Here is the adapted/fiddled Cantina version of the recipe for macarons, which is an amalgam of every piece of good advice I found on the web and a few lessons learned. No need to wait for that skin to form, for example: I left one pan to wait, baked the other, and they were indistinguishable. So patience is not necessary. If I find any improvements I'll edit this after Thursday's Guerre des Macarons at the Literary Saloon. Measuring by weight is VITAL, and make sure your scale is accurate.
Macarons Caramel Fleur de Sel
125g ground almond
(or grind almonds with icing sugar in a blender, very fine)
225g icing sugar
3 egg whites (leave at room temp overnight for greater volume)
30g sugar
Sieve ground almond and icing sugar into a mixing bowl. Whisk together til evenly distributed. In a separate, metal, very clean bowl, beat the egg whites using an electric mixer at high speed until you can see the ruffles made by the beaters going round. Add sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, to make a stiff meringue. Dump the whole of the sieved almond/icing sugar mixture into the meringue and fold, then beat lightly in a swirling motion (called macaronage, which will deflate the meringue somewhat), until the batter flows like magma.
Transfer batter to a large plastic freezer bag. Cut 1/2" off one corner and pipe the mixture onto a silpat in 1" mounds (The cookies will spread to approximately 1½"). If the mixture is too thick, you’ll see a tip sticking up from the piping even after you finish the last row. If this happens, give the tray a sharp rap on the counter to get a nice smooth surface; if that doesn’t do it, smooth the tops with a wet finger.
Leave the piped macaron cookies out for an hour to form a skin, or bake them at once, what the heck, in a 325ºF in a convection oven for 14 minutes. If you do not have a convection oven, open the door twice, briefly, during the baking time. Remove and let cool, then sandwich together (bottom sides in) with ganache, buttercream, or the caramel filling.
Leave in fridge 24 hours to temper, but bring to room temperature before serving. This recipe would have made 24 finished macarons, except that I dropped the third pan taking them out of the oven. D’oh.
Caramel fleur de sel
200g sugar
vanilla pod, or 1 teaspoon good vanilla
200g cream
½ teaspoon fleur de sel
140g butter, cold
In a 1 litre heavy-based pot, cook the sugar, stirring all the time to get an even caramel. Then scrape in the vanilla seeds (if using vanilla flavouring, add after cooling). Add the warm cream, very gradually, as it will boil up and spit at you. Stir in the fleur de sel. Stir to make sure all the caramel has dissolved. Cool the mixture to approximately 40 degrees Celsius. Add the cold butter, cut into cubes. Using a hand mixer on low speed, beat in the butter till you achieve a smooth glossy paste. Taste and adjust seasoning: you may want more salt. Line the surface of the caramel with plastic wrap or greaseproof paper to prevent a skin forming. Keep in the fridge. Makes enough for four dozen macarons and a bunch left over to dribble on ice cream.
Monday, April 05, 2010
Brownies Marina’s Cantina
These brownies cause people to love you. They take about six minutes to make once you get the recipe in your head, and there’s no mess! Ideal for carrying to parties, they never never fail. Here is the recipe doctored for the UK, for an 8" square pan. Below it, the original 13" take-to-literary-readings recipe.
Preheat oven to 350º (gas mark 4)
Melt in a medium saucepan:
120 gm Becel (or any non-hydrogenated margarine – better than butter in this recipe unless all brownies will be eaten warm, within about two hours of baking. Then butter is better.)
1/3 cup cocoa
Stir till smooth. Take off the heat and add:
200 gm sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
Beat vigorously until all the egg is incorporated and the batter is smooth. Stir in, just until there are no streaks of flour remaining,
1/2 teaspoon baking powder (or use self-rising flour and omit the baking powder and salt)
1/2 teaspoon salt
60 gm flour (80 gm if you like a more cake-like brownie)
If you like nuts, you can add 75 gm chopped walnuts or pecans in the last stir.
Pour into a buttered 8” pan. Bake 30 minutes or until brownies pull away from the side of the pan.
Cool, then ice with fudge icing.
Fudge Icing
Put the kettle to boil first of all, you need boiling water to make the icing glossy. This makes a very thick icing for the 8" pan, you might have to ask someone to lick the pot, like the cat in the fable.
Melt 160 gm butter (NOT becel) in a small pot
Add 75 gm cocoa and stir till smooth.
Stir in 300 gm icing/confectioners/powdered sugar and beat till smooth as possible, making a thick paste. You might need a little more icing sugar, it should be getting towards stiff.
Add 1 teaspoon vanilla, then dribble in boiling water: first 1 tablespoon, then 1 teaspoon at a time, beating till it’s glossy and the consistency of fudge. If it seems oily, try adding a little more boiling water. Spread on brownie immediately, it hardens pretty fast.
Canadian/US recipe, 13" pan
Brownies Supremo
Preheat oven to 350º
Melt in a medium saucepan:
1 cup becel
2/3 cup cocoa
Stir till smooth. Take off the heat and add:
2 cups white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 eggs
Beat vigorously until all the egg is incorporated and the batter is smooth. Stir in, just until there are no streaks of flour remaining,
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup flour, dipped not sifted, or 1 1/4 c if you want them more cake-like
If you like, you can add 1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans in the last stir.
Pour into a buttered 13 x 9 pan. Bake 30 minutes or until brownies pull away from the side of the pan. Cool, then ice with fudge icing.
Fudge Icing
Put the kettle to boil first of all, you need boiling water.
Melt 2/3 cup butter in a small pot
Add 1/2 cup cocoa and stir till smooth.
Stir in 1 1/2 cups icing sugar and beat till smooth as possible. You might need a little more icing sugar.
Add 1 teaspoon vanilla, then dribble in boiling water 1 teaspoon at a time, beating till it’s the right consistency and glossy like fudge. If it seems oily, try adding a little more boiling water. Spread on brownie immediately, it hardens pretty fast.
Preheat oven to 350º (gas mark 4)
Melt in a medium saucepan:
120 gm Becel (or any non-hydrogenated margarine – better than butter in this recipe unless all brownies will be eaten warm, within about two hours of baking. Then butter is better.)
1/3 cup cocoa
Stir till smooth. Take off the heat and add:
200 gm sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
Beat vigorously until all the egg is incorporated and the batter is smooth. Stir in, just until there are no streaks of flour remaining,
1/2 teaspoon baking powder (or use self-rising flour and omit the baking powder and salt)
1/2 teaspoon salt
60 gm flour (80 gm if you like a more cake-like brownie)
If you like nuts, you can add 75 gm chopped walnuts or pecans in the last stir.
Pour into a buttered 8” pan. Bake 30 minutes or until brownies pull away from the side of the pan.
Cool, then ice with fudge icing.
Fudge Icing
Put the kettle to boil first of all, you need boiling water to make the icing glossy. This makes a very thick icing for the 8" pan, you might have to ask someone to lick the pot, like the cat in the fable.
Melt 160 gm butter (NOT becel) in a small pot
Add 75 gm cocoa and stir till smooth.
Stir in 300 gm icing/confectioners/powdered sugar and beat till smooth as possible, making a thick paste. You might need a little more icing sugar, it should be getting towards stiff.
Add 1 teaspoon vanilla, then dribble in boiling water: first 1 tablespoon, then 1 teaspoon at a time, beating till it’s glossy and the consistency of fudge. If it seems oily, try adding a little more boiling water. Spread on brownie immediately, it hardens pretty fast.
Canadian/US recipe, 13" pan
Brownies Supremo
Preheat oven to 350º
Melt in a medium saucepan:
1 cup becel
2/3 cup cocoa
Stir till smooth. Take off the heat and add:
2 cups white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 eggs
Beat vigorously until all the egg is incorporated and the batter is smooth. Stir in, just until there are no streaks of flour remaining,
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup flour, dipped not sifted, or 1 1/4 c if you want them more cake-like
If you like, you can add 1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans in the last stir.
Pour into a buttered 13 x 9 pan. Bake 30 minutes or until brownies pull away from the side of the pan. Cool, then ice with fudge icing.
Fudge Icing
Put the kettle to boil first of all, you need boiling water.
Melt 2/3 cup butter in a small pot
Add 1/2 cup cocoa and stir till smooth.
Stir in 1 1/2 cups icing sugar and beat till smooth as possible. You might need a little more icing sugar.
Add 1 teaspoon vanilla, then dribble in boiling water 1 teaspoon at a time, beating till it’s the right consistency and glossy like fudge. If it seems oily, try adding a little more boiling water. Spread on brownie immediately, it hardens pretty fast.
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