We're living in a very strange time while everyone should be at home self isolating I decided to keep myself busy and made Matcha Macarons with White Chocolate buttercream which I've been wanting to try for ages. I've made French Macarons before but never buttercream. They are hard work and took all day to make so here's a step by step on how to make them...
Ingredients for the Macarons:
70g Ground Almonds
70g Icing Sugar
2 tsps Matcha Powder
55g Egg Whites
50g Caster Sugar
Pinch Cream of Tartar
Utensils:
Scales
2 bowls
Sieve
Electric Whisk
Wooden Spoon
Silicone Spatula
Piping Bags
Measuring Spoons
Baking Paper
Flat Baking Trays
Oven 150°C
Baking time 15 minutes
Ingredients for White Chocolate Buttercream:
100g White Chocolate
100g Unsalted Butter - at room temperature
100g Icing Sugar
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
Milk
Pan and bowl for bain-marie
Wooden Spoon
Electric Whisk
Bowl
Measuring Spoons
How to make your Macarons:
Sift your ground almonds
Then sift your icing sugar
Once they have been sift through mix it together with your wooden spoon
Now sift your matcha powder
Mix all your dry ingredients together
In a separate bowl whisk you egg whites.
I found that it was 1 and bit of an egg to get it to 55g
It was actually 55g but the scales moved a bit!
Gradually add the icing sugar to the egg whites.
Add a little pinch of cream of tartar - this acts as a rising agent to help your meringue.
Whisk until you get stiff peaks and you can place the bowl upside down.
Once your meringue mixture is ready sift your dry ingredients
(I know the whole sifting thing is annoying but you want your dry ingredients to be as fine as possible. You can use a food processor but you'll still need to sift it after it's been through).
Once your dry ingredients have been sifted. Fold it in using your silicon spatula. Don't go crazy mixing it in, go around the outside of the bowl and cutting into the middle, trying to do it with as little turns as possible to avoid knocking all the air out.
Once your mixture looks a bit like shaving foam and falls off your spatula like ribbons it's ready to place into your piping bag.
Place your piping bag into a glass and carefully put your mixture into it. Once your have your mixture in the piping bag. Clip the end and push the mixture through the bag to not waste any of it.
Got my dad to do it for me. Then pipe your mixture onto your baking tray leaving enough space for each of them to rise.
The last few look like a splattered mess as the bag burst as I cut the hole too small. Make sure you cut the hole big enough at the end of your bag!
Now you need to leave them for about an hour at room temperature to form a skin and to dry out.
Can't really tell from these photos but they are a lot drier and firmer to touch.
Once they have dried out place into the oven for 15 minutes until they have full risen.
Place them onto a cooling rack to cool off.
While they are cooling off you can make your buttercream. It's up to you what you want to fill them will you don't have to use buttercream.
How to make White Chocolate Buttercream:
Over a bain-marie melt your chocolate
Once your chocolate has melted leave it cool to room temperature
While that is cooling beat your butter on a slow speed with your electric whisk
Whisk it until it is creamy then slowly add your icing sugar a bit at a time and whisk on a slow speed. I added a teaspoon of vanilla extra to the mixture.
Once your sugar has been fully mixed and your chocolate has cooled down you can add that to the mixture and whisk your chocolate in.
If your buttercream is a bit thick you can add a tiny bit of milk just thin it out a bit. You can put your buttercream into a piping bag but I had so much left over I just used a knife to spread it onto the macarons
These actually turned out really well. They could definitely be better but I thought it was good for a first attempt and taste really good.
I've got a lot of left over white chocolate buttercream which I need to think of something I can use it for. I'm thinking maybe mini carrot cupcakes but we shall see.
