Giant Macaron Cake


This could be a cake decorated with macarons. It could be a layer of macarons inside a cake (definitely something I want to try sometime), but it’s not. It’s a giant macaron. A giant, delicious cake-sized macaron. When my friend requested this for his birthday, I was excited to try it, but didn’t expect it to be as tasty as it actually turned out. I ended up making it twice in two days because we couldn’t get enough.



Speaking of which, I made this on a weekend when six of my closest friends came to visit. It was the best weather and a great time--eight of us squeezed into our tiny apartment with one bathroom. We made the best of it and it made me fall in love with St Louis all over again. 


The last couple weeks I've been trying to spend more time enjoying fall outside, and work on DIY projects around our new home. I can't wait to share photos soon. Who knew painting was such a work-out? 

I've also been reading so many great links I want to share:

There's some great, inspiring thought-provoking writing in there :)


OK, back to the cake!
The earl grey cream pairs perfectly with a pistachio macaron base, and even if any part of the macaron cracks or looks ugly, it can all be fixed with fresh fruit and a gentle sift of powdered sugar. Even if you’re new to making macarons, it’s slightly less stressful since the focus won’t be on those pesky “feet”. It’s far less fussy than making traditional French macarons, but it’s still a show-stopping stunning dessert.

If you don’t want to indulge in bergamot extract, you can easily sub or vanilla or experiment with any flavors. I imagine this would be delicious with some zesty fruity extracts, or even rose or lavender.



8-inch Macaron “cake”
Feeds 8
100 g. egg whites (from about 3 eggs)
35 g. granulated sugar
200 g. powdered sugar
80 g. almond flour
40g pistachio flour

For the filling:
3 egg yolks
½ cup sugar
¼ cup water
1½ sticks unsalted butter, room temperature, cut into small chunks
Bergamot extract*

*available here: http://baktoflavors.com/category/product/natural-bergamot-extract
1 tsp of ground earl grey tea leaves (I usually tear them out of a tea bag)

Filling (can be made and frozen up to 3 months ahead of time)
Place the yolks in a large bowl and have a hand or stand mixer ready.
Heat the sugar and water in a saucepan and do not stir. Use a candy thermometer to reach a temperature of 132 degrees. When it does, turn the mixer on high and beat the yolks while drizzling the heated mixture into the bowl.
Beat for a minute or two until combined, and then let sit until it gets to room temperature.
Beat in the extract, tea leaves, and butter until it all comes together as a thick frosting-like smooth consistency.
You will have leftover earl grey cream from the macaron “cake” but it can be frozen for up to 3 months and can be used to frost cakes, fill macarons or other pastries.
Draw 2 8 inch circles on parchment paper with a dark marker, and then flip over onto a baking sheet.
• Make the shells: Place the egg whites and sugar into a bowl. Using a hand or stand mixer, beat on high until stiff. You can check the stiffness by turning the bowl in all directions. It shouldn’t move.
• Sift the powdered sugar and both of the flours into the bowl. Using a spatula, gently fold the ingredients into the mixture. You want to get the air out of the mixture, and you want the batter to become flat and slightly/slowly spread when you stop mixing. Make sure to dig to the bottom of the bowl to remove any white streaks.
• Once combined, pour the batter into a piping bag with a round tip.

Holding the bag perpendicular to the sheet and just a few inches above, start from the center of one of the circles and slowly pipe outwards in a spiral, leaving a tiny bit of space since the batter will slowly spread and combine.
On the second sheet, outline the border of the circle and then do one more circle within it, so it’s a disk, leaving the middle empty.
If you have leftover batter, pipe in small mounds on a separate baking sheet (or if you have space, feel free to make your macaron “cakes” larger, but keep in mind they break easily the bigger they are).
Tap each of the pans on the kitchen counter firmly to let any air bubbles out and let dry for about 20-30 minutes, until the tops feel dry to your touch.
• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
• Place the baking sheet in the center of your oven and stick a wooden handle in the oven door to let some air escape.
• For the disc, bake for 16 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through to make sure it bakes evenly.
For the circle, bake for 24 minutes, rotating the pan halfway.
For any smaller macarons from the leftover batter, bake for 16, rotating pans halfway.
• Remove from the oven and then carefully remove the mat or parchment paper from the baking sheet and allow them to cool completely before touching or they will break.
Once cooled, gently lift the sheet to peel the macaron from the paper instead of directly trying to lift the macaron off of it.

Assembly
Turn the circle over so the inside is facing up. Pipe the cream in a circle covering the whole base. Place the disc on top.
Fill the middle with fresh raspberries and strawberries or any fruit of your choice.
Sift powdered sugar and/or fresh chopped pistachios over the top and serve!

Best eaten within a day or two—the macaron will get soggy over time.

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