French Chocolate (Hot Cocoa) Macarons
From macaroons last week to macarons this week. Despite the somewhat similar names and both of my recipes using a French style meringue base, macaroons and macarons are quite different. If the macaroons are one of the simplest recipes I make for the holidays, the macarons are one of the most complex. That comment is not intended to scare anyone off, just a statement of fact. The good news is, even if you don’t get the techniques quite right, they will still taste good and you will have learned something from the results.
French chocolate macarons are another treat that has been making a yearly appearance on my goodie trays for well over a decade. I believe I actually made them for the very first time specifically to include on the goodie trays. At the time, I had never tried a macaron and I really didn’t know anything about making them. I came across a recipe for chocolate macarons with a ganache filling – chocolate on chocolate, my favorite combo 🙂 – and they were absolutely adorable! I got very lucky that first time. While they weren’t perfect by any means, my macarons had pretty smooth tops, cute little ruffled feet, they had a nice level lift, I may have over baked them a touch, but after a day or so of being sandwiched with the ganache (something I later learned is considered a necessary maturation process) they were very good with a delicate crisp exterior, chewy interior and big chocolate flavor.
If I had experienced the many possible macaron issues on that first attempt, I might have decided against continuing to make them. That early success carried me through many a disaster in later attempts. I think I have experienced every possible macaron failure: no feet; uneven feet; partial feet; spreading feet; uneven lift; no lift; rough, lumpy tops; cracked or exploding tops; wrinkled, sunken tops – you name it, I’ve probably seen it come out of my oven at one time or another. Even the ones pictured above aren’t quite perfect – the foot is a bit too large which was most likely due to resting them too long (distractions are definitely to be avoided when making macarons!). Many of my attempts over the years didn’t look pretty (to say the least) but all of them were still tasty.
Macaron success boils down to two things: precision and practice. Nearly every problem with macarons can be attributed to something about the environment or the techniques being either over, or under. The trick is to practice enough to get a feel for what is just right, and understanding that “just right” can vary based on environmental variables that are not entirely within your control (like the ambient humidity which can affect the resting time for your macarons).
There are a myriad of very detailed macaron troubleshooting posts across the internet, so rather than reinvent the wheel, here are a few that I like:
- Pies and Tacos: Macaron Troubleshooting (lots of pictures, a quick reference table followed by more in depth details)
- Indulge with Mimi: Macaron Troubleshooting Guide (nice reference pictures, table formatted list of causes for each potential issue with associated fix)
- Mastering Macarons: Top 15 French Macaron Problems Fixed! (for anyone that prefers video over text)
Despite relatively inexpensive and easy to find ingredients, macarons are one of the more expensive treats to purchase from a bakery, especially given their small size, averaging about $2.40 per cookie. This is entirely due to the process to make them. I don’t know about you, but I would rather have fun practicing making macarons at home and enjoy the fruits of my labor at a much reduced cost.
French Chocolate Macarons
Equipment
- pastry bags (up to 3)
- pastry tip (1/2 inch round)
- Food processor
- sifter (or fine mesh strainer)
- whisk
- Electric mixer (hand or stand)
- Mixing bowls (large)
- spatula
- Bowl (small, microwave/heat safe)
- saucepan (small)
- thermometer (candy or instant read)
- kitchen scale (or measuring cups)
- measuring spoons
Ingredients
Macaron shells:
- 205 g powdered sugar
- 125 g almond meal
- 20 g cocoa powder
- 1 pinch fine salt
- 100 g large egg whites from 2-3 large eggs
- 30 g baker’s sugar
- 5 g dehydrated egg white powder
- ½ tsp cinnamon optional
- 1 pinch cayenne pepper optional
Ganache Filling:
- 90 ml heavy cream
- 8 ml light corn syrup
- 113 g bittersweet chocolate chopped
- 10 g butter
- ¼ tsp cinnamon optional
- 1 pinch cayenne pepper optional
Marshmallow Filling (optional):
- 100 g sugar
- 100 ml corn syrup
- 60 ml water
- ¼ tsp salt
- 80 g egg whites from about 2 large eggs
- ¼ tsp cream of tartar
- ½ sheet silver leaf gelatin bloomed and melted
- 10 ml vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
Instructions
For the macaron shells:
- Have a pastry bag fitted with ½” round tip ready.
- Using a food processor, grind together the powdered sugar, almond meal, cocoa, and salt just until they are uniform, you do not want to release oils from the almond meal and/or cocoa powder. If you are making the hot cocoa variation, add the cinnamon and cayenne pepper here. Sift the mixture 3 times, discarding any bits that are too large to pass through the sifter, and set aside.205 g powdered sugar, 125 g almond meal, 20 g cocoa powder, 1 pinch fine salt, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1 pinch cayenne pepper
- In a small bowl whisk together the baker’s sugar and dehydrated egg whites, set aside.30 g baker’s sugar, 5 g dehydrated egg white powder
- In a large bowl, beat egg whites until foamy, continue beating, while adding the sugar and dehydrated egg white mixture, until shaving cream consistency.100 g large egg whites
- Carefully fold the dry ingredients into the egg whites in 3 batches. Continue to fold until the batter falls from your spatula in a continuous ribbon and slowly sinks back into itself.
- Scrape the batter into the pastry bag and pipe 1” circles onto the prepared baking sheets. Rap the sheets on the counter firmly a few times, then let sit for about 30-60 minutes until a skin forms on the surface and they are no longer tacky to the touch.
- Bake 15 – 20 minutes, cool completely before removing from baking sheets.
For the ganache filling:
- Heat the cream and corn syrup until just below boiling. Pour over the chocolate and let sit about 30 seconds. If you are making the hot cocoa variation, add the cinnamon and cayenne pepper here.90 ml heavy cream, 8 ml light corn syrup, 113 g bittersweet chocolate, 1/4 tsp cinnamon, 1 pinch cayenne pepper
- Stir gently until an emulsion forms. Add the butter and stir until fully incorporated.10 g butter
- Let cool completely before using, the ganache should be a spreadable or pipeable consistency.
For the marshmallow filling (if using)
- In a small saucepan, combine the sugar, corn syrup, water and salt. Heat mixture to 245°F on a candy thermometer.100 g sugar, 100 ml corn syrup, 60 ml water, 1/4 tsp salt
- While the syrup is heating, combine egg whites and cream of tartar in a medium mixing bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer). Using an electric or stand mixer with a whisk attachment, whisk on medium speed until soft peaks form.80 g egg whites, 1/4 tsp cream of tartar
- With the mixer running slowly drizzle the hot syrup into the egg white mixture. Continue whisking while drizzling in the melted gelatin and finally the vanilla bean paste or extract. Whisk until the mixture is thick, glossy and begins to mound on top of itself like a soft whipped cream. Transfer mixture to a piping bag.1/2 sheet silver leaf gelatin, 10 ml vanilla bean paste
To assemble:
- If you are using the marshmallow filling, transfer the ganache filling to a piping bag. Pipe a thin dam of ganache around the outer edge of the bottoms of half of the macaron shells. Then pipe a small amount of marshmallow cream inside the ganache dam. Sandwich with the remaining half of the macaron shells.
- If you are not using the marshmallow filling, pipe or spread a small amount of the ganache filling onto the bottoms of half the macaron shells, enough to just reach the edges when the other half of the macaron shells are pressed gently on top to create sandwiches.
Nutrition
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