White Chocolate & Raspberry Macarons for Mother’s Day

Let me start this post off by saying that Macarons are actually much easier than I thought they would be. If I heard the word “Macaron” a few weeks ago, I would think of old egg whites, carefully folded in ground almonds and a big flop at the end of all of it. Because I was SO scared of this challenge set to me by one of my readers last year, I researched it to the point of becoming obsessive. I visited almost EVERY Macaron post on the internet and tried to figure out why all the recipes are so very different. I still don’t know why but I did settle on a recipe that to me, seemed the most likely to be perfect.

And then I came across the most enlightening post by EatLiveTravelWrite. She debunked quite a lot of Macaron Myths and made me feel like I could indeed make this a success. Before you try doing this, I suggest you go read her post. Her methods REALLY work, I’ve tried these twice and they are perfect. I also used the recipe she uses from BraveTart. As you’ll see, my ‘feet’ (the crumbly bit at the bottom of the Macaron which is CRUTIAL for a Macaron to be perfect) aren’t as prominent as theirs and I think this is because my oven was too hot when I put the macarons in. Also, I think my mixture might have been too thick as they cracked slightly while baking. It’s important for you to not be TOO gentle when mixing the dry ingredients in as you want to deflate the egg white slightly. The perfect consistency when the dry ingredients have been folded in, is like a molten lava texture. Thick enough to not just run out of the piping bag but still soft enough for it to ooze just slightly when piped.

But even after all of that, I think mine came out pretty darn delicious. They were very marshmallowy and the filling of white chocolate ganache and raspberries really complimented the nutty-ness of the Macaron.

I love the idea of giving these as a present and who better to give them to than your Mother? I always get so emotional around Mother’s day because I wish I could pamper my own mother but now that I have my own kidlets running around, I have so much joy as well. And I see her in them and I see her in me when I parent. Even though I wish I had half the patience and understanding she had. I know so many women fear becoming their mothers but I absolutely invite it. If I could be just a tiny bit like my mom was I would be the most incredible wife, mother, sister and friend. She was incredible kind and often would use her last grocery money on charities when she knew she should actually be buying bread and milk with that money. And because she was a twin, I know she sent my twins to me. I miss you every day Mamma!

Makes approximately 40 Macaron ‘sandwiches’
I know the measurements are very akward but believe me, you want to get them right. So I suggest you use a digital scale when making these Macarons.

230g icing sugar
115g ground almonds
144g egg whites (approximately 4 large egg whites)
70g caster sugar
3-4 drops gel food colouring

Filling
200g white chocolate
50-70ml cream
100g raspberries, chopped

1. Pre-heat the oven to 140°c and line 2 baking trays with baking paper.
2. Process your ground almonds until fine. (South-African ground almonds tend to be too grainy)
3. Sift the processed ground almonds with the icing sugar. Repeat. (yes, it is necessary to double-sift)
4. Beat the egg whites until soft peaks form.
5. Slowly add the caster sugar and beat for another 4-5 minutes until the mixture forms stiff peaks and it looks glossy.
6. Add all of the almond mixture in and fold in. At first the mixture will look lumpy and strange but just keep folding.
7. Place the mixture in a piping bag and carefully pipe small circles (I make mine about 2cm) onto the baking sheet. Don’t pipe them too close to one another as they will spread a little.)
8. Bake for 12-15 minutes until they are just firm to the touch. Allow them to cool completely on the baking tray before carefully lifting them off.
9. To make the filling, melt together the white chocolate and cream until smooth. Place in the fridge to set slightly and when thickened, mix in the raspberries. The mixture should be spreadable / pipeable.
10. Place the mixture into another piping bag and pipe small circle onto the macarons before gently sandwiching them together.