French Macarons

I remember tasting a French Macaron for the very first time. It was pure heaven in my mouth. The best way to put it is it’s a layered experience. First, you bite into the crispy skin and then you transition into the soft, chewy, wafer like goodness. Lastly, you reach your final destination of a sweet, creamy, delicious center. Did that make your mouth water? #sorrynotsorry 

I mean….. thank you, JESUS!

A few months ago, my sweet friend Gloria came over to teach me how to make these delicious treats. She helped me overcome my fear of baking these intimidating cookies. Since then, I’ve tried 3 more times to get the right consistency and look of a French Macaron. I will say they are finicky little cookies so you just need a little patience and practice. 

To avoid being redundant, I’m going to share this recipe from youtube. It has almost 3 million hits so you know it’s going to be good! Watch the video and make sure to follow her tips. It took me a few tries to get the “feet.” It was frustrating after the third time, but I finally tried it a fourth time with my little brother’s girlfriend, Jaehee. I meticulously studied the youtube directions. Thank you, sweet Jaehee! 

When I start baking, my kids always run over and ask to help. Sometimes it’s helping and sometimes it’s making messes. Jules helped make these macarons and I will say she did an awesome job!

I wanted to share a few extra tips! One is that Jimmy made a master sheet for the macarons. Since they need to be the same shape, he drew circles using a stencil on a parchment piece of paper. I think he used a small lid. This way, every time we bake macarons, we lay an extra sheet of parchment paper on top. You will still be able to see the stencil showing from the bottom paper. After we pipe out the unbaked macaron cookies, we remove the master sheet underneath and store it away to reuse again the next time. 

Another tip I want to reiterate is to tap the cookie sheets numerous times on the counter before placing in the oven. This will help get rid of any air bubbles.

LOOK! This is before we painted our kitchen cabinets!

I also wanted to share a yummy recipe for the ganache filling. 

Chocolate Ganache Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup of dark chocolate chips (I use 60-70% Ghiradelli)
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature 

Warm the heavy cream in a small saucepan over medium heat until it starts to boil. Turn off the heat and stir it into the bowl of chocolate chips. Mix slowly until it’s well combined. Allow it to cool for a couple of minutes and then stir in the butter until smooth. Chill in the refrigerator for about an hour. After it’s cool, I transfer it to a piping bag and squeeze some right in the center of one macaron. Then I take another macaron and make a sandwich slowly just until the cream peeks out the sides. 

I recommend storing them in the fridge if there are any leftover! Most likey, there won’t be!

Yay!! If I can do it, you can too! 

Hope you’re having a great Monday! 

<><yuni

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. John 14:6