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It’s officially citrus season and that means my kitchen is fully stocked with all the oranges, grapefruits, and Meyer lemons I could get my hands on! While I’m not crazy about eating just an orange or grapefruit, I LOVE the flavors and have been experimenting with adding them to some of my favorite treats. It’s also the first time I was able to find some beautiful blood oranges. They are absolutely stunning and now I’m completely obsessed with them.
A few days ago I made an orange tart, citrus chips, blood orange martinis, and blood orange pecan macarons. It was a great and productive day!
I normally wouldn’t bother messing around with so many different recipes in one day, but the smell of orange was intoxicating and I just couldn’t get enough.
If I’m being completely honest, I also tend to bake a lot when I’m stressing!
Life has been a little crazy lately and it could get even crazier in the coming weeks. There’s a strong possibility that we’ll be moving to a new state for work, and while I have always wanted to move out of Pennsylvania, I’m also freaking out a bit at the thought. I am 95% into it, but there’s that small 5% that can’t stop with the what ifs and worries. Hence the excessive baking!
Anywho, that’s not the point of this post. I promise you’ll hear all about the big move if that’s the path we decide to take! For now, back to the macarons.
The first time I tried (tried being the keyword here) to make macarons I had dialup internet. Yeah, back before we could Google or YouTube literally anything. I managed to find a recipe, but I had no idea what stiff peaks were, and I certainly didn’t know what it meant to fold ingredients. Needless to say, the macarons never even made it to a baking sheet and I never bothered trying to make them again until this week.
What a difference a decade makes! I’ve since learned what folding is, and that it takes more than 30 seconds in the Kitchen Aid for stiff peaks to form. You know, the things you need to make the perfect macaron.
My first batch came out a bit wonky. I’ve read some tips for getting the perfect consistency for your batter, but it did take some trial and error to get right. While some people suggest folding 20-30 times, it took me closer to 50 before my batter was the proper consistency. The best tip that I found was that you should be able to take a spatula and drizzle a full figure 8 with the batter. Another good test is to drop a spoonful of batter back into the bowl, and it should sort of slowly melt back into the rest.
Making the batter can be tricky, but for me the hardest part is creating uniform shells. I don’t know how people make them without a guide! I purchased these Silicone Macaron Baking Mats from Amazon and they make it so easy to ensure that all of my shells are almost the same size. Plus, they also come in super handy for any other baking where you’d normally need parchment.
Blood Orange Pecan Macarons
Ingredients
For the Shells
- 1 1/2 C confectioners sugar
- 1/2 C pecans
- 1/2 C almond flour
- 1 zest of 1 blood orange
- 3 egg whites room temperature
- 1/4 tsp cream of tartar
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1/2 C granulated sugar
- orange gel food coloring
For the Buttercream
- 8 Tb unsalted butter softened
- 1 1/2 C confectioners sugar
- 2 Tb heavy cream (or whole milk)
- 1 zest of 1 blood orange
- 1/2 tsp orange extract
- 1 juice of 1 blood orange
Instructions
To Make the Shells
- To start the shells, add the confectioners sugar, pecans, almond flour, and orange zest to a food processor and pulse until it’s very fine. Sift this mixture into a bowl. You’ll likely end up with some pecan pieces left in the sifter. Add 1 Tb of them to the mix and discard the rest.
- Using the whisk attachment on your mixer, begin mixing the egg whites, cream of tartar, and salt until it begins to foam.
- Slowly add the granulated sugar and continue to mix on medium/high until stiff peaks form. This can take up to 5ish minutes. You know you have a stiff peak when you pull out the whisk and a peak forms that does not fold over. Be careful not to overmix!
- Once you have stiff peaks, add gel food coloring and mix for another 30-60 seconds, until combined.
- Remove your bowl from the mixer and add the dry ingredients to the meringue mixture. Fold the mixture with a rubber spatula until it’s smooth, shiny, and can be drizzled into a figure 8 in the bowl.
- Transfer the batter to a pastry bag and pipe the batter to fill the circles on your Silicone Macaron Baking Mats. If you don’t have the mats, you can draw circles on a sheet of parchment and then pipe your macarons on the opposite side. Just make sure the silicone mat/parchment is on a baking sheet.
- Once all of your macaron shells are piped, tap the baking sheet on the counter a few times to release any air bubbles. Don’t be afraid to slam it pretty hard, just make sure you have a firm grip on the parchment if that’s what you use.
- Let the shells sit on the counter for 25-30 minutes to dry. The tops should be dry to the touch.
- Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. As soon as you put your macarons in the oven, reduce the temperature to 325. (I’ve tried 350, 325, and even 300, but this method works the best for these from my experience.)
- Bake for 13 minutes. They should have their signature ‘feet’ at this point. Remove from the oven and transfer the silicone mat/parchment to a rack to cool. Don’t try to remove them until they’ve had time to cool! If you’re doing a second batch, don’t forget to raise your oven temperature back to 375.
To Make the Buttercream Filling
- Use your mixer to whip the softened butter until it’s light and creamy.
- Add the remaining ingredients and mix for about 2 minutes.
- Fill a piping bag with the buttercream and fill your shells!
- Store your macarons in the fridge and let them come to room temperature before enjoying.
Enjoy and if you try them, please be sure to let me know what you think in the comments!
THESE ARE SO GOOD!
I’m so glad you love them!!