Description
Delight in these elegant Pistachio Macarons featuring crisp, colorful shells made from almond and pistachio flour, paired with a rich Laduree-style pistachio creme filling. This French-inspired treat requires precise technique but rewards with delicate texture and nutty flavor perfect for special occasions or sophisticated dessert spreads.
Ingredients
Units
Scale
Pistachio Macaron Shells:
- 60 g fine almond flour
- 40 g fine pistachio flour
- 65 g powdered sugar
- 70 g egg whites at room temperature
- 75 g fine granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1/4 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
- 1/8 teaspoon green gel food coloring (Wilton Kelly green)
Laduree Pistachio Creme Filling:
- 65 g granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons water
- 2 egg yolks
- 55 g unsalted butter at room temperature
- 20 g pure pistachio paste
Instructions
- Preheat oven and prepare baking sheets: Preheat the oven to 300°F (150°C). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper, Teflon sheets, or silicone mats for baking the macarons.
- Sift dry ingredients: Sift together almond flour, pistachio flour, and powdered sugar twice to ensure a smooth mixture. Discard any chunky bits remaining in the sifter.
- Make the meringue: In a clean mixing bowl fitted with a whisk attachment, combine egg whites, granulated sugar, cream of tartar, and salt. Beat on medium speed until soft peaks form, about 30-40 minutes.
- Add food coloring: When soft peaks form, add a drop of green gel food coloring and continue beating on medium-low speed until hard peaks form. The meringue should form stiff, pointy peaks and ball up in the whisk.
- Combine dry ingredients and meringue: Sift the dry ingredients once again directly over the meringue. Using a silicone spatula, fold carefully until fully incorporated and batter reaches a runny consistency that can draw a figure eight without breaking.
- Test batter consistency: Drop a small amount of batter into the bowl; the peak should dissolve in about 10 seconds. If not, fold gently more times and retest, being careful not to overfold.
- Pipe macaron shells: Transfer the batter into a pastry bag fitted with a round tip (Wilton 2A). Pipe 1.5-inch rounds spaced about an inch apart onto prepared sheets using a macaron template if desired.
- Remove air bubbles: Firmly tap baking sheets on the counter multiple times to eliminate air bubbles. Use a toothpick to pop any large bubbles for smooth tops.
- Rest the macarons: Let the piped macarons rest at room temperature for 15 minutes to form a skin before baking.
- Bake the shells: Bake one sheet at a time on the middle rack with an empty baking sheet on top to prevent browning. Bake for 18 minutes until firm and the base doesn’t wobble but has a slight slide.
- Cool the shells: Remove from oven and allow macarons to cool completely on baking mats before peeling off carefully.
- Prepare pistachio creme filling: In a small saucepan, combine sugar and water and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Cook until syrup reaches 250°F (120°C) about 5 minutes.
- Whip egg yolks: Simultaneously beat egg yolks in a bowl with whisk attachment until doubled in size and pale, about 2 minutes.
- Incorporate hot syrup: Slowly pour hot syrup into egg yolks with mixer on low, pouring on the bowl’s side to avoid splatter. Increase speed to medium-high and beat until cooled to 104°F (40°C) and smooth white texture forms.
- Add butter and pistachio paste: Stir in butter and pistachio paste and continue beating until smooth and creamy. Transfer to a pastry bag with a round tip.
- Assemble macarons: Pair macaron shells by size with undersides facing up. Pipe a dollop of filling onto bottom shells, place top shells over filling, and press lightly to spread filling evenly.
- Mature macarons: Store filled macarons in an airtight container in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours to allow flavors to meld and shells to soften.
- Serve: Remove macarons from the fridge 30 minutes before serving for optimal texture and flavor.
Notes
- Use super fine almond flour for smooth macaron tops and accurate measuring by weight before sifting.
- Homemade pistachio flour can be made by pulsing pistachios in a food processor and sifting; re-pulse chunks until fine.
- Commercial powdered sugar is preferred as it contains cornstarch, which helps texture.
- Use fine granulated sugar or caster sugar for meringue to aid in quicker dissolution.
- Cream of tartar is optional but stabilizes egg whites and strengthens meringue.
- Refer to a full tutorial for making pistachio paste if unavailable.
- Store filled macarons in an airtight container in the fridge up to 5 days, or freeze for up to 3 months after maturing for 24 hours.
- Practice careful folding technique (macaronage) for best texture; about 50 folds is typical before testing batter consistency.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 macaron
- Calories: 80 kcal
- Sugar: 7 g
- Sodium: 15 mg
- Fat: 4 g
- Saturated Fat: 2 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 1.5 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 9 g
- Fiber: 0.5 g
- Protein: 2 g
- Cholesterol: 15 mg
