Pink Macarons

• Prep1 h
• Cook35 min
• Total2 h 45 min
• Serves12

Ingredients

Macaron shells

• 100 g blanched almond flour, finely ground (1 cup)
• 100 g powdered sugar (3/4 cup plus 2 tbsp)
• 80 g egg whites, at room temperature (from about 3 large eggs)
• 80 g sugar (1/3 cup plus 1 tbsp)
• 1/8 tsp cream of tartar, optional
• Pink gel food coloring

Raspberry buttercream

• 115 g unsalted butter, softened (1/2 cup)
• 150 g powdered sugar (1 1/4 cups)
• 1 pinch salt
• 30 g seedless raspberry jam (1 1/2 tbsp)
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• Pink gel food coloring, optional

Instructions

1. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Draw 3.5 cm (1 1/2 in) circles 3 cm (1 1/4 in) apart on the paper with a pencil, then turn the paper over.
2. Place the almond flour and powdered sugar in the dry mixing bowl and grind 10 sec/speed 10. Sift it through a fine strainer into a large bowl and discard any coarse bits, no more than 1 tablespoon.
3. Wash the mixing bowl and the butterfly whisk, dry them completely and wipe them with a paper towel dampened with a little lemon juice or vinegar. Insert the butterfly whisk, add the egg whites, sugar and cream of tartar and whip 4 min/50°C (122°F)/speed 3.5.
4. Without heat, whip 8 min/speed 4, until the meringue is thick, glossy and holds stiff peaks. Add a little pink coloring and whip 30 sec/speed 4.
5. Add a third of the meringue to the almond mixture and fold it in with a spatula. Add the rest and keep folding, pressing the batter against the side of the bowl, until it flows off the spatula in a thick ribbon that melts back into the surface in about 15 seconds.
6. Spoon the batter into a piping bag with a 1 cm (1/2 in) round tip and, holding the bag straight up, pipe rounds that fill the circles. Tap each sheet firmly on the counter 4 or 5 times and pop any bubbles with a toothpick. Let them rest 30 to 60 minutes, until the tops are not sticky when touched lightly. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 150°C (300°F).
7. Bake one sheet at a time in the center of the oven for 14 to 17 minutes, until the shells have risen on ruffled feet and lift cleanly off the paper. Let them cool completely on the sheet.
8. Wash and dry the mixing bowl. Place the butter in it and mix 1 min/speed 4. Add the powdered sugar and salt and mix 20 sec/speed 3, then add the jam, vanilla and coloring and mix 30 sec/speed 4, scraping down halfway.
9. Pair the shells by size. Pipe a swirl of filling on half of them with a small star tip and gently press the other halves on top.

Tips

• Macarons taste best the next day: keep them in a closed container in the refrigerator overnight, so the filling softens the shells, and let them stand 20 minutes before serving.
• If the shells crack, the batter needed more folding or a longer rest. If they spread flat with no feet, it was folded too much.
• Every oven runs differently, so an oven thermometer helps a lot. If the tops brown, lower the oven to 140°C (285°F) and bake a little longer.
• Filled macarons keep 4 days in the refrigerator or 1 month in the freezer.