comments 

Strawberry Macarons

Strawberry Macarons

February 27: National Strawberry Day

The pride of Poteet is the annual Strawberry Festival. The tiny town has a Texas-sized celebration of the luscious red fruit. We have a “berry” good time sampling the shortcakes, breads, pies, cheesecakes, ice cream, shaved ice, jams/jellies/preserves and many other strawberry delicacies. But we have not seen strawberry macarons anywhere on the menu yet! In the meantime, we can make them at home with a farm-fresh filling from pureed strawberries organically grown in Texas. And even though the Poteet Strawberry Festival and strawberry season are still a few months away, we can still enjoy strawberry macarons on National Strawberry Day and throughout the year.

Poteet Strawberry Festival

Recipe

(Adapted from I Love Macarons by Hisako Ogita)

For the stawberry macarons

  • 1 cup almond flour/meal
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 3 egg whites (aged overnight at room temperature)
  • 1 cup sugar
  • ½ cup water
  • ½ teaspoon strawberry flavoring/extract
  • pink food coloring (we used Wilton brand)

Directions

Sift the almond flour/meal with the powdered sugar. Make a simple syrup to stabilize the egg whites by boiling the sugar and water together until it reaches a temperature of 245 degrees F on a candy thermometer (or until it reaches a soft ball stage).

Strawberry Macarons

Whip the egg whites until peaks form. Pour the simple syrup into the egg whites and whip again until stiff and glossy. Stir in the almond flour/meal-sugar mix until the consistency “flows like magma.” Stir in the strawberry flavoring.

Strawberry Macarons

Tint the macaronage with pink food coloring. Make the desired shade slightly darker as the macarons will bake a lighter color. Fill a pastry bag with a large round tip. Pipe one-inch discs on a parchment paper on top of an insulated baking sheet. Let the discs air dry to develop a thin skin for at least 30 minutes. Bake in a preheated oven at 300 degrees F for about 15 minutes. Watch the “feet” develop, but be careful not to brown or burn the macarons.

Strawberry Macarons

Remove from the oven and let cool for 15 minutes. Peel off the macarons from the parchment paper. Sort by size and match pairs. Make the filling.

For the strawberry buttercream filling

(Adapted from Sprinkles)

  • ¼ cup whole strawberries
  • ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, slightly softened
  • pinch of salt
  • 1 ¾ cup powdered sugar, sifted
  • ¼ teaspoon vanilla

Directions

In a blender, puree the strawberries. In a mixing bowl, cream the butter with a pinch of salt. Gradually blend in the powdered sugar until well combined and fluffy. Mix in 1 ½ tablespoons of strawberry puree (reserve the rest for another recipe). Stir in the vanilla. Fill a piping bag with a large round tip. Pipe in the filling and sandwich the macarons together. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to let the filling set. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Strawberry Macarons

Notes

  • Click on our Mac Attack page to see more macarons.

 

 

February 14, 2011

Guava Macarons

Posted by HI Cookery under 02 February | Tags: , , , , |
[7] Comments 

Guava Macarons

Guava Macarons

February 14: Valentine’s Day

Those who are gaga for guava will love getting guava macarons as a gift for Valentine’s Day. The tropical fruit is Islander’s favorite flavor for cakes (specifically, DeeLite Bakery’s guava chiffon cake) and she indulges in drinking its nectar whenever she is in Hawaii. There is a guava tree in the back yard of her childhood home on Oahu where her parents still live, and she and her brother have visited the Guava Kai Plantation on Kauai (before its unfortunate closure).

Guava

Guava Kai

Her hubby, Highlander, also enjoys eating Hawaiian guava jelly and jam on his breakfast breads—and now as a filling between macarons. So in lieu of the usual chocolates as a sweet treat for her Valentine, Islander made guava macarons in a passionate pink color and filled them with guava jam. These guava macarons were made with aloha (love) for Valentine’s Day!

 

Recipe

For the guava macarons (Italian meringue method)

  • 1 cup almond flour/meal
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 3 egg whites (fresh, unpasteurized and aged overnight at room temperature)
  • 1 cup sugar, granulated white
  • ½ cup water
  • rose pink, red and orange food coloring (we used Wilton brand’s concentrated gel icing colors)
  • guava drink powder mix

Directions

Sift the almond flour/meal with the powdered sugar. Grind in a food processor in batches to remove any lumps (optional). Whip the egg whites until peaks form. Make a simple syrup to stabilize the egg whites by boiling the sugar and water together until it reaches a temperature of 245 degrees F on a candy thermometer (or until it reaches a soft ball stage). Pour into the egg whites and whip again until stiff and glossy.

Guava Macarons

Fold in the almond flour/meal-sugar mix until the consistency “flows like magma.” Tint the macaronage with pink, red and orange food coloring until a desired shade of “guava pink” color is reached. Pipe one-inch discs on a parchment paper on top of an insulated baking sheet.

Guava Macarons

Lightly sprinkle the tops with the crystals from the guava drink powder mix. Let the discs air dry to develop a thin skin for at least 30 minutes. Bake in a preheated oven at 300 degrees F for about 15-20 minutes. Watch the “feet” develop, but be careful not to brown or burn the macarons. Remove from the oven and let cool for 15 minutes. Peel off the macarons from the parchment paper. Sort by size and match pairs.

Guava Macarons

Spread guava jam as a filling. Refrigerate the macarons to set. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Guava Macarons

Notes

  • Aloha ke Akua (God is love)!
  • Mahalo nui loa (thank you very much) to Islander’s parents for the guava jam and to sistah Nan N. for the guava drink powder mix.
  • Guava, like pineapple, was introduced to Hawaii from Latin America. There are various types of guava cultivated in the tropics.
  • Guava macarons are our entry into the MacAttack #16 challenge on the MacTweets website. Happy Valentine’s Day to the MacTweets ‘ohana (family)!

 

 

 

February 3, 2011

Elmo Macarons

Posted by HI Cookery under 02 February | Tags: , , , , |
[13] Comments 

Elmo Macarons

Elmo Macarons

February 3: Elmo’s Birthday

Islander LOVES Elmo!!! She just can’t resist the Sesame Street star with the bright red fur and big eyes, nose and smile. He exudes energy, optimism, cheer and playfulness—all of which are positive qualities that we need more of, not just in “Elmo’s World” but in ours. Islander has an accumulation of toys, clothing, cups and party decorations (gifts from Highlander, family, friends and even herself!) that rivals any kid’s collection.

In honor of Elmo on his birthday, Islander gave macarons a makeover by piping on his famous facial features to add a peppy personality to the petite French cookies. Elmo is her muse and the inspiration behind the dessert decorations. Pictured below in the visual tutorials are a variety of her beloved Elmo “models” who joined her in our kitchen while making macarons. Happy birthday, Elmo!

 

Listen to Elmo’s Song.

 

Recipe

For the basic macarons (Italian meringue method)

  • 1 cup almond flour/meal
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 3 egg whites (fresh, unpasteurized and aged overnight at room temperature)
  • ½ cup sugar, granulated white
  • ¼ cup water
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • red food coloring

Directions

Sift the almond flour/meal with the powdered sugar. Grind in a food processor in batches to remove any lumps (optional). Whip the egg whites until peaks form. Make a simple syrup to stabilize the egg whites by boiling the sugar and water together until it reaches a temperature of 245 degrees F on a candy thermometer (or until it reaches a soft ball stage). Pour into the egg whites and whip again until stiff and glossy.

Elmo Macarons

Fold in the almond flour/meal-sugar mix until the consistency “flows like magma.” Mix in the vanilla flavoring. Tint the macaronage with red food coloring. (We used a combination of red liquid drops and red concentrated gel icing color but recommend the latter for a more vibrant hue and less liquid in the macaronage.) Pipe one-inch discs on a parchment paper on top of an insulated baking sheet.

Elmo Macarons

Let the discs air dry to develop a thin skin for at least 30 minutes. Bake in a preheated oven at 300 degrees F for about 15 minutes. Watch the “feet” develop, but be careful not to brown or burn the macarons. Remove from the oven and let cool for 15 minutes. Peel off the macarons from the parchment paper. Sort by size and match pairs.  Make the filling.

Elmo Macarons

 

For the chocolate ganache filling

(Adapted from Baker’s Chocolate)

  • 1/3 cup heavy whipping cream
  • 4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate squares (we used Baker’s brand)

Directions

In a saucepan, heat the whipping cream on medium-low heat. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. In a microwave-safe mixing bowl, melt the chocolate squares. Pour the cream into the melted chocolate. Stir until well combined. Let cool to thicken. Whip the chocolate ganache until it reaches a spreadable consistency.

Elmo Macarons

Fill a pastry bag with a large round tip. Pipe in the filling and sandwich the macarons together. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to let the filling set.

Elmo Macarons

 

For Elmo’s face decorations

  • 1 tube white frosting (for the eyes)
  • mini chocolate chips (for the pupils)
  • 1 tube orange frosting (for the nose)

Directions

Pipe two small rounds (eyeballs) with the white tube frosting near the edge of a macaron. Add the mini chocolate chips (pupils) on the point of the white icing of the eyes.

Elmo Macarons

Complete the facial features by piping in a small round (nose) with the orange tube frosting. Let the orange frosting dry for a few minutes before gently pressing down on any tips of the nose. Refrigerate the macarons to set. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Elmo Macarons

 

Notes

 

 

« Previous Page — Next Page »