The French are known for a having a fascination for living life that seems to be a distinguishing characteristic for them. Their desserts are noted examples of decadence, so it’s no surprise that this year’s cookie is French with maybe some Italian beginnings.
The French macaron is a meringue made from egg whites, cocoa powder and sugar. It’s a cookie sandwich, filled with delicious cream or jams. Characteristics of a macaron; it should melt in your mouth because it’s whipped with sugar and it should be slightly moist to absorb the delicious cream fillings.
Here’s a recipe for chocolate macarons that fits the description of French decadence, Italian richness combined to make a delightfully chocolate dessert.
Chocolate Macarons
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup of almonds, ground fine
- 1 cup confectioner’s (powdered) sugar
- 4 tbsp. cocoa powder
- 5 egg whites
- 3 tbsp. sugar
- 1/4 tsp. cream of tarter
Preparation
Preheat your oven to 300
Sift all of the dry ingredients into a large bowl so that they blend together to make a smooth powder mixture. Next, separate the egg whites from the egg yolks and set the yolks aside. Whip the egg whites, adding the cream of tarter and sugar in slowly until it forms small peaks. Slowly fold in the dry ingredients to the whipped egg whites. You need to make sure that you have a smooth texture, no lumps.
Fill a pastry bag with the chocolate meringue mixture and form the meringue cookies on parchment paper on the baking sheet. Be sure to place them 1” apart from each other. If you don’t have a pastry bag, you can use a plastic baggy, just cut one of the corners off to pipe the meringue onto the baking sheet.
Bake for 15 – 20 minutes, depending on your oven. Let the cookies cool completely.
Filling
- 1 cup cream
- 1 cup dark chocolate
- 2 tbsp. butter
Preparation
Heat your pot with the cream, as it warms, add in the chocolate until it melts. Next add in the butter and mix it into the chocolate mixture. Allow the chocolate to cool and thicken for use as the filling.
Assemble the macaron using the chocolate filling between two of the cookies and enjoy!
Suggested by the author:
2011 Food Trends
Sweet things in Orange County California
A salute to chocolate
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