Lemon Macarons

 

Wow. I still can't believe that I, Rosie, made these lemon macarons! They worked so well and were so delicious! I'm definitely no expert and need to make macarons again (and again), but I am so happy with how they turned out. The shells are plain, just coloured, while the icing has lemon zest in it. Usually I am pretty casual about following recipes, but this time I did things I NEVER do. I double sifted. I weighed egg whites. I waited for them to come to room temperature. I piped. I bought baking paper. And I can tell you that all of these things contributed to my success. I can't stress enough to follow the recipe for these little bad boys- the perfect tea party treat!

 

 

 

 

Macaron shells (adapted from Macarons)

 

140g almond meal

225g pure icing sugar

100g egg whites, room temperature

Food colouring

 

Lemon buttercream (adapted from Donna Hay Magazine Oct/Nov 2011)

 

125g butter, softened

1/2 cup pure icing sugar

Zest of 1 lemon

1/2 cup almond meal

 

1. Measure out greaseproof baking paper for two baking trays. Use a jigger (shot glass) and pencil to draw circles about 3cm wide and 2cm apart on the paper. Place the baking paper pencil side down on the trays.
2. Sift the almond meal and icing sugar together twice. Discard anything remaining in the sieve.
3. Beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Add a few drops of colouring to the egg whites and fold in gently.
4. Fold the sifted mixture gently into the egg whites.
5. Spoon the mixture into a piping bag fitted with a plain piping nozzle. Pipe rounds onto the baking paper using the circles as a guide. Tap the trays gently on the bench to release any air bubbles.
6. Allow to stand for between 20 minutes to 6 hours, to allow a 'skin' to form on the shells. When they are ready you should be able to touch one and have no mixture stick to your finger.
7. Preheat oven to 150°C.
8. One tray at a time, place shells into preheated oven and immediately reduce temperature to 130°C. Bake for 10-12 minutes until firm to touch and have 'feet' (the ruffle around the bottom) but are not coloured. Cool completely on the baking trays.
9. To make the buttercream, beat the butter for 6-8 minutes or until pale and creamy. Add the icing sugar and rind and beat for a further 10 minutes or until light and fluffy. Add the almond meal and beat until combined.
10. Spoon the mixture into a piping bag fitted with a plain piping nozzle. When the shells are cool, pipe the buttercream onto half of the shells and sandwich with remaining shells.
11. Store macarons in single layers between sheets of baking paper.