Macaron: The Aged White and the Foot

Ingredients

• Tant pour tant
• 150 g almond flour, blanched, finely ground
• 150 g icing sugar, sifted
• Italian meringue
• 55 g egg whites, aged 24–48 hours uncovered in the refrigerator, at room temperature
• 150 g caster sugar
• 50 ml water
• 55 g egg whites, aged 24–48 hours uncovered in the refrigerator, for the tant pour tant paste
• Filling
• ganache, buttercream, or jam, of choice; filling defines the macaron

Method

1. 1
   Age the egg whites. Place them uncovered in the refrigerator for 24–48 hours. This reduces their moisture content and surface tension, producing a more stable foam and a drier shell. Bring to room temperature before use.
2. 2
   Prepare the tant pour tant. Combine the almond flour and icing sugar in equal weight. Sift the mixture a minimum of twice. Any coarse particles remaining will produce a bumpy, irregular surface on the finished shell. The sifted mixture must be uniform and powdery.
3. 3
   Make a paste. Combine the tant pour tant with the first 55 g of aged whites and work together into a smooth, thick paste. Set aside.
4. 4
   Cook the Italian meringue syrup. Combine the caster sugar and water in a small saucepan and bring to 118°C. Begin whisking the second 55 g of aged whites to soft peaks as the syrup approaches temperature. Pour the hot syrup in a slow, steady stream onto the whites while the whisk runs. Continue whisking until the meringue is stiff, glossy, and the bowl is cool to the touch.
5. 5
   Macaronage. Fold the meringue into the tant pour tant paste in stages using a flexible spatula. This is the step on which the dish lives or dies: continue folding until the mixture flows from the lifted spatula in a single, continuous, slow ribbon that falls back onto itself and disappears into the surface in approximately 30 seconds. If piped rounds would hold peaks, fold further. If the mixture runs off the spatula in a thin, rapid stream, the batter is over-worked and cannot be recovered.
6. 6
   Pipe the shells. Fill a piping bag fitted with a plain round nozzle. Pipe rounds of uniform diameter onto parchment-lined baking trays, spacing them to allow for spread. Rap the tray firmly against the work surface several times to expel air bubbles and encourage the rounds to settle flat.
7. 7
   Croûtage. Leave the piped shells to dry at room temperature for 30–60 minutes, depending on ambient humidity. The shells are ready when the surface is completely dry to the touch and does not adhere to a fingertip. This skin is essential: during baking it traps steam beneath it, forcing the batter upward and outward at the base to form the foot. Without this skin, no foot develops.
8. 8
   Bake. Bake at 140–160°C (the precise temperature must be tested for each individual oven, as macaron baking is the most oven-specific technique in pâtisserie). Bake until the foot has developed at the base, the domed surface is smooth and barely coloured, and the shells release cleanly from the parchment once fully cool. Do not assess the shells until they are cold — warm shells will tear from the paper even when correctly baked.
9. 9
   Fill and assemble. Pipe or spread the chosen filling onto the flat side of one shell. Sandwich with a second shell of matching size, pressing gently until the filling reaches the edge. The finished macaron should yield a slight crunch on the exterior and a chewy interior.