Reading this recipe from 2019, that Michele had no idea how nomadic my life would become. However, I did learn to be better prepared. So, throughout all of our different homes, I have had key items with me: food processor, stand mixer, wine opener, and more. I haven’t made macarons in a while. It may be time to take this recipe out again!
The original post
Having been on the road for two-thirds of 2019 leads to issues for me in my role as a recipe creator. Staying in a rental, I’m never really sure what the kitchen will be like or how it will be equipped. So, I need to wing some recipes, typically keeping them on the simple side.
Another issue, which my travel causes, was one I hadn’t considered: there are far fewer treats delivered to my husband’s office on a regular basis. It was brought to my attention last Friday when I posted an Instagram story about my weekly recipe testing. Within a short period of time, I received a reply from one of his colleagues wondering if what I was making would be coming to the office.
What floored me was that I didn’t even mention what I was making. She just saw my stand mixer in action and assumed it would be yummy. It feels pretty darn good to have people have such faith in my cooking and baking ability.
So, the obvious answer was, “Yes!” It worked perfectly well in my schedule to drop off a plate of lemon macarons between two other appointments in my afternoon. Plus, it gave everyone in the office a nice late afternoon snack to kick off the wind down to the weekend.
A couple notes on macarons:
- It is important to draw the circles; you don’t want to have macarons that are too big.
- A pastry bag is key. The batter is not spreadable.
- To fill the pastry bag more easily, set it nozzle down in a highball glass. Gravity will help get the batter to the tip without making a big mess.
Lemon Macarons
Ingredients
- 3 egg whites room temperature
- ¼ cup sugar
- Pinch salt
- 5-6 drops yellow food coloring
- 1/2 tsp. lemon extract
- 1-3/4 cups powdered sugar
- 1 cup almond flour
- Frosting
- 6 Tb. butter softened
- 1-1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1 Tb. lemon juice
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 1/2 tsp lemon extract
- 6 drops yellow food coloring
- 1 Tb. milk
Instructions
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Draw 2” circles approximately 2 inches apart on parchment paper.
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Line baking sheets with parchment paper (written side down).
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Sift powdered sugar into medium-sized bowl.
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Add almond flour to powdered sugar, using fingers to break up clumps.*
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Whisk sugar and flour in a small bowl to combine.
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Whisk egg whites in bowl of stand mixer until foamy.
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Add sugar and continue whisking until firm peaks are formed.
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Add salt, food coloring, and ½ tsp lemon extract, and whisk for 10 seconds.
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Add powdered sugar mixture to egg whites in 4 parts, folding between each.
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Using a small, plain nozzle, pipe cookie batter into circles.
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Bang trays on counter to remove air, and allow to sit for 30 minutes before baking.**
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Preheat oven to 300.
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Bake for 16-18 minutes, rotating trays halfway through baking.
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Allow to cool on baking sheets for 10 minutes.
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Cream butter in bowl of stand mixer, using paddle attachment.
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Turn mixer off, add powdered sugar, lemon juice, zest, and extract, and turn to low speed to combine.
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Add milk, and mix at speed 2 until combined.
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To assemble
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Remove cookies from parchment paper and match like-sized cookies.
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Transfer buttercream to pastry bag fitted with small, plain nozzle.
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Pipe a small amount of frosting to bottom of one cookie in each pair; top with other cookie.
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To allow frosting to set up, place finished macarons in the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes.
Notes
**The tops of the macarons should feel firm before baking.
