French Macarons (approximately 40 macarons or 80 macaron shells) Ingredient list: 4 large egg whites (140 grams) You can

n use the egg whites immediately after separating them from the yolks If you can leave it covered for 4-5 hours at room temperature on the countertop, that is better If you can leave it covered overnight at room temperature on the countertop, that is even better If you can leave it covered in the fridge for 2-3 days, that is the best Letting the egg whites breathe allow for air to incorporate into the macarronage 1/3 cup of caster sugar (70 grams) Replace caster sugar with evaporated can juice sugar or any type of fine sugar Caster sugar is called Superfine sugar in America Can be replaced by granulated sugar or normal table sugar just use normal table sugar You will not need to sift the normal table sugar 1 cup of icing sugar (230 grams) = powdered sugar Great Value Powdered Sugar at Wal-Mart for $1.98 Icing sugar and Powdered sugar are the same thing. French as well as other European recipes use the term icing sugar. American recipes use the term powdered sugar, although some powdered sugar has additional starch Try looking for Powdered Sugar with less or no starch addition 1 cup of almond meal (120 grams) Bobs Red Mill Almond Meal Flour From Blanched Whole Almonds, 16 oz. from Wal-Mart for $9.98 2 grams of salt You really do not need to sift salt Gel/Powder food coloring Betty Crocker Food Gel Colors, 4CT at Wal-Mart for $3.48 Using concentrated gel food coloring is much more efficient than liquid food coloring Non-stick baking paper = parchment paper Reynolds Non-Stick Parchment Paper, 45 square feet at Wal-Mart for $2.98 Weigh balance Using a weigh balance is extremely important because making macarons leave no room for improvisation. Do not try to improvise too much Piping bag Wilton 16 Disposable Bags, 12 Count at Wal-Mart for $5.00 Mixer (electronic is preferable and whisk is time-consuming) Sifter Do not wash hand-clamp sifter; it might rust Use compressed air spray can to clean sifter and then store in Ziploc bag to keep clean Using the hand-held sifter is much better than using a hand-clamp sifter Rubber spatula the larger the better Flat cookie pans Black bowls of various sizes, any bowls would work but black is a great contrast color Macaron stencils Methods: 1. Mix egg whites and caster sugar for 8-10 minutes in an automated mixer a. Use an automated mixer because doing it by hand will be exhausting and youll probably never reach the consistency that is correct

b. Depending on your automated mixer setting, set the function on whip. If it does not have a whip setting, set the function on a high number. For example, my functions only run from 0-6, so I set it on 5 2. Add food coloring and mix for an additional 30 seconds a. Mixture should look stiff and dry; look for stiff peaks; turn bowl upside down and the meringue should remain in the bowl b. Another way to check for the right consistency is look at the whisk. Hold up the whisk and if the peak remains stable, then you have the right consistency 3. Sift the almond meal and icing sugar and salt x2 and combine all 3 ingredients into the same bowl a. Sift icing sugar first before sifting the almond meal b. Make sure you have the correct amount down to the exact gram 4. Fold dry materials into egg whites mixture a. In three or four portions b. Roughly 30-50 folds total c. Too much folding may result in cracking d. Sweep the walls of the bowl with the rubber spatula and fold into the center look up YouTube videos for proper folding techniques e. Macarronage should be at the correct consistency when it looks glossy and flows like magma 5. Preheat oven to 356 degrees Fahrenheit a. My oven does not have specific temperature functions so I put it at 355 degrees Fahrenheit 6. Pipe evenly with sufficient spacing a. Place the macarronage into the piping bag i. Fold down the top edges of the bag and try to fit as much macarronage near the bottom tip of the bag b. Place a macaron stencil underneath a parchment paper c. Pipe the macarronage onto the parchment paper and attempt to stay within the macaron stencil d. Point piping bag into the pan at a vertical stance and dispense from the middle; the macarronage should grow in in diameter in a perfect circle e. Do not pipe all the way to the edges of the stencil 7. Drop pan on the table from a height of 6 inches or so at least 6 times a. The piped macarons will spread out just a little bit 8. Let the macarons dry for 1-2 hours until no longer super tacky a. If macarons still have a peak after waiting a couple of hours, wet your finger with water and tap the peaks away 9. Reduce oven to 302 degrees Fahrenheit and bake for 15-20 minutes a. Look for the rise of the macarons b. Look for the browning of the foot c. I usually keep it inside the oven for only 15 minutes d. Every oven is made differently so it will take a couple of trials for you to become adjusted to your oven 10. Take out the macarons after they are done and let them cool. It should only take 5 minutes. a. Peeling off the macaron shells too early would result in the separation of the foot and the shell. b. If the macarons are too hard, you have baked it for too long c. If the macarons are falling apart on the inside, you have not baked it enough.