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Author:
Franco Salzillo
You’ve seen these before. Macarons are the jewelry of the realm of desserts. The French classics are simply beautiful, and they’re light and flavorful as well, especially the ones we’re making today — we’ll flavor our macarons with strawberries.
Macarons are the jewelry of the pastry world; these are more than desserts or cookies, they’re an indulgence, and it’s for their crumbly and airy texture and their delightful fillings!
Macarons are also beautiful to look at; they’re excellent gifts and a thoughtful way of greeting your guests when organizing a dinner party. Let’s learn to make pink strawberry macarons with a strawberry jam filling. These are amongst the prettiest macarons out there, and although they’re not particularly easy to make, they’re an exciting weekend project.
Let me tell you, making macarons is not the easiest thing you can do; they’re challenging but rewarding. You’ll need almond flour, powdered sugar, salt and many egg whites for the almond paste. We’re using red food dye as well.
All the flavor in these macarons is in the strawberry filling, made with strawberry puree, sugar and vanilla extract. Make the puree from scratch or simply buy it. Make sure it’s not too runny, though; that’s it! Follow the easy macaroon recipe below and don’t worry if not all macaron shells end up perfectly; you’ll always have some casualties.
To make macarons, you first need to make your almond paste. Almond flour, simple syrup and egg white meringue combine for a fluffy mixture that hardens nicely in the oven.
The filling is easy, though; it’s just butter, sugar and bright strawberry jam! You’ll have a blast assembling these beauties!
For the Macarons:
For the Filling:
In a mixing bowl, sift the almond flour and combine it with the confectioner’s sugar and salt.
Pour three egg whites, one at a time, until smooth and well incorporated.
In a saucepan on the stovetop, add the water and sugar. Heat over a low flame while stirring to create a golden caramel syrup. Set aside.
Use a hand mixer to whisk the remaining four egg whites to medium peaks in a separate mixing bowl.
Pour the caramel into the whipped egg whites while whisking to make a meringue.
Add the red coloring to the meringue, incorporate and set aside.
One spoonful at a time, fold the meringue into the almond flour mixture until thoroughly combined.
Fill a piping bag with the almond-meringue mixture.
Line a baking tray with parchment paper and preheat the oven to 300°F.
Pipe the macaron mixture on the baking tray, creating 1 1/2″ circles with enough space between them.
Tap the baking tray gently on a surface to remove the larger bubbles.
Bake for 15 minutes or until firm but still soft on the inside. Cook the macaron shells on a cooling rack.
To make the macaron filling, use a hand mixer to cream the butter. Add the powdered sugar and beat until you get fluffy butter.
Add the vanilla and the strawberry puree and pour the mixture into a piping bag.
To assemble the macarons, pipe the strawberry filling over one macaron and sandwich with another one.
