Chocolate Almond Macaroons GF

My Mom discovered the recipe for these a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, and made them every year for Christmas. It was a BIG production. For the almond macaroon, we'd shell almonds, blanch them to remove the skins, dry them, and grind them to make the almond meal. The last few years, Mom was taking care of her Mom, and didn't have the bandwidth to make these. This year, I was fortunate to have a lot of time off around the holidays, so I volunteered to make them. And guess what? You can BUY organic ground almond meal at most stores with bulk sections. So that simplified things quite a bit to start. The rest may seem complicated or fancy, but most of these steps can be done ahead of time, allowing you to relax and enjoy time with your guests, while wowing them with these irresistibly delicious treats. 

If you make these ahead (which I recommend), do all the steps in one day, and freeze the macaroons, defrosting them about 20-30 minutes before serving (they're also really good frozen). As with any seemingly intimidating recipe, you have a greater chance of succeeding if you read through the recipe a few times first, and organize all your ingredients and tools ahead of time, visualizing each step. 

These (gluten-free!) macaroons have 3 components:
almond macaroon 
cocoa buttercream
dark chocolate coating

Let's start with the buttercream. I like the Neoclassic Buttercream recipe from the Cake Bible, as you don't need a thermometer for the sugar syrup, and it's a relatively quick and simple technique. We modified this recipe to use 3 egg yolks, so you don't waste any eggs, as the macaroon uses 3 whites. 

Before you start, make sure your butter is softened, but not melty. Here's what you'll need:

Cocoa Buttercream
3 egg yolks (I always use extra-large cage-free eggs)
1/4C + 2T sugar (only use white granulated sugar)
1/4C light corn syrup (you can find non-GMO at Whole Foods, etc.)
3/4C unsalted butter, softened (1 1/2 sticks)
3T cocoa powder, sifted 

Tools

• Hand or stand mixer (I prefer a hand mixer for this small batch). 
• Small sauce pan, preferably nonstick
• Measuring cups, spoons 
• Two small/medium mixing bowls, about the same size 
• Tray of ice cubes (optional)

Method
Beat the yolks on medium-high until pale yellow and thick (about 5 minutes). 
Heat the sugar and corn syrup in the saucepan, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon or heat-proof silicone spatula, until the mixture comes to a roaring boil with large bubbles on the surface. 

With the mixer on low, VERY CAREFULLY pour the syrup in a thin stream into the egg yolks. 
AVOID pouring the syrup into the mixing blades, or the syrup will splatter on the sides of the bowl, harden, and you'll end up with crunchy bits in your smooth buttercream. Not the end of the world, but avoid it if possible. Start with a little syrup at first to temper the eggs so they don't scramble from the heat. Then continue quickly but carefully to pour in the rest of the syrup while beating on slow-medium. At this point you'll need to keep beating the mixutre for about 10 minutes until it cools to room temperature. You can speed up the cooling process by nesting the bowl in another bowl full of ice. Just keep moving that mixer around to make sure you're cooling the mixture evenly. Test the temperature by putting a dab on your lip. If it feels a bit cooler than your body temp, you can start adding the butter, 1T at a time, making sure it's completely mixed in before adding the next lump. Continue until all the butter is incorportated. 

Sift the cocoa powder over the buttercream, and mix in on low. You did it! Now you can set the buttercream aside while you make the macaroons. 

Preheat the oven to 375'.

Macaroons
3 egg whites
1.5C ground almond meal
1.5C powdered sugar, sifted

Tools

• Stand mixer fitted with whip (or hand mixer). If you're using the same mixer as you did for the buttercream, be sure to wash it thoroughly with soap and hot water. Any oils left on the bowl or beaters can prevent your whites from firming up. You can also just make the macaroons first, and the buttercream second. 
• Pastry bag (or gallon ziploc bag) fitted with a coupler (or you can use a teaspoon).
• Baking sheets
• Parchment sheets

Sift the powdered sugar into a large bowl. Whisk in the almond meal until there are no lumps. 
Beat the egg whites until stiff, wet peaks form (just until the peak holds). 
Fold in the almond sugar mixture 1/3 at a time. 

 

Immediately pour the batter unto your pastry bag. I use a binder clip to keep the batter from running out until I'm ready to pipe. If you're using teaspoons, line your baking sheets with parchment, and start dropping teaspoons of batter about 1" apart. 

Bake at 375' until deeply golden. Depending on your oven, you might want to turn the sheet around halfway through for even baking (my old oven has a hot corner).  You want the cookies good & golden because they are about to encounter a lot of moisture, and need that crunch to stand up to it. Ovens vary, but each batch should take about 15-18 minutes. Cool the cookies on cooling racks. Then gently peel each cookie from the parchment, and flip it over so the flat side is facing up. 

Assembly
Using a teaspoon, spread a mound of buttercream on each cookie, leaving a smooth-ish surface. Once all the cookies are all coated, freeze them for about 30 minutes. This way the buttercream won't melt into the chocolate when you're dipping them. 

Melt about 5oz finely chopped dark chocolate in a double boiler, or as I do, boil a couple inches of water in a sauce pan, and set the bowl of chocolate over it to melt. The water should not touch the bottom of the bowl. The steam will gently melt the chocolate, but DON'T LET ANY WATER GET INTO THE CHOCOLATE. It will seize up and harden. (If that happens, you can add 1T of honey to help remelt it.)

Once the chocolate is melted, remove the bowl from the heat, and set it on the counter next to your macaroons. Now, dip away! Hold onto the sides of the macaroon, dip it into the chocolate, then lift it up, bounce it on the surface of the chocolate, and shake of the excess. Set the dipped macaroons back on the sheet with parchment. Once they're all dipped, but them back in the freezer. Store macaroons for up to a month in an airtight container. 

Христос рождается!

Cool, Creamy, Tart: Perfect Lemon Bars

I recently had occasion to bake on the hottest day in San Francisco's recorded history. Though I believe I was hallucinating from the heat, I somehow managed to pull it off - as a Deadhead and former professional pastry chef, I was up to the task. Normally, I cut these into 2-3" squares, but these were for my punky sister's birthday party, so I cut them into bite-sized cubes, which served cold, were just right for a sweltering summer soiree. 

These can be made ahead and kept frozen for up to a month. You can also juice the lemons ahead of time, and keep it frozen in 1C portions. Then, when the mood strikes, you're one step closer to enjoying these bad boys (next time you're presented with a ton of lemons, think LEMON BARS!)

For a quick video on the technique, see Ina Garten's version. But I prefer my recipe, as it has less sugar and flour in the filling, and less butter in the crust, but you'll never miss it. Use meyer lemons for a more dynamic citrus flavor, but any lemon (or mix of citrus juice) will do.

This 9x13" batch makes 12-20 squares (depending on how big you want to cut them), or can be cut into minis as shown above. 

For the Short Dough Crust
6oz unsalted butter, softened but cold (1 1/2 sticks)
3oz sugar (3/4C)
1 egg
1/2t vanilla extract
pinch of kosher salt
9oz unbleached all-purpose flour (a bit more than 2C)
3/4t baking powder

Cream the butter and sugar together. Beat in the egg til combined. Add the vanilla. Whisk together the dry ingredients in a separate bowl, then stir into the wet ingredients until just combined.

Dump the dough into a 9x13 baking dish, and with floured hands, press the dough evenly to a 1/8" thickness, making sure to go up the sides a bit. Chill the dish for 30 minutes, or covered, overnight. 

Preheat the oven to 350'. Bake the shell for about 15-20 minutes, just until set and starting to get golden. Remove the shell, and set on a cooling rack. 

The Filling
2C sugar
5 extra large eggs
2T lemon zest
1C lemon juice
3T unbleached all-purpose flour 

Whisk together the eggs and sugar, add the zest and juice, then the flour. Pour the filling into the warm shell, and return to the oven. Bake for another 25-30 minutes until set (if you give the pan a little shake, it doesn't jiggle). 

Cool the bars completely in the pan. I usually freeze them to make cutting easier, but you can also keep them in the fridge overnight. Either way, wrap them well. 

I use a bench scraper or thin but sturdy metal spatula to loosen the edges. To cut even bars, use a ruler or measuring tape to mark 3-4 bars on the short side, and 4-5 bars on the long side (yielding 12-20 bars). 

Dust the bars with powdered sugar just before serving. Store extras in the freezer for up to one month. 

На здоровья!