Wedding Macarons

Thank you all for your lovely comments on my earlier post re the wedding cookies i made for my friend.  All of you are always so encouraging and kind with your words.  Thanks! :D   Without further ado, here's the second installment of the wedding cookies..this time round in the form of macarons.  Macarons are also cookies correct?  Not so sure..but i think so.  As my friend's wedding theme is pink, so pink and white macarons (white looking more like champagne color actually) it is.. I hunted for THE cute ribbon for the longest time and managed to find the one that i like but it's sooo expensive...what to do, i needed to have that ribbon to complete the entire look for the macaron-lollipops, so not much of a choice. 

Tying the ribbons was hard work..believe me..trying to get those little dots facing the correct way was a pain..i actually took 1 hour just to bag and tie 35 of them!  Thankfully only 35 of them in lollipops..the balance 100+ are just normal macarons...*phew*..

I set these up for my amateurish photoshoot..hahaha.  I can't decide if i like the dark background better or the white one. So i posted both here. As you can see, my Macdonald's coke glasses are in action again. Sorry folks, i really don't have any vase or nice flower pots or proper glasses at all.. i only have these free coke glasses..and i have a LOT..yup..i spend every weekend at Macdonalds because that is my son's favorite place.  

In case you all wondering, i baked the shells before i left for my hols to Japan.  I must say macaron freezes very well.  Thus, I just spend the whole of last night after work filling them.  Otherwise, i don't think i can do all 140+ macarons in just a night...and find time to take photos.. :D 

I'm pretty pleased with how my macarons turned out..so sweet and pretty in pink and white.  :D   The pink ones are strawberry macarons filled with strawberry jelly and buttercream. The white ones are rum and raisin macarons filled with "rum-mish" raisin jam and rum buttercream.  Both flavors are the Bride's favorite! :D 

Merry Christmas everyone! :D

Pierre Hermé Macarons in Tokyo

Just a short post as i'm still here in Tokyo and have rather limited time on internet. I'm out all day and by the time i get back to the apartment, i'm soo tired to even check emails.   Was shopping in Isetan at Shinjuku today and stumbled upon Pierre Hermé shop. I saw the colourful macarons and was tempted to try even though each piece was really quite pricey.  Nonetheless, after i tried them, i didn't regret paying and they tasted soo good. Surprisingly, his macarons are not so sweet.  I ate 5 at one go..literally..one after another and i couldn't stop. I went back and bought another 5 more so i can eat it tomorrow morning for breakfast..hahaha.. I'm a dessert person and i need my sugar-rush in the morning and not coffee.  

Flavors: Chocolate/Caramel, Pistachio, Chocolate & Rose Macarons 

Rose Macaron

Ispahan Macaron

Ispahan: Lychee centre, Raspberry & Rose infused buttercream.

Flavors: Chocolate, Yuzu, Vanilla/Cassis, Chocolate/Caramel, Vanilla/Chocolate Macarons

And earlier the day, i went to Michelle Wibowo's sugar art's exhibition at the Imperial Arcade.  Her work is super super amazing and her fine detailed work is so awesome.  She's an all rounder...her piping work is excellent and so is her cake carving!  When i grow up, i want to be just like her!   Took quite a lot of photos but i have no time to sort them out as yet.   Anyway, my time to surf the internet is up and i need to log off now as there's a Q to use my notebook..lol!  

I miss baking....and decorating... :(

Flora Painted Cake

This is just a practice (to-paint) cake and for nobody in mind...as i'm typing this, this cake is still in the fridge untouched..lol!   I had major fondant issues with this cake and the fondant kept tearing...bugs me to see tears/crack lines on the fondant. Strange.. i could only blame it on the weather and for me not turning on the air conditioning.   

I painted this free-hand and it's my first time painting directly on the fondant cake.  It feels different and not like the usual painting on paper..:S.  Definitely more room (lots in fact!) for improvement for sure! I need to find the right consistency for the paint - food colors i meant.  **The flower pattern that i've painted is made with reference to Donna Dewberry's paint work in her book.** 

I've been slacking in commenting on my blogger friends' blog posts (you all know who you are..:D..but i do try to catch up whenever i can..)..because i have been busy with translating Pierre Hermé's Macaron book to English with the help of google translate..lol! Yup..here it is...

Don't ask me why I bought this since it is in French and I don't read or write or speak French. I suppose this is THE Pierre Hermé Macaron book and it was sitting on the bookshelf staring at me..so how can i not buy it?! LOL!  So far, i've translated 20 initial pictorial pages and google translate has been doing a very good job for me. LOL!  I can safely say i can now understand the ingredients listed in French in this book.  :D

[MacTweets/ma7] Rum & Raisin, Pina Colada & Earl Grey Tea Macarons

I made these macarons 2 days before Jamie & Deeba posted Mac Attack 7. I got the dates all mixed up..i thought i was making for Mac Attack 6 but in fact i missed the deadline! :p Since i have yet to blog about them, i figured i might as well incorporate them into this month's MacTell Me-A-Story.  My favorite story book while growing up was Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland. Mad Hatter's tea party scene comes right to my mind...and those little cakes that shout "Eat Me"....even more so after I recently watched Tim Burton's version of Alice in Wonderland. I had a couple of ideas for my macarons but couldn't decide which would taste better so ended making all the 3 flavors. I did this after work and it was not a good idea because i baked till after midnight and almost 2-am before i could go to bed. I'm as crazy as the Mad Hatter i think, at times that is..;p... and i had to remind myself AGAIN never to bake all 3 flavors at one go esp. after work!  

Rum & Raisin Macarons

Vanilla Macaron Shells, White Chocolate Rum Buttercream with Rum Raisin Jam centre

Pina Colada Macarons

Coconut Macaron Shells, White Chocolate Rum Buttercream with Pineapple Jam centre

Earl Grey Tea Macarons

Earl Grey Macaron Shells with Honey Buttercream

Rum & Raisin Macarons, Pina Colada Macarons & Earl Grey Tea Macarons

Rum & Raisin Macarons, Pina Colada Macarons & Earl Grey Tea Macarons

Macarons shells all matched up..i still suck at piping even size macarons..

so have take time to match them in their respective sizes..lol!

This time, basic macaron recipe (italian method) is taken from David Lebovitz post on Pierre Herme's Ketchup Macarons.  After doing 3 batches of macarons in italian meringue..i find that the folding of meringue is extremely tough compared to the french way...towards the 3rd batch, my arm and wrist felt like it was going to fall off my shoulder..but then does make chewier macaron shells though.. Also italian way is more forgiving too imo....my 1st batch of Vanilla shells, the sugar didn't really dissolve and had lots of sugar crystals stuck on the pan but my shells turned out ok. The 2nd batch, the Earl Grey Tea shells, the sugar syrup was a bit caramelized..but my shells were still ok. The 3rd batch, the sugar syrup was finally correct and of course the shells turned out great. :)  My conclusion: Pierre Herme's recipe is definitely a keeper! :D

Among the 3 flavors, thumbs-up to my Rum & Raisin flavor!! :D Everyone loved it (me included!..i like the rum in it..lol!).  Pina Colada voted as 2nd favorite. :D  Earl Grey was ok but i guess i didn't add enough of the earl grey tea powder so the flavor wasn't as distinct as i had wanted.

Please do check out other bloggers' macarons & flavors listed on http://mactweets.blogspot.com!

[MacTweets/ma5] Spring Fling: Yuzu RedBean Macarons

Yuzu Macarons Shells with RedBean centre & Yuzu/Lime Buttercream.

I had a hard time coming up with flavors for Spring since I live here in the tropics where it is Summer all year round and right now we are experiencing the hottest period ever!  All i can think of is ice-cream, ice-water, ice-kachang (local dessert made of ice!)..

I finally thought of Yuzu flavored macarons since i just bought a bottle of yuzu paste. It smells very much like tangerine/mandarin oranges..and i like anything orange. :)   I paired the Yuzu macaron shells with redbean centre & yuzu/lime buttercream.  

This time I wanted to try a different macaron recipe so i settled on Veron's @ Kitchenmusing.com  italian meringue recipe. You can find her recipe here.  She's a very talented lady and she uses the original recipe by Pierre Hermes having been to his macaron classes.   The recipe isn't too difficult and her instructions are pretty clear.  However, i had a hard time folding in the egg white. For this method, I find I needed a lot of strength to fold and  macaronnage which i find quite tiring!  

<Note>: I realised that the macarons from this recipe is more chewy with better texture and even though the recipe seems to have a lot more sugar, it doesn't taste any sweeter than the other macaron recipes i've tried before. Recipe definitely a keeper despite the fact that i have difficulty folding in the meringue. LOL! 

Please do check out other bloggers' macarons & flavors listed on http://mactweets.blogspot.com!

[MacTweets/ma4] Mac-A-Valentine: Ispahan Macarons

My version of Ispahan Macarons: Rose, Raspberry & Lychee (Litchi)

I was reading Paris Patisseries when i saw the recipe of the famous Pierre Herme's Ispahan Maracons.  I thought it would be a good idea to bake these since it has a tinge of rose flavor suitable for Valentine's Day.   However, his original recipe is rather time-comsuming to make so i just borrowed his idea of combining the 3 flavors: Rose, Raspberry & Lychee.

The macaron shells are flavored with rose essence and sandwich with raspberry jelly centre & lychee/ rose flavored buttercream.  I used the same italian meringue recipe from I love Macarons by Hisako Ogita since i wanted something fast.  I was also baking Chocolate Tweet Angel Food Cake at the same time so my entire kitchen was rather chaotic & messy..lol! :S

Please do check out other bloggers' macarons & flavors listed on http://mactweets.blogspot.com!


Rose Macaron Recipe (requested by Jamie)
Adapted from I love Macarons by Hisako Ogita
Macarons

Ingredients:-

(A)
60g of almond powder
80g of icing sugar

(B)
50g of eggwhites

(C)
40g of granulated sugar
40g of water

(D)
½ tsp of rose essence
red colored powder (add to your discretion)

(E)
1 tsp of eggwhite powder (Optional)


Method:
1. Preheat oven to 150c (book mentioned at 190c - so largely dependent on  your oven temperament..lol! Mine is always hot!)
2. Mix [A] together and process it for 10-20 secs in food processor till fine. Sift it and set aside.
3. Mix ingredients [C] together in microwaveable glass and stir to dissolve sugar. Microwave for 20 sec – take it out and stir to dissolve the sugar. * (check step 4) * Microwave for a further 3½ - 4 mins till the sugar syrup reaches 110c or softball stage. (If you are lazy like me, just look at the syrup, it should be thick and flows like glucose – that should be it). You can also heat sugar syrup over the stove.
4. While the sugar syrup is in the microwave, with handmixer beat the eggwhites [B] till frothy and add in [E] (optional) and beat till soft peaks.
5. When the sugar syrup is ready (be careful since the glass will be very hot!), pour it into the meringue in a slow steady stream avoiding the handmixer (with handmixer still beating). Turn the mixer on low speed and beat till the meringue cools down (should be fast since it’s only very little eggwhites).
6. Pour in half [A] into the meringue & fold. Add the other half in and fold further. Add [D] and fold further. Unlike the French method, this method needs to be folded more – otherwise you’ll get peaks. Fold (Macronnage) until the mixture turns a bit shinny and flows thickly.
7. Pipe onto baking sheet on tray & Leave to dry (should be pretty quick – like 10-15mins?)
8. Place in oven and you’ll see feet rise within first 5 mins. If it doesn’t means failure. If it does, after 5 mins, open the door slightly ajar and bake for further 5mins. After turn the oven to 130c (with door still ajar) and bake for another 5 mins.  *(Note: This step largely depends on your oven..my oven is extremely hot..so this always works best for me).
9. Leave to cool and remove macarons from baking sheet.

Raspberry Jelly is made from raspberry puree and agar powder. I don’t know how much exactly cos I always estimate by ‘feel’.

Rose Lychee (Litchi) Buttercream is made by adding Lychee puree (I used canned since they are not in season now) & 1 tsp of Rose water into the buttercream. Again I did this by estimate.

[MacTweets/ma3] Fruity Macarons

Fruity Macarons:-

Mangosteen Macaron Shells with Mango Pineapple Buttercream & Blueberry Jellied center.  

For MacAttack3 challenge we are suppose to try something different that we have never done before..so i decided to try making macarons using the italian meringue way - my first time making macarons with sugar syrup. :) I used the recipe from the Chinese publication of I Love Macarons by Hisako Ogita. The proportion between the Chinese & English Publications is a little bit different.  The Chinese version uses 50g of eggwhites which is what i was looking for and seems to have less sugar too. I didn't want to make a huge batch of macarons since i was only trying out for the first time. :)   I'm glad it turned out successful on my first try!   Since Mangosteen is purple in color, i thought i would color my macaron shells violet. I added violet color but i don't know why it turned out blue-green instead!  I kept adding the powder but it just didn't turn purple! Strange!

Yup, i own both the Chinese & English publications. :)
I bought the Chinese version first before the English one was available.

This is also the first time i'm using freeze-dried fruits. I bought the mangosteen, pineapple, rambutan & durian ones. I grind the freeze-dried mangosteen into powder and added it to the meringue.  The freeze-dried pineapple i pound into tiny pieces and add it into the mango buttercream for the added flavor.  Although i have fresh pineapple in the fridge, i didn't want too use it since i think it would be too over-powering..i just wanted a bit of an added crunch.  The blueberry jellied centre is made by adding a bit of agar powder to the blueberry filling (i had a tiny bit left-over in the fridge and had no idea what to do with it..LOL!..so i decided to try something new..and surprisingly the texture turned out quite well!)

It's a strange combo with so many flavors but surprisingly it turned out quite good! LOL!

Please do check out other bloggers' macarons & flavors listed on http://mactweets.blogspot.com!

[MacTweets/ma2] Macarons (Three Flavors)

Made 3 different flavor macarons:

- Mango Macarons with Mango Buttercream & Jelly filling. Absolutely love this flavor! I like anything mango, can't you tell? :)

- Matcha Macarons with Chocolate Buttercream & Mango Jelly filling. Not too bad. I like anything green tea too, but i would have loved it better if i paired it with green tea buttercream for that intense green tea flavor. But since matcha is only my fave and nobody seems to like it, i decided to play down the green tea flavor with chocolate buttercream.

- Espresso Macarons with Mocha Buttercream. A bit bitter, i guess a put too much espresso coffee powder! :p But i compensated by making the macarons smaller..ie, like espresso shot! lol!

Please do check out other bloggers' macarons & flavors listed on http://mactweets.blogspot.com!

And a REMINDER to myself: NEVER EVER bake 3 batches of macarons at night the next time, even if i have all the ingredients ready earlier! Didn't finish till 1230am! Dead tired!

Chocolate Macarons w/ Chocolate Orange Buttercream

I made a small test batch of chocolate macarons using the recipe from the Chinese version of "I love Macarons" by Hisako Ogita which i bought when i was in Taiwan a few weeks back since the English version hasn't been released yet. The author teaches the usual 2 methods of making macarons, the french meringue method & the italian meringue method. The italian meringue method, instead of cooking the syrup on stove, she cooked it in microwave and teaches you how to test for soft-ball stage. The book also has step-by-step photos of how to fold in the meringue.

I decided to try her french meringue method since her recipe uses only 1 egg white (ie approximately 50g), so even if i fail, there is less wastage. What i like about this book is that the ingredients changes are listed next to each flavored macaron. In other words, recipes are short & simple, with straight forward instructions.

Since i am not used to making macarons in such small quantity, i think i over-beat the eggwhite..:p! I think that's why my chocolate macarons above doesn't have the high "feet" and those around the edge of the pan have cracked shells. :P But i have to admit that this is the first time i made macarons so quickly in less than an hour! LOL!

Chocolate Orange Buttercream made from the leftover orange buttercream i had in the fridge. I just add melted chocolate to it and voila, chocolate orange buttercream and i must say it tastes delicious together with the chocolate macaron shells! :D This is the first time i actually like chocolate buttercream! Even though my macarons didn't look so pretty this time, at least they do taste yummy!

Pink Peppercorn Strawberry Macarons

I bought 3 bottles of pink peppercorn when i was in Taipei, since i've not seen them being sold in our supermarts here. I remembered i read in Cannelle Et Vanille that she once made pink peppercorn macarons and i thought such a good idea since i have now 3 bottles sitting at home and not to mention abundance of eggwhites in my freezer..:) Pink Peppercorn has this sweet spicy aroma that i really like. However, i can't really taste it when i eat the macarons probably the strawberry centre & strawberry buttercream overwhelmed it. Perhaps I should have made her pink peppercorn buttercream instead.

Click here to Aran's pink peppercorn macarons recipe.

Cappuccino Macarons

Yes, i still have LOTS of eggwhites sitting in my freezer.. Did a test batch of macarons using cappuccino paste for the macarons. Sandwiched with coffee buttercream. Coffee lovers would love these...

Strawberry and Lemon Macarons

Had a lot of egg white leftovers in the freezer..so decided to make a batch of macarons with buttercream filling.

Made strawberry macarons with strawberry flavored buttercream and sandwiched a slice of strawberry between the buttercream filling - it taste really VERY good! I love it. So does my daughter and she said this is the first time she actually loves eating macarons! :)

Lemon macarons with lemon flavored buttercream - has a subtle lemony flavor to it. I didn't use any lemon zest as i was afraid of tasting the zest in the buttercream. Taste great too but i still prefer the strawberry! :D

Pandan Coconut Macarons

Made a test batch of macarons today with local flavors, ie pandan & white chocolate coconut ganache. I added about 1 tsp of pandan paste but didn't add any coloring. I think should have added more coloring for a more vibrant color. And because it was just a test batch with small amount of batter, i piped out much smaller than what i usually do, i didn't watch the oven time and my first tray of macarons were slightly burnt on top...second tray was much better.

I added about 2-3 tbps of dessicated coconut to the basic white chocolate ganache...perhaps i should have used coconut milk to replace half of the heavy cream used to give that subtle hint of coconut flavor instead?

These macarons taste kind of like  those colored coconut candy that i use to eat when i was a little girl ..hahahaha..

I need to practice more on my piping skills though..

Coffee Macarons

Second batch of macarons that i made today. Coffee macarons with white-chocolate-coffee ganache. To give the macarons coffee flavor, i added 3 tsp of instant coffee powder & 1 tsp of coffee paste. White chocolate ganache with 2 tsp of instant coffee powder to give the white chocolate coffee flavor and ended up with not just coffee taste but also a tinge of toffee taste.

I find that once you get the 'hang' of making macarons, it is not too difficult actually..just know the right consistency of the macaron batter, everything will turn out well. The only thing is i am still bad with the piping..so some of my macarons are big and some are small.. hahahahaha...but the funny thing is despite all the uneven piping i still can 'match' the shells..lol!

Basic white chocolate ganache and basic macaron batter can be found at Tartelette's blog.

PS: These coffee macarons are instant hit with everyone..everyone likes the coffee macarons better than the orange ones, including me. Normally i like orange-flavored anything but some how when i ate them both side by side, the coffee ones stands out better. I guess i didn't put enough orange flavor to the orange macarons..next time i'll trying adding a bit of orange essence and see if that improves it.