Makes about 4 dozen
Christina Ha, ower of Macaron Parlour in Manhattan, taught me this recipe. Measure by weight, if you’ve got a kitchen scale. If not, use the spoon-in, level-off method of measuring.
2 cups/175 grams almond flour
1 2/3 cups/175 grams confectioner’s sugar
4 egg whites/130 grams egg whites
13 tablespoons/175 grams granulated sugar
1/4 cup/60 grams water
Activated charcoal, for black color
Coffee buttercream, recipe follows
Edible pink luster dust, if you want to add pink cheeks
Sift: Sift almond flour and confectioner’s sugar through a medium-mesh seive into a large bowl. Pour in 2 egg whites (65 grams) and mix to form a paste.
Whip: Settle remaining 2 egg whites (65 grams) in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Whip to soft peaks. Turn off mixer, leaving bowl and attachment in place.
Boil: In a small saucepan, stir together granulated sugar and water. No more stirring. Bring to a boil. Mixture will boil rapidly, then slow to big lazy bubbles. When it reaches 245 degrees, pull pan off heat and start the mixer on low. Carefully pour in syrup, aiming for the side of the bowl. Beat until the meringue is glossy white and no longer too hot to touch, about 2 minutes.
Fold: Mix 1/3 the meringue into the almond mixture. Scrape in the rest of the meringue and, using a soft spatula, gently fold in. Scoop out about ½ cup batter and set aside in a small bowl. Keep folding the batter in the big bowl. When the batter looks glossy, you’re almost done. Fold over some batter. If it stays put, it’s not mixed enough. If it sinks in and disappears, it’s over-mixed. If it melts away only at the edges, you’ve hit the sweet spot.
Color: Drop some activated charcoal into the small bowl of batter and fold to the sweet spot.
Pipe: Scrape pale batter into a large pastry bag fitted with a plain 1/2-inch tip. Scrape dark batter into a small pastry bag fitted with a fine plain tip. Pipe 1-inch circles of the pale batter onto a baking sheet lined with parchment or silpat. (For uniformity, you can first trace circles onto a sheet of paper and slip it under the parchment as a guide.) Smack the pan from underneath a few times to help the circles flatten out. Use the dark batter to pipe eyes, noses, ears, and tails.
Dry: Allow macarons to rest until no longer sticky to the touch, about 10 – 20 minutes.
Bake: Bake at 320 degrees F until macarons are dry to the touch on top, the feet stick to the parchment or silpat and there’s a bit of wiggle between top and bottom, about 9-10 minutes. Slide parchment or silpat off baking sheet and let macarons cool.
Fill: Flip over parchment or silpat and peel off cooled macarons. Match up same-sized pairs. Pipe buttercream onto the flat side of the bottom halves. Press on the flat side of the top halves. Paint on a bit of pink luster dust, if you like. Settle in an airtight container. Refrigerate or freeze, 24 hours or more. Bring to room temperature. Enjoy.
Coffee Buttercream
1 1/2 tablespoons instant espresso
1 tablespoon hot water
2 egg whites
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup (1 ½ sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
Dissolve instant espresso in hot water. Set aside.
Settle whites, sugar and salt in the mixer bowl of a stand mixer. Set the bowl over (but not touching) a pan of simmering water. Whisk until sugar has dissolved and egg mixture is hot to the touch, about 2 minutes.
Return bowl to the mixer. Using the whisk attachment, beat on high speed to form a glossy meringue. Lower to medium speed and beat until no longer hot. Add butter, 2 tablespoons at a time, until thick and smooth (don’t fret if mixture looks curdled, just keep beating). Beat in reserved espresso mixture. Scrape into a pastry bag fitted with a plain 1/2-inch tip.