I have a big love for macarons. Always have, even before starting my apprenticeship in pastry school. 

It’s one of those things that for me has always been so fascinating. The process of making them with different techniques, for example with Italian meringue or French meringue. And of course the never ending variety of flavors that you can create.

I’ve done quite a few macarons in my days and I have also tested many different techniques. Mainly being  with a base of French meringue or Italian.

All of them have worked well but they differ slightly in the end result. For me personally I like the method of using Italian meringue. So far it has worked for me the best. But of course everyone will have their preference. 

At the moment I’m testing some vegan macaron recipe which does have its challenges but I’m always up for that. The recipe im inspired by is from @Toni Rodríguez who is an expert in his field and I highly recommend doing one of his courses in Barcelona if you the chance. 

Hands down…pistachio is one of my favorite flavors. I think sometimes the simplest is the best. Which of course doesn’t mean that I don’t  like experimenting and creating new flavor combinations. 

Normally I would fill my macarons with a buttercream or canache. Something that has more stability and that can freeze really well. 

With this recipe I decided to fill them with a really intense vegan pistachio cremeux. If you decide to try this recipe I suggest you fill them and eat them on the same day as this cremeux recipe doesn’t have the same stability as mentioned the canache or buttercream. So bear that in mind. 

But it is incredibly good! And I use this for a numerous different fillings, etc…

110g egg whites 
300g powdered sugar
300g ground almonds (fine)
300g sugar
70g water
110g egg whites 

225g water
30g sugar
0,5g salt    
40g glucose powder
6.5g gel creme, SOSA
40g cocoa butter
70g pistachio paste
2.05g sunflower lecithin 

Preheat your oven to 125°C

Place the first part of the egg whiles into the bowl of your standing mixer.

In a large bowl mix together the sieved powdered sugar and the sieved almond powder. (Make sure there are no clumps) add the other half of the egg whites. I add me coloring at this stage to the almond mixture.

Place the sugar and the water into a medium/small pot and bring to a simmer at medium-high heat. Once the sugar sirup reaches 112°C start whipping the egg whites at medium-high speed until they start to increase volume. 

Once the sugar sirup reaches 118°C immediately take it off the heat and in a slow stream pour it into the egg whites which constantly whisking. Still at high speed. Let it whisk for about a minute and then slowly decrease the speed slightly to medium-high.

In the meantime mix your almond mixture with a spatula until you have a thick and evenly spread batter. 
Keep whisking until the egg whites cool down slowly and feel Luke warm to the touch and have a glossy finish. 

Once your meringue is ready fold it into the almond batter in 3 parts. Combining well after each addition.

 
Your finished batter will have a somewhat “runny” consistency but make sure to not over mix the batter.

Pipe the batter onto the prepared silicone mats. Tap the bottom of the tray slightly just to flatten the macarons a bit. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes at 130°C and after reduce the heat to 120°C and bake for another 10-15 minutes until they are set. 

Let cool completely before removing from the mat. 

Once completely cooled fill with the pistachio cremeux and enjoy immediately or withing a few hours. 

In a small bow weight the gel creme and set aside. 

In a medium sized jug place the cocoa butter, sunflower lecithin and the pistachio paste. Set aside.

In a small pot bring the water, sugar and glucose powder to a boil. Once boiled remove from the heat and add the gel creme while hand blending . Hand blend for a bout 1-2 minutes until the gel creme has dissolved. Pour it onto the cocoa butter mixture.

Hand blend once again until you have a smooth and well emulsified mixture. 

Place in the fridge to cool down to about 30°C and emulsify one more time. 

Cover the cremeux with cling film and let it rest in the fridge overnight. 

Happy macaron making!