Raspberry and Vanilla Macarons

by Andrea Tremblay-Legendre

It was the first time I was making macarons and it was quite an adventure! After many trials and errors, we finally figured it out. I realized that many factors can lead to mistakes so it's important to not skip any steps and adjust timings when needed.

Yields 24 macarons

Macaron shells
1 1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 cup almond flour
Pinch of salt
3 egg whites
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp cream of tartar
Filling
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup raspberry puree
6 oz white chocolate chips

  1. In the bowl of a food processor, combine the powdered sugar, almond flour and salt and process on low speed until extra fine. Sift the almond flour mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a large bowl.
  2. In another bowl, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. Add sugar and cream of tartar gradually until all incorporated. Continue beating until stiff peaks form, you should be able to place the bowl upside down without any eggs falling out.
  3. Add the vanilla and beat until well incorporated.
  4. Add 1/3 of the flour and sugar mixture into the beaten egg whites and gently fold with a spatula. Repeat this step until all the flour is incorporated.
  5. Once all the flour is all incorporated, keep folding the batter until you can draw a figure 8 while holding the spatula up.
  6. Place the batter in a piping bag with a round tip. Cover a baking sheet with parchemin paper. Pipe the macarons on the parchemin papers in small 1 1/2 inches circles leaving at least 1 inch apart.
  7. Tap the baking sheet 4-5 times on a flat surface to release air bubbles.
  8. Let the macarons sit for 45min-1hr until the surface is dry to the touch.
  9. Preheat the oven to 300F.
  10. Bake the macarons for 11-13 minutes.
  11. Let the macaron cool down for 2-3 minutes and gently move them to a wire rack to cool down completely.
  12. To make the filling, combine the cream and raspberry puree with a whisk in a saucepan. On medium heat, bring the cream mixture to a boil and pour over the white chocolate in a medium bowl.
  13. With a whisk, stir until the ganache is smooth. Let cool down in the fridge for a few hours.
  14. Once the macaron and ganache have cooled down, beat the ganache for 2-3 minutes and place in a piping bag with a round tip.
  15. Add a dollop of ganache on one macaron shell and top it with another macaron shell to create a sandwich. Repeat this step with all the macaron shells and ganache.