French Macarons

1 cup + 3 Tbsp. (4.6 oz.) almond meal or almond flour

1½ cups (7.8 oz.) powdered sugar

4 egg whites (3.9 oz.)

3 Tbsp. (1.4 oz.) white sugar

1 Tbsp. (.35 oz.) egg white powder/meringue powder

Food coloring gel, as desired

Sift almond meal and powdered sugar together.

Whip eggs whites on medium speed until foamy and then add egg white powder and sugar until there is a stiff peak (straight out with no droop and beginning to be glossy.)  Continue beating.  You can turn it down but keep it going.  Color just before stopping the mixer.  (You should be able to turn the bowl over and the whites don’t move!)

Fold ⅓ – ½ the almond/sugar mixture into the meringue and repeat until folded in.

Pipe onto parchment paper lined sheet with template underneath.  Use tip #1a in pastry bag.  Tap the baking sheets once piped to remove air bubbles.

Let skin form for 30 minutes +.  The cookies should be dry to the touch.

Bake at 310° for about 15 minutes, rotating halfway through.  They should have a smooth top with a solid color.  No jiggling.  They should not brown at all.  Let cool.

Chocolate Ganache

2 oz. finely chopped milk chocolate

1 Tbsp. unsalted butter

1 Tbsp. heavy cream

½ tsp. vanilla extract

Pinch kosher salt

Combine the chopped chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowel set over a pot with 1 inch of simmering water, making sure the bowl does not touch the water.

Cook stirring occasionally, until melted and smooth.  Stir in the cream, vanilla and salt and then remove from the heat. 

Set aside until cooled and thickened, stirring occasionally, 30 – 45 minutes.

To assemble the cookies, spread a thin layer of ganache on the bottoms of half the cookies, about ¼ tsp per cookie.  Top with a second cookie, gently pressing to squeeze ganache to the rims.

Refrigerate wrapped tightly in plastic.  They last about a week.