Peppermint Mocha Macs for Xmas

 

My life has become all about macarons lately. I feel like I'm spamming my blog with macaron posts! I promise, this is a blog on all things sweet, not just macarons. But I couldn't resist posting these right before Christmas. I've been hearing so much about a flavor at Starbucks--peppermint mocha--that seem to get people all riled up (in a good way). For someone who doesn't drink coffee, I don't get the hype. I've been making mocha macarons for a long time now but I wondered what would happen if I swapped out the filling for a creamy peppermint cream.






Truth be told, I didn't even taste these. The smell of the espresso powder from the shells was tempting but coffee has always disappointed me. Instead, I took these to my Friends-giving party this year and they were devoured extraordinarily fast. Which is the best compliment of all time for a baker :)


I've been on my own and I will be for the next month while Joe battles his trauma surgery rotation (90-100 hour work week, starting at 4am). He started last week and hadn't seen daylight in over a week. Now, that's depressing. You know it's bad when it's cloudy and bleak outside and you say "wow, it's so bright in here!" because you haven't seen daylight in so long. Well, the sun finally came out today, after six days of grey. I indulged in a long walk and came home and baked some macarons, all the while counting my lucky stars that I did not choose to go to medical school or have an interest in medical science. 




Peppermint Mocha Macs

Adapted from NotSoHumblePie
  • 100g egg whites (about 3 eggs but weighing would be ideal!)
  • 35g granulated sugar
  • 120g almond meal/flour (or very finely ground almonds) - sifted
  • 200g powdered sugar - sifted
  • 5g espresso powder
  • Small amount of yellow gel food coloring (it should turn the batter yellow but then it will become subdued with the almond meal and form a more espresso shade)

Combine the almond flour and the powdered sugar in a bowl, set aside.
Beat the egg whites in a clean mixing bowl with an electric beater, on low.
Add in the granulated sugar with the gel food coloring and continue beating. 
Slowly turn the beater on high (after about a minute on each speed).
Stop when the whites are glossy and stiff and don't move in the bowl.
Add in the almond flour mixture in small amounts and use a flexible spatula to incorporate it into the batter.
Use the spatula to methodically scrape around the sides of the bowl, moving it into the center.
Add some more flour mixture and fold again.
Constantly scrape the spatula from the sides to the middle until the batter becomes one.
Repeat until all the flour mixture is incorporated and there are no streaks in the bowl.
The batter should be of lava consistency... if you drop some batter back into the bowl or a plate, it should spread and should just barely leave a peak.

(Video on making macaron batter, check it out!)

Use a piping bag with a round tip and fill with the batter.
Hold the bag perpendicular to the sheet.
Pipe out 1/2 inch mounds of batter onto a silicone baking sheet or parchment paper, leaving space for them to spread.

Leave out for about 30 minutes or until the shells look dried on top.
Bake at 285 degrees, for 20 minutes (rotate the pan at 10 minutes).

*I've had the most success with using a wooden spoon as a wedge in between the oven door to prevent the macarons from cracking, so you may want to try that!*

Let the pan cool completely before attempting to remove the macarons to fill.


Peppermint Filling 

1 stick butter, room temperature
2-3 cups powdered sugar
2 tbs milk
1/8 tsp peppermint extract

Beat butter until creamy. 

Add the sugar, milk, and extract. 
Add more sugar to thicken or more milk to thin.
Add more peppermint extract according to taste (it can be strong so go easy!)


When it's of piping consistency, either pipe a small mound on the shell and pair it with another shell, or use a spoon to smear it on.


Alternate Chocolate Peppermint Filling

4 ounces chocolate
3 ounces heavy cream
4 mint leaves (or peppermint extract)

Heat the heavy cream with the mint leaves or 1 tsp extract until near boiling.

Pour the mixture over the chocolate and let it sit for a minute.
Stir with a spatula until well combined.
Cover with some cling-wrap and store in the fridge for about an hour.
It should be of piping consistency after having firmed up!





Comments

  1. I loved your recipe. This looks so delicious! The photography is great! Do you have a facebook page? Please follow my blog if you like and I'll follow you back as well!

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  2. you are the macaron queen so don't feel bad! I love seeing your creations :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. These look delicious! I bet the favors were great together.

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