A Venture in Macarons and a new Lightbox

It has been quite awhile since I saw a recipe as daunting as these little deceiving delights. Unbeknownst to me was the finicky treat that is a macaron, and my first attempt at making them fell quite close to failure...(okay, very close, but I'm still recovering from defeat,here...).

They look just fine...

I started off this endeavor just as any other. Got a craving, saw a few recipes, and started the search for the perfect recipe to be the first one I tackled of its kind. Now just to clarify, there is a difference between macarons and macaroons. Don't get them confused as I did.

Now as I searched, one thing became common quite quickly.

The complaints...

"Even the professionals struggle with macaroons"
You must allow them to mature before they reach their peak of flavor
 “Three seconds of overbeating and they’re ruined"
Article after helpful article on experimentation and trials from Not So Humble Pie

Phew. Can these things be that tough?

So with fingers crossed and hopes set high, here we go.

Vanilla Bean Macarons (makes 50)
110 grams almonds (blanched or slivered)
200 grams confectioners’ sugar
100 grams egg whites, aged at room temperature for 12-24 hours
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
¼ tsp. vanilla extract (optional)
50 grams granulated sugar

Not at all adapted from Annie's Eats

Oh! I used these as an excuse reason to buy new cookie sheets!
You may notice this recipe is given by weight. First critical point with these, you MUST weight your ingredients. Measuring them otherwise will result in disaster.
Also, the recipe calls for blanched or slivered almonds, but I just bought almond meal. I didn't want to run across the risk of them not being perfectly ground.
On a final note, notice that you have to age your egg whites for a day beforehand. Yes, AGE them! So plan to take out your egg whites and place them on the countertop loosely covered for at least 24 hours to age them.

From top left, clockwise: powdered sugar,egg whites,sugar,and almond flour.

      1. Pulse the almonds and confectioners’ sugar in the bowl of a food processor until finely ground and    well blended (Of course you will skip this part if you're using almond flour).

       2. Whip the egg whites on medium-high speed until foamy.

  
      3. Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean pod into the mixing bowl
      4. Gradually add the granulated sugar and continue beating until a smooth, shiny meringue with stiff peaks forms.

Very small , yet stiff, peaks

      5. Blend in the vanilla extract. (I was paying too much attention to getting the timing right, so I kinda forgot this part...)
      6. Add the ground almond mixture to the bowl with the meringue and quickly but gently fold together using a wide rubber spatula until no streaks remain. You want to achieve a thick batter.

      7. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper.
      8. Transfer the batter to a piping bag fitted with a plain wide round tip and pipe into small rounds on the prepared baking sheets (each round should be about 1-1½ inches in diameter), spaced about 1 inch apart (I think mine were a little on the small side...) Let sit at room temperature for about an hour to develop a hard shell.

It makes a ton..I used 4 baking sheets...

       8. Preheat the oven to 300˚F.  Bake for 12-18 minutes, depending on size. To test whether or not the cookies are done, let cool for a minute until cool enough to touch.  Carefully attempt to remove one shell from the pan.  If it cracks at all or does not remain intact, continue to bake until one is removed intact. Transfer the pans to a wire cooling rack and let cool completely before moving the cookies.

This is what happens when you rush and drop the first pan out of the oven...

 But this is the way the rest came out:

 Pretty,huh?

But completely hollow. I checked a few other references on macarons that I had and tried raising the cooking temperature and keeping the oven cracked open to try and fix it.
No luck. I just overcooked them and they were still hollow.

The original recipe suggests that you should store the shells in the fridge for 2-3 days to mature and then fill and sandwich the cookies right before serving.

Okay, so maybe if I let them sit for a few days, they will be...less hollow....

3 days later, and still no luck.

Alright, so this attempt at macarons didn't turn out so well, but I will be tackling them again very soon with a new recipe and hopefully better results.

Adorable little failures aren't they?

Alas, two good things came out of this venture.
1. I made an absolutely delicious filling for for future macarons. (I'll show you how to make it later, it's a white chocolate raspberry ganache and it is irresistible).
2. I finally made a light tent!

Here's one of my first shots with it: