Chocolate Almond Macaroons
from a recipe in Pure Chocolate, by Fran Bigelow
Fran Bigelow
Renowned Seattle chocolatier Fran Bigelow first began to cook as a young wife, watching Julia Child on TV in her Berkeley home and taking classes in San Francisco from Cordon Bleu-trained chef Josephine Araldo. Her business degree led to accounting jobs, but in 1982 she swapped spreadsheets for pastry sheets and opened her first chocolate shop in a Seattle storefront bakery. Today Fran’s Chocolates has three retail stores, nationwide wholesale distribution and a web site, www.franschocolates.com.
Recipe: Chocolate Almond Macaroons
Summary: Adapted from a recipe in Pure Chocolate, by Fran Bigelow. Makes 18 cookies.
Ingredients
- FOR THE DARK CHOCOLATE TRUFFLE FILLING:
- 4 ounces heavy cream
- 4 1/2 ounces semisweet chocolate (52%–62% cacao), finely chopped
- FOR THE COOKIES:
- Dark Chocolate Truffle Filling (prepare 1 day in advance)
- 10 ounces almond paste (should contain at least 50 to 60 percent almonds), at room temperature, cut in small pieces
- 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
- 3 tablespoons Dutch-processed cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons almond flour (11/3 ounces slivered, blanched almonds, finely ground)
- 3 large egg whites (3 fluid ounces), separated
Instructions
- FOR THE DARK CHOCOLATE TRUFFLE FILLING:
- In a saucepan, heat the cream over medium-high heat just until it begins to boil.
- Remove from the heat and add the chocolate, stirring until the chocolate is smooth and melted.
- Pour the ganache into a small bowl, cover with plastic wrap, touch the plastic wrap to the ganache surface to prevent a skin from forming, and set aside.
- Let the ganache sit at room temperature for 8 to 12 hours or overnight. (To speed things up, you may let the ganache sit at room temperature, uncovered, for about 4 hours.Gently fold with a spatula every 20 to 30 minutes until it thickens and becomes the consistency of soft butter.
- FOR THE COOKIES:
- Position 2 racks in the middle of the oven and preheat the oven to 325°.
- Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper or Silpats.
- In a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream together the almond paste, sugar, cocoa powder, and almond flour until smooth.
- Add the egg whites, one at a time, beating well and scraping down the bowl between additions.
- Mix until smooth and uniform.
- Transfer the mixture to a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2″ round tip (#808).
- Holding the pastry bag vertical to a prepared cookie sheet, pipe 18 disks on each sheet, 1 3/4″ round and 1/3″ high.
- For a smoother finish, dampen a smooth cotton tea towel or napkin. Lightly pat the top of each macaroon to moisten.
- Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until puffed.
- Let cool on cookie sheets for 10 minutes.
- Then transfer to racks and let cool completely.
- FORM THE SANDWICHES:
- To form the sandwiches, spread the bottoms of half the cooled cookies with about 1/2 teaspoon of ganache.
- Top with a second macaroon, bottom side down, to make a sandwich.
- Store in dry airtight containers for as long as a week or two.
From the March/April 2007 Anniversary edition of Northwest Palate.
Photos: Cameron Nagel