Rustic Almond Macarons

• For this recipe, you'll need a sugar thermometer to help you measure the temperature of the syrup.
   
• Preheat the oven to 275°F (135°C). Use the fan/convection setting for this recipe.
   
• Prepare a piping bag with a (10mm) plain round decorating tip (Wilton #12 tip).
   
• Bakers Note: Natural almond flour is ground from whole almonds with the skin intact. For this recipe, you need super-fine natural almond flour from whole almonds. You can use store-bought from the brand Bob’s Red Mill or make your own from whole almonds with the skin intact as I do.
   
• Grind 225 grams of whole almonds with skin intact until it is super-fine, make sure to weigh it again to ensure it is still 225 grams.
   
• Line two baking sheets with silicone macaron baking mats, or use parchment paper and make a round template. Trace a circle using a small round cookie cutter about 4 cm (1 1/2-inches) in diameter as a guide on a piece of parchment paper. Flip the parchment paper over and place it on your baking sheet. You should be able to see the circles through the parchment paper.
   
• Wipe a stainless-steel bowl or a glass bowl and the whisk attachment of a standing mixer with a paper towel moistened with lemon juice. This step is done to eliminate any trace of grease, which would hinder the egg whites from stiffening.
   
• Place 80 gram egg whites in the clean bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment add A pinch of cream of tartar (Do not start the mixer yet.)
   
• Bring the 80 gram water and 200 grams sugar to a boil in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring slowly with a small spatula or a wooden spoon until all the sugar is dissolved. Try not to get any sugar on the sides of the pan. (You can always brush it away with some water and a baking brush.)
   
• When the mixture starts to boil, do not stir anymore and attach a candy thermometer to the saucepan.
   
• Once the sugar syrup temperature reaches 113°C (235°F), begin whipping the egg whites at high speed.
   
• When the sugar syrup reaches 115°C (240°F) and the egg whites are foamy, remove the syrup from the heat and slowly add the syrup to the egg whites by dribbling it down the side of the bowl, avoiding the whisk attachment. If you hit the whisk attachment, it will make spun sugar.
   
• Once all the syrup has been added, turn the speed to medium-high and whip until a glossy and thick meringue is formed and has cooled to room temperature, about 8 minutes.
   
• Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine 225 gram powdered sugar and 225 gram almond flour. Add the remaining 80 grams of egg whites. Mix with a silicone spatula to evenly moisten and form a thick paste.Use a sharp knife to split the vanilla bean lengthwise and scrape the seeds out and combine it with the almond/egg white paste mixture. Cover the top and set aside until the whipped meringue is ready.
   
• Bakers Note: when making macarons, the process of combining the meringue mixture with the almond mixture is the most important part. At this stage, if you overmix or undermix the batter, you won't get the desired results. When folding your meringue and almond mixture together, take care not to stir, only fold.
   
• Fold in a small amount of the cooled meringue into the bowl of the almond mixture to loosen the batter.
   
• Here is how you fold: Slide the spatula with each fold down the side of the bowl to the very bottom, then lift and rotate it over to bring the mixture from the bottom of the bowl up to the top.
   
• Then fold in the rest of the meringue into the almond mixture until a smooth batter develops and flows like “lava”. Stop folding once it reaches the gentle lava-like consistency. A couple of folds too few or too many can make a drastic difference in your macarons. Once the batter becomes more uniform, begin evaluating the consistency after every couple of strokes. The batter should have a “lava-like” consistency that flows very slowly off your spatula when you lift it.
   
• Transfer the mixture to the prepared piping bag.
   
• If you use parchment paper, add a little dot of the macaron mixture underneath each corner of the parchment paper so it stays attached when you pipe.
   
• Pipe out rounds of batter onto the prepared baking sheets. Holding the piping bag straight down, slightly above the baking sheet or silicone mat so there is room for the batter to come out of the bag. The batter will spread slightly, so pipe rounds slightly smaller than the circles on your silicone mat or parchment paper.
   
• After the macarons are piped, carefully tap the baking sheet on the countertop a few times which will help to get rid of any large air bubbles.
   
• Bake straight away for 12-13 minutes in the center of the oven; (there is no need for you to wait until the piped cookies are dry to the touch, as many macaron recipes instruct, you may bake them as soon as they are piped.)
   
• The cookies are done when the top is firm and does not wiggle. To check if the macarons are ready, gently wiggle the top of the shell; it should feel secured to the feet but still should have a tiny bit of movement when touched.
   
• Let cool completely on wire racks before removing them from the baking mat/trays.
   
• A perfectly baked macaron shell should be easy to peel off the parchment paper or silicone mat.

Directions for the espresso filling

• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, add the 100 gram unsalted butter ( diced),  100 gram powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon instant espresso powder, and 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste.
   
• Beat on low for one minute, then beat on high speed until light in color, creamy and fluffy. about 2-5 minutes.
   
• Stop the mixer from time to time and scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula.
   
• Use immediately 
   
• Fit a pastry bag with a plain piping tip and fill it with the espresso filling, Pipe a small squeeze/dollop of espresso frosting onto the underside of one of the macarons shells, add 1/2 teaspoon of ground chocolate ( optional) on top of the frosting and sandwich its matching shell on top so that the bottom of each shell is against the frosting/filling.
   
• I prefer having my filled macarons in a glass jar at room temp. ( as longs, as it is not too hot, where you live, otherwise your filling can melt)  
   
• Or place your filled macarons into an airtight container or a resealable plastic bag and pop it in the refrigerator. When you want to serve these you need to let them come to room temp at least 1-2 hours before serving.
   
• Unfilled macarons you can freeze in a resealable bag, for up to 2 months.
   
• Filled macarons in a resealable bag, you can freeze up to one month. to make sure it stays fresh, add the reseal bag into an airtight container.