Easy Jam Macaroons Recipes

Steps:

• Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Use a small cookie cutter or drinking glass to trace thirty 1 1/2 -inch circles in rows on the paper, about 1 1/2 inches apart. Flip the paper over (you'll still be able to see the marks through the paper). Finely grind the peanuts in a food processor. Add the almond flour and confectioners' sugar and pulse to make a fine powder. Sift twice through a fine sieve; discard any chunks. Beat the egg whites in a bowl with a mixer on high speed until foamy. Gradually add the granulated sugar and beat until soft peaks form. Add the vanilla and beat until stiff peaks form. Fold in half of the peanut mixture with a rubber spatula. Repeat with the remaining peanut mixture. Transfer the batter to a pastry bag with a 1/4 -inch round tip. Holding the bag perpendicular to the baking sheet, pipe mounds of batter into the traced circles on the parchment paper. Tap the baking sheets against the counter to help the batter settle. Let sit at room temperature until the tops are slightly crusty, about 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Bake the macarons until slightly crisp, 13 to 15 minutes. Slide the parchment paper with the macarons onto a rack to cool. Carefully remove the macarons from the parchment paper. Spread 1 teaspoon jam on the flat side of a macaron; top with another macaron, flat side down. Repeat with the remaining macarons and jam. (These are best eaten within 1 day.)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a food processor, finely grind almonds, sugar, and salt. Add egg whites and vanilla; pulse until a ball forms.
• With wet hands, shape level tablespoons of dough into little balls (dough will be very sticky). Place on parchment-lined baking sheets; flatten slightly. Use moist finger to make an indentation in the center of each cookie. Bake until crackly and light golden, 15 to 20 minutes.
• Cool 5 minutes; transfer to a rack. Meanwhile, warm jam over low heat or in microwave in 10-second intervals until slightly liquefied and easy to spoon. Spoon jam filling into each cookie. Let set, about 5 minutes.

Steps:

• A camera-ready macaron has a smooth top and the coveted "foot": a lacy ring around the bottom. But macarons are tres temperamental. These detailed directions - and practice - will guide you to macaron success. If your first batch is less than perfect, savor your macarons in all their crispy chewy glory, and try again.
• Position an oven rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Using a small glass or cookie cutter (1 1/4- to 1 1/2-inch wide), trace 15 circles on each piece of parchment, leaving about 2 inches between each round. Flip the parchment over; the lines will be visible through the paper but you will not have to pipe directly onto the ink. Fit a pastry bag with a round tip about 1/4 inch wide.
• Sift the confectioners' sugar and ground almonds into a bowl and discard any larger nut chunks. (If you have more than a tablespoon of bigger chunks, grind those until powdery and then resift.) Combine the egg whites and salt in a large bowl and whip on medium-low speed with an electric mixer until frothy, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the granulated sugar, increase the speed to medium-high and whip until very soft peaks form, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the almond extract and a few drops of food coloring (if using); a little goes a long way so add with caution. Whip until stiff peaks form, 3 to 5 minutes. Fold about one-third of the sugar-nut mixture into the egg whites until blended, and then carefully fold in the remaining two-thirds. The batter should be a bit fluid but not runny. It should slowly drip off the spatula and sit on top of the batter in the bowl for a bit before eventually oozing back into it. If it seems a bit stiff at this point, fold once or twice more until it relaxes, although be careful not to over-fold. This correct texture is the key to the macaron and it is better to have a stiffer batter than a looser one.
• Transfer the batter to the prepared pastry bag. Holding the bag perpendicular over the baking sheet, squeeze until the batter fills a circle drawn on the paper. Release the pressure on the bag and pull towards you to prevent a pointy tip on the center of the cookie. Repeat with the remaining circles. Gently flatten any points on the cookies with a damp fingertip.
• Firmly rap the baking sheets against the counter to release any air bubbles and let stand at room temperature until the tops of the cookies no longer feel wet, 10 to 15 minutes.
• Bake, one sheet at a time, until the macarons are slightly crisp, about 15 minutes. Rotate the sheet halfway through for even baking. Cool the cookies on the sheets 5 minutes, and then peel them off the paper and cool completely on a rack. To assemble the cookies, spread a thin layer of the preserves on the bottoms of half of the cookies, about 1/4 teaspoon per cookie. Top with a second cookie, gently pressing to squeeze the preserves to the rims.
• From Food Network Kitchen

Steps:

• Place the icing sugar and ground almonds in the bowl of a food processor and pulse about 15 times until fully combined. Sieve this mixture into a large bowl, discarding any particles that stay in the sieve. Add the first batch of egg whites to the almond mixture, mix to form a thick paste and set aside.
• Tip the second batch of egg whites into a spotlessly clean, heatproof bowl and have an electric whisk at the ready. Place 50ml water and the granulated sugar into a small saucepan on medium heat. Bring to a boil and cook until the syrup registers 110C, using a sugar thermometer, at which time start to beat the egg whites on high speed. Once the syrup is at 118C pour it slowly down the side of the mixer bowl, avoiding the moving whisk. Continue to whisk on high until the mixture has cooled slightly and you have a shiny peaked meringue mixture - the bowl should no longer be hot to the touch, but still warm. Add the colouring and whisk to combine.
• Tip the meringue onto the almond mixture and gently fold together. It is important not to over-mix the batter - it should fall in a thick ribbon from the spatula. The ribbon should also fade back into the batter within about 30 secs - if it doesn't, fold a few more times.
• Heat oven to 170C/150C fan/gas 3-4. Line three baking sheets with baking parchment. Transfer the batter to a piping bag fitted with a large round nozzle. Hold the bag vertically to the tray, with the nozzle about 1cm from it. Pipe rounds about 2.5cm in diameter onto the prepared baking sheets. Leave to rest for 30 mins, or until the macarons have developed a skin.
• Bake the macarons for 14 mins (this needs to be precise, so you could test a macaron first). Immediately slide the parchment onto the work surface and cool for a few minutes before gently peeling the macarons off the paper.
• To make the filling, place the cream in a small saucepan and the chocolate in a medium bowl. Bring the cream just to the boil and pour over the chocolate. Leave to stand for a few mins, then stir to combine. Add the butter and stir until smooth, then leave to set until thickened. Place the chocolate mix into a clean piping bag with a smaller nozzle and pipe around the edge of half the macarons. Fill the centre with jam and sandwich with another macaron shell.
• Once finished, the macarons will improve with an overnight rest in the fridge.

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine the coconut, sugar, flour and salt. Add egg whites and vanilla; mix well., Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto greased baking sheets. Bake at 325° for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack.

Steps:

• Line a 20 x 30cm baking tin with baking parchment. Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4.
• Mix the sugar, egg whites, vanilla and a pinch of salt together in a bowl. Add the coconut and flour and stir until thoroughly combined - the mixture will be quite thick and sticky. Tip into the tin and gently spread out with a spatula. Dot the jam over the top using a teaspoon, nestling it into the batter. Bake for 25-30 mins, until set and golden around the edges. Leave to cool completely in the tin.
• Melt the chocolate in the microwave, or in a bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Remove the cake from the tin, drizzle with chocolate and leave to set before cutting into squares. Will keep in an airtight container for up to a week.