Almond Macarons with Dark Chocolate Ganache
These French macarons are flavored with slightly bitter almond and filled with a rich dark chocolate ganache. They have a crisp exterior that shatters into a soft, chewy interior. While macarons are usually a tea-side treat, the chocolate almond flavor begs for a cup of coffee.
French macarons may not exactly fall within the category of rustic European baking, but these delicate confections are so sought after, they deserve a feature and copious baking tips. Macarons are made by folding almond flour and confectioners’ sugar into meringue. They are piped, left to air dry, and then baked. They come in infinite flavors, colors, and fillings.
There are two main methods for the meringue used in macarons: a French meringue or an Italian meringue. In a French meringue, sugar is added directly to the egg whites as they are whipping. In an Italian meringue, a hot sugar syrup is whisked into the beaten egg whites. The French method is easier and more straight-forward to make, but the Italian method is more stable. This recipe uses a French meringue, even though it’s less stable, because it’s easier to prepare and not as sweet than the Italian method.
Make sure to use blanched almond flour for the macarons, not almond meal. Almond meal is usually ground less finely and can include the skins. And if you can find it, use super-fine almond flour. The finer the almond flour, the smoother the macarons will be.
If you can’t find super-fine almond flour, you can process the almond flour with the confectioners’ sugar in a food processor to grind it finer.
These French macarons start with a French meringue. Many recipes use Swiss or Italian meringues, but I’ve had good results with this method and it’s the simplest. In a French meringue, sugar is gradually added directly to the whipping egg whites. While it’s not as stable as other types of meringue, it’s tender, light, and fragile, and tends to work well for cookies.
Ingredients:
ALMOND MACARONS
- 3/4 cup almond flour
- 1 cup confectioners’ sugar
- 2 large egg whites
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
DARK CHOCOLATE GANACHE
- 4 ounces chocolate, finely chopped
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 teaspoon honey