Strawberry White Chocolate Macarons

You guyyyyys! I became an aunt again over the weekend! And I'm so excited I can hardly contain myself! I love babies and right now, it's baby season! Literally, three of my friends had babies this past week. And there's more to come! Melissa, from a Teaspoon of Happiness, is expecting a baby girl in a few weeks and today we're throwing her a virtual baby shower!


Isn't blogging fun? You get to throw parties for all your virtual friends. And that rule about not eating what you bring to a party because it's rude? Well, you can throw that right on out the window. You're basically required to eat what you bring to a virtual party. And enjoy it in all the guests' honor, of course :)


I definitely enjoyed these macarons. They were inspired by my strawberry white chocolate cupcakes, which by the way, I happened to make for my friend who had a baby! I guess I'm just keeping the trend going.

Although these macarons are pink, there is no flavoring in the shell. The strawberry and white chocolate flavor comes entirely from the filling: a white chocolate ganache + a dollop of strawberry jam. THE.BEST.


Melissa, you may have to push those rose macarons from Laduree to the side. You have a new favorite in town!

Strawberry White Chocolate Macarons

Yield: Approximately 30 macarons

Ingredients:

120 grams almond flour
200 grams powdered (confectioners) sugar
90 grams egg whites (about 3 large eggs), room temperature
30 grams granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
Pink food coloring*

For the filling:
1/2 cup white chocolate chips
3 tablespoons heavy cream

1/4 cup strawberry jam

Directions:

Add almond flour and powdered sugar to the bowl of a food processor. Pulse a few times to combine and break apart any big lumps. Sift almond flour/powdered sugar into a clean bowl. Discard any large pieces that do not pass through the sieve.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat egg whites, sugar, cream of tartar, and food coloring on medium speed for 5-10 minutes, or until stiff peaks form. The beaten egg whites should stick to the whisk when you remove it. Tap the whisk against the side of the bowl to release them into the bowl.

Pour the dry ingedients into the bowl with the egg whites. Using a spatula, fold the dry ingredients into the egg whites, until the batter is thick and lava-like. This should take about 70-80 folds. Do not overmix. The batter should slowly fall off your spatula when you pick it up and any peaks in the batter should settle down within 20 seconds.

Transfer batter to a piping bag fitted with a large round tip.

Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mat. Pipe 1.5 inch rounds onto the parchment paper. It is helpful to use a guide here, so all your macarons are the same size. Once all the rounds are piped out, slam the baking sheet against a flat stable surface, then rotate, and slam again. This is done to force any large air bubbles to the surface.

Let the piped macarons dry on the countertop for 30-45 minutes.

Preheat oven to 290 degrees F.

Bake on the middle rack for 14-15 minutes. Oven temperature varies, so keep an eye on them. To check if they are done, touch the top of the macaron. If it wobbles, it's not done yet.

Let cool completely on baking sheet.

To prepare the filling, place white chocolate chips in a small bowl. Heat heavy cream until simmering, then pour over chocolate chips. Let stand for 1-2 minutes, then stir swiftly until all the chocolate chips are melted and smooth. Let the ganache thicken to piping consistency.

Match macaron shells up into pairs of similar sizes as best as you can. 

Spoon ganache into a piping bag fitted with a small decorating tip. Pipe a circle of ganache around the edge of the flat side of half the shells. Spoon some strawberry jam into the center (You could also use a piping bag for the jam to make things easier). Top with the opposite shell. 

Refrigerate in an airtight container for 24 hours to let the flavors develop. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Note*- I used three drops of Americolor Deep Pink for these macarons. Remember that the macarons will become lighter in color after they are baked.