Methods and Madness

First, I apologize for not having posted sooner. My body was all "A wild Coumadin appeared! IT'S SUPER EFFECTIVE!!" And now I've basically become a hemophiliac overnight. If you tell my body that you want thin blood, it gives you THIN BLOOD. For you medically inclined folks out there, my IMR was a 5.27 when I went in last time--up from our first post-reading of 4.89. Yippity skippity. Needless to say, I've had the energetic capacity of a sloth on tranquilizers.

On to the post, though. Everyone has different methods and tips for making macarons. Some methods are genuinely helpful, and can be honestly classifiable as true "methods." Others are just stupid, and have to be stuck with the label of cadswallop: "madness." Some things that are madness to me may work for you. I can respect that. But these are things that, in my book, are just simply madness.

Italian Meringue 

While the term "sadist" comes from the Marquis de Sade, the Italians win this one on Machiavellian masochism. The French method of making macarons is my go to, and the sane person's go to. Simply add the granulated sugar to the egg whites, knowing the mechanical energy of whipping them together will cook it enough to be stable. There is no logical reason to make a sugar syrup to pour into your egg whites and then whip. You have to temper egg. TEMPER. EGG. With HOT SUGAR SYRUP. Nothankyounonononope. That is elebenty times more difficult for no reason. The logic is to partially cook the eggs. If you whip your meringue just right, you've already done that via mechanical energy. Egg whites are kind like that. Plus, that means even more to clean up. Ick.

The Food Processor

I have finally come to terms with the fact that my food processed doesn't do anything to help my almond flour and powdered sugar come together. All it does is encourage the creation of impossibly hard little almond sugar lumps so you toss out more than you need to. Now, if you need to grind up whole nuts, or freeze-dried fruit, or flower petals or some such? Whip that sucker out, by all means! But only grind the ingredients that can't be sifted as they are. THEN, when they're fine enough (which may mean transferring to a paper towel-covered ziplock and slamming with a rolling pin), sift them into the almond flour and powdered sugar and simply stir to combine. Voila. Way easier.

Almonds vs Almond Meal/Flour vs Almond Powder

If you make your own almond flour each time, then you deserve an award. I would probably only do that if I had super special imported almonds, or flavored almonds I wanted to use. I use Bob's Red Mill Almond Flour. I'd like to try the almond flour at Whole Foods that you can buy by weight. They both work fantastically well. The second is more like a powder, the first more like a meal but still on the fine side. Also, I prefer using flour from blanched almonds. It gives an overall prettier look. If you're looking for more rustic, though, try unblanched. The taste is exactly the same.

You sift HOW MANY TIMES‽

Martha Stewart says to sift twice or even three times when making these things. What. Are. You. Doing. How do you need to do that? When you get the bits that won't sift, you stop sifting. Am I the only one who understands this? I read one comment on a blog today that, no joke, claimed her Parisian grandmother sifted FIVE TIMES with each batch. I DON'T UNDERSTAND. Sift it and be done with it. Move on. You aren't panning for gold, here, and you aren't trying to put in air.

Egg Whites

I said it before and I'll say it again: aging egg whites is stupid. As long as they're at room temperature, you're gonna be just fine. And for crying out LOUD, don't be that person who uses meringue powder or egg white powder. That is a cheapskate way and you can taste it in the final product and I will come haunt you if you use it. Well, okay, I won't because I'm not a ghost. But I will do everything in my powder that doesn't involve too much creepy voodoo work to ensure that a ghost haunts you if you use it. Stop blaming your meringue on the weather, the barometric pressure, the humidity, what you had for dinner, which house your sign is in, what your last fortune cookie said, or whatever. It's all about patience and high speed. Don't be afraid of it and it'll behave. (Oh, I do have one exception: if your great-great aunt owned the mixer originally and the meringue isn't working, ask her permission to use it. Then it works. I know, possessive, right? But who wouldn't be possessive of a KitchenAid?)

Food coloring

I enjoy coloring macarons. I've discovered, though, that liquid coloring really does screw up your batter. They might not rise enough, or at all, or they'll end up overbeaten, or just too runny. Your best option? A variety of gel coloring and powder coloring. Use what you prefer. I have yet to try powder, but I do like that just a little bit of gel goes a LONG way, so I'm definitely getting my money's worth, and the macaron isn't affected by it. Score!

Parchment vs Silpat

I am #TeamParchment till I die, 100%. The Silpat method is great IN THEORY for these, but there are often problems with feet not being as pronounced or the batter running more thanks to the slick surface. I would only use the silicon mats that are literally made for macaron making, with little edged circles for you to fill. Other than that? Use parchment. I almost never have problems with them sticking, and if I do, then I approach more carefully from another direction. Or, if need be, gently twist the macaron off the parchment. Be GENTLE, though. You don't want to smoosh your pretties!

Salted vs Unsalted Butter

I am normally a salted butter person. It keeps longer, it tastes great, blah blah blah. But for baking, I almost always use unsalted butter. Then I can add salt if I want to bring out sweetness, but it isn't a flavor that'll stick out like a sore thumb. In browned butter recipes, I'll use salted butter. I like the flavor of brown salted butter more than unsalted, and think it works really nicely in just about any recipe. I also use salted butter in desserts with melon. I don't know what it is, but it just tastes right to me.

Those are some of my methods. Madness? Maybe. But worth it.