Pistachio macarons

| Rekha Vengalil
These delicate shells are much loved at home and as much as I love to bake it.  Every time I make them its like the ‘first time’ always. I sit by the oven to see if they are going perfect and tensed till I get them off the baking sheet without cracking. So trying  new a flavor is something I am skeptical about. But this time I decided I was going to try a new flavor and yes it did turn out good. The mix of almond and pistachio was wonderful. 
I used the same recipe of my original macarons but I used half ground almond and half ground pistachios.  

You need –

For the macarons

  • 1 cup confectioners’ sugar
  • Ground almonds- 48 grams
  • Ground pistachio – 48 grams
  • 2 large egg whites, aged for a 2 days (Please see here on how to age the egg whites)
  • 1/4 cup superfine sugar
  • Food color of your choice (optional) – 2 drops (I used green color gel)



How to –

Pre-heat the oven to 160 C

In food processor, process the Ground almonds, Ground pistachio and icing sugar to fine mixture. Sift the almond-pistachio and sugar mixture in sieve twice discarding any lumps that are too big to pass through the sieve. 



Whisk the egg whites in clean dry bowl (no trace of water please) till soft peaks are formed. Add the caster sugar, and beat on a low speed. Once combined increase the speed to high and whisk till glossy and stiff peaks are formed (For me, it took 7 minutes on electric hand beater on a high speed). Add the food color of your choice and beat for 25-30 seconds. Please make sure not to over beat the egg whites.


Sift the flour mixture over the whites and fold gently using a flexible spatula. You need a smooth and shinny mix.  Do not make the batter too runny or the macaroons won’t rise as they should. When you lift the batter up and let it drop down, it should slowly disappear into itself without leaving a peak.

Transfer the batter to a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch plain round tip. On a parchment-lined baking sheet pipe the ¾ inch rounds leaving 1-2 inch gap between each piping. Drag the pastry tip to the side of rounds rather than forming peaks. Tap bottom of each sheet on work surface to release trapped air.

Allow the piped macarons to stand on a room temperature for 30-45 minutes.  The stand time varies with temperature at different places. What you need is the piped macarons to form a very thin, smooth crust, when you tap it lightly with your finger, the batter will not stick to your finger.

Reduce oven temperature to 140 C. Bake 1 sheet at a time, rotating halfway through, until macarons are crisp and firm, about 10 minutes. After each batch, increase oven temperature to 160 C , heat for 5 minutes, then reduce to 140 C.

Let macarons cool on sheets for 2 to 3 minutes, and then transfer to a wire rack. If macarons stick, spray water underneath parchment on hot sheet. The steam will help release macarons.

When fully cooled, Sandwich 2 same-size macarons with the filling of your choice.


 Butter cream –

  • Unsalted butter – 125 grams, at room temperature
  • Icing sugar – 1 1/2 cups
  • Milk – 2 tablespoon

In a clean blow beat the the butter till as white as possible. Gradually add in the icing sugar and milk till stiff peaks.

44 thoughts on “Pistachio macarons”

  1. Stunning and yes, its simply breathtaking. I will just be at the stage of admiring these beauties because of that big fear about making macarons. Maybe when I can find the time, I will for sure try out this recipe.

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  6. Simply breath taking.. I wish u lived next door 😦 It's perfect & the clicks simply accentuate the beauty !! U have said 'Sift the flour & sugar mix' rite, which flour??

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  14. perfect ! gorgeous clicks as usual. I am totally in love with those macs. Wish someday I will have the courage to try these 🙂

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  16. Hey Rekha,you are such a pro!!!I hear even seasoned chefs tremble when macaroons don't have feet.:)
    I wonder why u hurried thru the shoot the yo yo biscuit setting would have looked really rewarding for all the hard work and gorgeous macaroons.

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  17. Thank you soo much Meena. I actually forgot of my cupcake stand.. infact never used it after the yo yo photo shoot. . Thank you for reminding me. Another thing is its cloudy most days here so not very happy with the white background as it is when the sun is shining. .
    Thank you sweety for you feedback 🙂

    Reply

  22. Gorgeous Rekha 🙂 You have made them so perfect! Even with a cloudy weather, you have managed to take beautiful clicks. I checked out the Yo Yo Biscuit post Meena mentioned – Ahh, the cup cake stand would have been perfect for these 🙂

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  35. Beautiful! I love baking macrons at home too. They are so delicate and I can change up and experiment new flavors. That's the beauty of homemade, isn't it? 🙂 These are perfect and gorgeous.

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  37. wow…gorgeous & perfectly made macarons!! Loved the colour & looks YUM too!!! First time on your space & I'm falling in love with your recipes 😉 Happy to follow you 🙂

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  41. Look at those beauties!!! I haven't tackled that beast yet (that's what I think for now until I try making the macaroons). Will be making them one of these days. Very good job there!!

    Reply

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