Coffee Macarons with Chocolate Ganache Filling

 Macaron baking is my latest addiction. It's an absolute pleasure sitting close to the oven glass and watching the feet arise from the macaron batter and then that sigh of relief! I can't express the feeling. I've been baking a lot since last two months; but still I keep my fingers crossed while mixing the batter, feel nervous everytime and dance to the success attempts. I had bought a new oven recently and fixing out the temperature settings for the macarons took a while and now fixed at 130C. Might be because the oven is new and the temperature a little high.

This set of macarons was baked in October, last year. I'm basically one lazy girl to type and post; especially when it comes to decorated cakes or macarons where there are a lot to type. I was not intending to post this until I saw the Home Bakers Challenge ,co-hosted by The Brave Cook where I had to post Macarons. I thought I would post this one which is one of our all time favorites. Coffee and chocolate is a wonderful combintaion and the kids as well as adults love this to the core. I hope this chewy delectable coffee macarons (or you can call it Mocha Macarons) may satisfy your sweet tongue and please your family. 

Recipe:

Adapted from Joy of Baking

Eggwhites 50g

Almond Flour 50g

Icing sugar 90g

Caster Sugar 15g

Instant Coffee powder 1 tsp

Method:

1. Line a baking tray with silicon sheet or baking sheet.

2. Age your egg-whites for atleast 24 hours at room temperature or upto 2 days in refrigerator, loosely covered. ie; to cover egg-whites in a clean bowl using cling film, prick that film with knife,just twice and then, keep them on your kitchen counter for a day or in refrigerator for 2 days.

3.Place icing sugar and almond powder together in a bowl and set aside. If almond flour is not finely ground, then blend it in a food processor together with icing sugar.

4.Beat castor sugar and egg white on a bowl in medium-high speed until soft peaks form . Continue to beat until egg white looks smooth and shiny. (and not dry)

5. Fold in the dry ingredients into this meringue in 3-4 batches . Do not overmix the batter. Just take a spoon of the mixture and drop on a plate and if no peaks are formed on top, the mixture is rightly folded. If peaks are formed, fold again. Folding should not exceed 50 strokes. Add coffee to this just 6 to 7 strokes before stopping if you wanto

6. Spoon the batter into the piping bag and then pipe it onto the baking sheets in round shapes. You can use macaron templates for that. Check this link for pictures of using templates.

7. Let the macarons rest for 15-30 mts or until a dry layer is formed on top of macarons. When you touch them, u can feel the dry layer. Switching on the a/c at high will help them dry fast.

8. Preheat your oven at 140C. Bake a tray at a time for 15-20 mts.

9. Cool the tray on a wire rack and remove the macarons. If you find difficuilty in removing them, spray a little water on the sheet and then remove it. Don't leave it for so long after spraying water as it may turn macarons soggy.

7. Fill them with  chocolate ganache and sandwich them. Keep in the fridge for atleast 3 days for better & chewy macarons. Serve at room temperature.

Ganache Filling:

Chocolate chips (semi-sweet or bittersweet)  50g

Heavy Cream                                               50g

Unsalted Butter                                            1tsp

Method:

Place the chopped chocolate in a medium sized heatproof bowl. Set aside. Heat the cream and butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. (Can also heat the cream and butter in the microwave.) Bring just to a boil. Immediately pour the boiling cream over the chocolate and allow to stand, without stirring, for a few minutes. Stir gently (as you do not want to incorporate air into the ganache) with a spoon or whisk until smooth.

Vardhini's BAke fest event co hosted by Priyas Versatile recipes