Step By Step Salted Pistachio Macarons Recipe

There two differences with these macarons: First, I used the Heritage Eggs for making the pistachio buttercream. I'm not sure if they were the eggs I used, but I must say that these macarons tasted very good. Secondly, there are many people that rave about salted caramel, this would be my twist: Salted Pistachio Buttercream! I was a bit uncertain when I first made these pistachio macarons as I should have used regular unsalted pistachios. However, the salt in the roasted pistachios added a nice saltiness to the macarons balancing with the sweet taste.

If you are in Edmonton, did you also participate in the University of Alberta Farm- Heritage Chicken Program? How are you using your chicken eggs? If you didn't have a chance to 'adopt a chicken' or not from Edmonton, what are some various ways that you eat your farm fresh eggs?

Ingredients

• 100g of Aged Egg Whites (2-3 days in airtight container at room temperature)
• 225g of Powdered Sugar (also known as icing sugar)
• 125g of Almond Meal
• 5g of Dehydrated Egg White Powder (also known as albumen) 
• 28g of Granulated Sugar

Directions (this is the French Meringue Method):

1. Measure all ingredients with a scale
2. Start beating egg whites at low speed (2 on my Kitchen Aid)
3. Process almond meal, powdered (icing) sugar in processor
4. When egg whites are foamy (mousse-like) add in dehydrated egg white powder and granulated sugar combo
5. In order to get a green colour for the pistachio shells; add in 2 drops of green gel food colouring (I used Wilton Green Leaf) with 1 drop of yellow gel food colouring. If you want a darker colour add more now as the colour will lighten in the oven.
6. Increase speed on Kitchen Aid to 4. Beat egg whites until "soft peaks" form (stop, and tilt head back, look to see if egg whites form a small bird's beak)
7. Sift Almond Meal/Powdered sugar through a fine mesh.
8. Slowly add to egg whites using Chef Nini's method. Mixing in a clockwise rotation seems best. The process that she describes is slowly adding your almond mixture into the egg whites in a clockwise direction. She also split her almond mixture into 6 part.. Here's what I did: 1st part= 16 turns, 2nd part = 11 turns, 3rd part = 14 turns, 4th part = 11 turns, 5th part = 11 turns, and 6th part = 23 turns. Take a look at the video for a more detailed visual.  
9. Once mixture feels and looks like magma (flows slowly) put into piping bag
10. Pipe out small circles. 
11. Firmly rap tray on floor or counter to get rid of any air bubbles inside the shells
12. Use a toothpick to pop air bubbles on shells (this part is essential otherwise you get volcanoes instead of smooth macaron shells)
13. Let macarons sit for at least 30-45 minutes until a skin forms and is dry to touch (this is also an important step)
14. Preheat oven to 295 degrees Fahrenheit
15. Put one tray in the oven and bake for 8 minutes, then rotate tray (by now the feet should have formed!). Bake for another 11 minutes. 
16. Take out of oven, allow macarons to cool.
17. Peel from silpat/silicon mat, and get ready to fill with your buttercream!

Note: Since we moved and now have a new oven, calculations and oven temperatures have changed. After some experimentation, I've decided that the best temperature for this particular oven to bake the shells is 250 F for 20 minutes and rotating the pan and then baking for another 10 minutes. I hope to write a post about experimenting with a new oven for macaron baking soon!

 Salted Pistachio Buttercream

• 80g caster sugar (superfine sugar)
• 25g water
• 1 whole egg (~60g)
• 1 egg yolk
• 160g soft butter (cut into cubes)
• shelled pistachios

 Directions:

1. Bring sugar and water to a boil in a small pot.
2. Heat the sugar to 250F(120C), when it boils clean the sides of the pan with a damp pastry brush.
3. In another bowl or the bowl of your KA whisk the eggs and egg yolks until it lightens in colour. 
4. Once the hot sugar mixture hits 250F (using a digital thermometer/meat thermometer will do the trick nicely), pour into the egg mixture. You may find turning down the whisking speed will help prevent flying hot sugar threads everywhere. However, it is imperative to pour the hot sugar mixture in quickly and then start whisking immediately. 
5. Continue whisking until it has cooled down completely.
6. Meanwhile, cream then whisk the butter until it has thickened.
7. Once the egg mixture has cooled, add the butter.
8. Continue whisking until the butter cream is smooth.
9. Blend the pistachios in the food processor until it forms a thick paste. It will look very dark as the oils from the pistachios will have come out and formed with the paste.
10. Add the pistachio paste into the buttercream and whisk until smooth. 
11. Immediately transfer butter cream into a piping bag fitted with a nozzle and pipe away!
12. Pipe a mound of butter cream onto each half shell.
13. Top with the matching shell to finish the macaron. 

Eating Notes:

• Macarons must be stored for at least 2 days in the fridge to reach its optimal flavour and texture.
• Take out of the fridge two hours before eating.
• Macarons can also be frozen in the freezer. To eat, defrost in a covered container for 2-3 hours in room temperature before eating.