Peter Reinhart's new book is in stores now. He is an amazing baker and involved instructor. His 'Bread Bakers Apprentice' book is without a doubt a favorite of mine. With the tough economic times we are all in now I have decided to do more bread baking at home. Besides, I can make the loaves smaller for just our weekly needs and stop wasting half of the loafs we get from the store. They will be fresher and I can add any flavor options I choose. All-in-all it sounds like a good idea to me! And not that much more work.
If you would like to enter for your chance to win a free copy of his new book 'Artisan Breads Every Day' click the link below.
http://northwestsourdough.wordpress.com/2009/10/30/peter-reinharts-new-book-artisan-breads-every-day/#more-858
Or you can order your very own copy at Amazon.
http://www.amazon.com/Peter-Reinharts-Artisan-Breads-Every/dp/1580089984/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1257043627&sr=8-1-spell
Happy Baking!
The 2009 October Daring Bakers’ challenge was brought to us by Ami S. She chose macarons from Claudia Fleming’s The Last Course: The Desserts of Gramercy Tavern as the challenge recipe.
Oh my goodness gracious! French Macarons have been the bane of my baking existence in the past few months. I have been trying and trying to get them right. I have consulted many a book, video, generous blogger, and recipe after recipe hoping to get that secret that they hold to the perfect French Macaron.
Alas, it wasn't meant to be. It was one big failure after another. One bag of expensive ground almond flour after another, as well.
Until, one day, I decided to mix it up a bit. And by "mix it up a bit" I mean I decided to mix recipes with instructions with oven temps with cookie sheet thickness'. And lo and behold! I hit the mother load! I finally got it right. I'm still reeling from the shock of it all. However, we were instructed to use a specific recipe this time, which I did. However, I changed the cooking times according to my temperature, humidity and oven crankiness.
Now, I've never had a "real" french macaron. I've never been to France. Or even out of the county. So I'm not even sure these are close to the taste or texture of what a true macaron should be. BUT, I am happy with the results. At least they came free from the parchment and didn't spread and had "feet" and tasted good. That, IMHO, is what matters most. I filled mine with dulce de leche and topped some of them with a bit of ganache.
I know they sound hard and complicated. And....well, they are! But have Faith! I am sure, through hard work, perserverance and a good bit of cussin' you can make these too!
Claudia Fleming's Macarons
2 ¼ cups (225 g, 8 oz.) powdered sugar
2 cups (190 g, 6.7 oz.) almond flour
2 tablespoon (25 g, .88 oz.) sugar
5 (Have at room temperature) egg whites
1. Preheat the oven to 200°F (93°C). Combine the confectioners’ sugar and almond flour in a medium bowl. If grinding your own nuts, combine nuts and a cup of confectioners’ sugar in the bowl of a food processor and grind until nuts are very fine and powdery.
2. Beat the egg whites in the clean dry bowl of a stand mixer until they hold soft peaks. Slowly add the granulated sugar and beat until the mixture holds stiff peaks.
3. Sift a third of the almond flour mixture into the meringue and fold gently to combine. If you are planning on adding zest or other flavorings to the batter, now is the time. Sift in the remaining almond flour in two batches. Be gentle! Don’t overfold, but fully incorporate your ingredients.
4. Spoon the mixture into a pastry bag fitted with a plain half-inch tip (Ateco #806). You can also use a Ziploc bag with a corner cut off. It’s easiest to fill your bag if you stand it up in a tall glass and fold the top down before spooning in the batter.
5. Pipe one-inch-sized (2.5 cm) mounds of batter onto baking sheets lined with nonstick liners (or parchment paper).
6. Bake the macaroon for 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and raise the temperature to 375°F (190°C). Once the oven is up to temperature, put the pans back in the oven and bake for an additional 7 to 8 minutes, or lightly colored. ( I had to cover them with foil and cook an additional 12 minutes before they were done.)
7. Cool on a rack before filling.