The Macaron Chronicles

Raspberry Cheesecake Macarons

To put it simply, a macaron is a confection composed of two almond meringue disks sandwiched together with a buttercream, ganache or jam filling.  And that is where the simplicity ends.  The macaron is notoriously difficult to master and requires an exact technique and the proper equipment.   I've read hundred of posts that explain how to make macarons and I slowly built up my courage to try it myself.  There are those who get a decent result on their first try, but that never happens here and my first few attempts were sad.  Cracks and no feet.  No cracks, no feet.  Cracks and feet, etc.  You get the picture.

I assembled the equipment I needed: parchment paper, pastry bag with the proper tip, and scale (this made a huge difference) and found almond flour at Bob's Red Mill so I had everything ready to tackle another batch but was dragging my feet until I saw Susan's macaron post at Savoring Time in the Kitchen.  Susan's recipe and directions are straightforward and clear and her macarons looked perfect, so I tried again. If you are looking for ways to improve your macaron skills or have never tried them and want to take the plunge, you must visit Susan and get her recipe.  You are in for a treat because her blog is beautifully written with stunning photos.   I did the macaron happy dance when I peeked  and saw little feet developing on my meringue rounds.  You can see my first passable result above.  They are miles away from what I want, but at least I know I'm on the right road. And they actually tasted pretty good. In the meantime, I'm going to keep trying and will be posting updates as I go along. 

My piping skills are lacking and I quickly got tired of drawing little circles on sheets of parchment paper so my macarons might possibly turn out close to the same size.  I came up with this idea that works great and saves a lot of time in what is already a time consuming project.  I bought sheets of acetate at the local art supply store and cut it to the size of my baking sheets.  Then I drew 1-1/2 inch circles with a Sharpie pen.  If you put this sheet on your baking pan and lay a sheet of parchment over the top you can see the circles perfectly.  When you have piped on all your macarons, slip the acetate out from underneath the paper and use it on your next pan.  So easy and such a time saver.  In all the macaron posts I've read I've never seen anybody do it this way so thought I would pass it along.