Chocolate Macarons and a Tropical Storm

This is what happens in my family when we are stuck indoors for hours on end due to bad weather. We eat, cook, bake and eat some more… and we particularly like to eat chocolate. Call it emotional eating, but we cannot help ourselves.

Last Monday, we were hit by tropical storm Fay and although we didn’t get significant damage in our area, some communities north of us were impacted pretty badly. It rained heavily, we had five tornado warnings in a row and the wind blew strong for a few hours. Luckily, we did not lose power so we were able to enjoy a cozy afternoon with movies and lots and lots of baking.

After all the ice creams and custards I had made prior to the storm, I had an enormous bowl of egg whites in my refrigerator that needed to be used. I always find that macarons are the best way to use up all the egg whites because everyone I know loves them and nothing will ever go to waste.

This time I had to fulfill my neighbors’ request for chocolate macarons with salty peanut butter cream, but I also saved some for me to fill with milk chocolate and passion fruit ganache. One for you, one for me.

I really wanted to call this post “Anatomy of a Macaron” because I wanted photograph close ups of what the macaron feet should look like, the bottom of the macaron, the before and after… This week a reader that emailed me about macaron was able to successfully replicate them in her own kitchen, which definitely makes my day. It’s hard to explain all the little details in an email but she mastered it.

Chocolate Macarons

100 grams egg whites
25 grams sugar
1/2 tsp lemon juice
225 grams powdered sugar
125 grams almond flour
15 grams cocoa powder
pinch of salt
Cocoa nib for topping

Separate the egg whites at least 24 hours prior and even let them sit at room temperature for a few hours before starting to make the macarons. This will help them get rid of some moisture and become more acidic, which will help form a stable meringue.

Whip the egg whites and the lemon juice until they are almost fully whipped. Sprinkle in the sugar while still mixing. Continue to whip to a full meringue.

Sift the powdered sugar, salt, almond flour and cocoa powder into a bowl. Add the meringue into the dry ingredients and fold until a shiny mass is formed. We want it to spread a bit but not too much.

Pipe the macarons onto a silicon mat and sprinkle with cocoa nibs. Let the macarons dry at room temperature for 20 minutes or so. Bake them in a 300F for about 8 minutes. Rotate the sheetpan and bake for another 8 minutes.

Salty Peanut Butter Filling

125 grams creamy peanut butter
70 grams powdered sugar
25 grams softened butter
25 grams heavy cream
5 grams vanilla extract
3 grams fine sea salt

Cream all ingredients together for a smooth filling.

Milk Chocolate and Passion Fruit Ganache

100 grams milk chocolate
40 grams passion fruit puree
20 grams heavy cream
15 grams butter

Chop the milk chocolate into small pieces. Boil the passion fruit and heavy cream together and pour over chocolate. Stir until incorporated and the ganache forms. Wait a couple of minutes for the ganache to cool a bit and add the softened butter. Stir to create and emulsion. Let it harden a bit until it is pipeable and fill the macarons.