Pistachio Macarons are my absolute favorite flavor of macaron, being perfectly salty and of course intriguingly green. It is strange but I feel like I’ve turned a corner or something and have been enjoying more salty and savory flavors lately, especially pistachios! Is there a certain age where you start craving more salty foods and less sweets? In Europe, my gelato flavor of choice for the whole trip was always either pistachio or hazelnut. I’m definitely entering into some salty-sweet phase of life, where the best sweets are ones with a little more salt than required. Anyone else with me on this?!
While we were in France we saw a whole rainbow of macarons. Flavors like: Matcha Green Tea, Dulce de Leche, Apricot, Cappucino, Salted Caramel, Cassis, Chestnut, Passion Fruit, Honey Lavendar, Lychee, Rhubarb, Tahini, and even Creme Brulee. Now I have a flood of new ideas!
These macarons were made by my friend Haley and I and we came up with a few tips for your macaron making:
- *have multiple pans so that you don’t have to wait for one set to bake before baking the other half of the mixture
- *slide a macaron print out template (see photo above) under your parchment or silpat so that you can get exact sizes of macaroons as you pipe them dough out into perfect circles
- *use a silpat if you have one so the shells don’t stick to the pan, if you don’t use parchment paper
- *don’t over-whip your egg-white mixture
- *let your egg whites age in room temp for a couple of days before making the macarons
Macarons have a reputation for being difficult but if made with care I promise they’ll come out perfectly.
Pistachio Macarons
Ingredients
- 4 egg whites, aged for 2-3 days in an air-tight container at room temp
- 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1 cup fine granulated sugar, caster sugar
- a few drops green food coloring
- 1/2 cup almond flour
- 1/2 cup finely ground pistachios
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1/2 recipe perfect buttercream frosting
- 6 oz fresh raspberries, lightly mashed
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with silpat silicone mats (preferable) or parchment paper. Place macaron printouts mentioned in this blog underneath the silpat or parchment.
- In the bowl of a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat aged egg whites and cream of tartar on medium speed until soft peaks form. Slowly incorporate the sugar. Quickly mix in a few drops of green food coloring and mix until still peaks form.
- Using a food processor finely ground both nuts. In a separate bowl, stir together ground almonds, pistachios, and powdered sugar. Carefully fold in egg white mixture.
- Place the mixture in a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2 inch round tip. Following the printed guide, pipe circles onto the silpat or parchment paper. Let rest about 30 minutes, until the top of the macaron is dry.
- Bake macarons for about 15 minutes, until the macarons are set and have some nice feet on them (small rim at the base of the shell). Cool before CAREFULLY removing them from the baking sheet.
- Make the buttercream frosting. Fold in slightly crushed raspberries. Spoon a bit of the frosting onto half of the cookies. Place the other half of the cookie on top. Then do a little happy dance because you've just made the most beautiful and delicious macarons you've ever had 🙂
Haley’s Perfect Raspberry Buttercream:
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup liquid egg whites
1/2 cup butter, room temp and cut into squares
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1/8 teaspoon vanilla bean powder
8 ounces fresh raspberries, mashed
Set a stainless steel bowl over a pot of simmering water (about an inch worth, make sure the bottom of the bowl doesn’t touch the water).
Pour the sugar and egg whites, into the bowl and whisk constantly. Check the temperature every few minutes, while whisking, until it reaches 160 degrees F.
Pour hot sugar-mixture into a bowl of a mixter fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat on medium-high until stiff peaks form and the mixture is cool.
With the mixer still running, add the butter, one tab at a time, until it is all fully incorporated. Add the vanilla bean powder (or vanilla extract).
Turn off the mixer. Add the powdered sugar and turn the mixer on low and mix until fully incorporated.
Fold in the mashed raspberries.
Beautiful macarons!
I’m still too intimidated to make my own macarons.. And I hear you on the salty over sweet snacks lately. =)
Just added this to my recipe box. I love macs. These look so good. Can’t wait to make them!!!
You have honestly inspired me to want to try making macarons! I always see them on blogs, and they are always cute, but they never seem like something I want to spend precious time and calories on. This flavor combination you have displayed seems amazing!
I tried your beautiful macarons at one of the SLC Foodie events. I just bought all the ingredients and am including them on my brunch menu tomorrow. Serving them with a sparkling Spanish Moscatel.
Oh that sounds wonderful! Great to hear from you Dana. I hope to run into you again soon!
LOVED these from your ‘take away’ at the Tea and Marmalade mixer
Thanks!! Sorry it took a bit to get them up on the blog! Pistachio is my favorite macaron flavor!!
Raspberry buttercream filling – yumm!!! I too love macarons and recommend the macaron master – http://www.themacaronmaster.com/ for smooth, bakery-quality macarons. Enjoy! 🙂
Hi, I’m just wondering, how many cups or grams does 4 egg whites make?
I am so psyched to make these! What kind of pistachios do you use – all I have right now is roasted, salted.
Actually, the only pistachios I had were also roasted and salted so I just used a paper towel to wipe off most of the salt. A little salt is okay, especially if you prefer a bit of salt on your desserts. Enjoy!