Ok, Ms. Humble, I covet thy macarons. I have been staring and staring at post after post about Italian and French macarons and I have been convinced that I must, and will, master those cookies. First off, living in nowhere, AR means that getting any ingredients that cannot be found at Walmart involves going to our local co-op grocery store and paying out the wazoo for them…thus my search for almond meal. While staring at the $14 bag of almond meal (roughly 600g…not much) I immediately was making a mental note to make my next project: make homemade almond meal. So, I coughed up the dough and went home and got measuring. I measured out everything perfectly by weight, I mixed everything with care and did not make any substitutions (go me!). Well, I know these are a tough cookie (pun!) but I had no idea that a batter could be so…finicky? As I was folding the dry ingredients into the egg whites, I knew immediately that something was wrong (my baker’s sense was sounding the alarms)…it wouldn’t incorporate anymore! It wasn’t glossy smooth and thin enough to make a ribbon! NO!! It was thick and…THICK. So, I knew that it would take a few more tries to make this cookie come out perfectly. But, as to not waste a perfectly good learning experience, I decided to pipe them onto the sheet pan and pop them into the oven! Well, I got feet (that’s good!) but I over-cooked the first batch (yet they were gummy-ish, not crisp) and the second batch was just perfect in color, but too gummy when cooled. I made a yum white-chocolate-lemon ganache for the center and sandwiched them together!
Ok, I know I made a crappy cookie and still had every intention of feeding them to my friends because I figured they wouldn’t even know what a macaron was supposed to taste and feel like. They certainly were too sweet for me but they looked kinda descent (ok, so half look burned and the rest look cracked on top). Well, I was saved from almost embarrassing myself and testing my friends’ palates (aren’t I a good friend?) when I found out that the small dinner I thought I was going to turned out to be a large cookout, celebrating the end of the semester…so I told them I’d have to decline because I wasn’t prepared for that and would be up for it the next time…saved! No embarrassment from ugly cookies! Tah-dah!
Now, I’m not sure what exactly went wrong because it was only my first time making these, but I know for sure I’m going to be making them again and again until I get it right!
Mind if I help you troubleshoot?
They are finicky cookies.
The slightly wrinkled tops and flat glossy batter on the silpat imply they were over mixed.
I wouldn’t compare the French meringue batter in the photos in the Italian meringue 101. They don’t look or behave quite the same.
The Italian batter is naturally a bit more fluid and glossy (like Italian meringue). The French will be fluffier, more matte and it won’t flow off the spatula (at the proper mix point it will still plop a bit). If you mix french meringue batter to the point where it is fluid and glossy like the Italian meringue, you’ve gone too far.
When it is mixed just right the batter won’t spread much when piped and it won’t be completely flat. It should also have a small peak on top that will settle during resting or if the pan is tapped on the counter top.
When mixing you want to deflate the meringue just enough to loose some of its fluffy stiffness so that it can settle into a smooth shell.
Does that make any sense? This is one topic where pictures and demonstrations are far more helpful I fear.
I would reference the video in the french meringue 101 and attempt to fold your next batch with far fewer strokes.
I’ll try to get some of my own photos of a good french meringue batter up soon (though I think my readers are dead sick of macarons).
On a positive note! This is a very good show for a first attempt at french meringue macs. Feet!
Oh and at $14 for 600g, best grind some slivered blanched almonds at home. $14 is nuts (puns! AHH).
Yes thank you!! It definitely helps to know what I’m looking for when I’m mixing and fewer strokes will be the first thing on my list when I try again.
Um, and yeah I totally agree that it is crazy to pay that much for almond meal…I started to gag as I handed the money to the cashier!
Thanks for the help, I can’t wait to try again!