Green Tea Macarons with Green Tea White chocolate Filling

I don't know if it's just me but there seems to be a lot of buzz surrounding French Macarons lately. I had tried one not long ago and to be honest I have no idea what all the fuss is about. Aesthetically I would give it a 10/10 but taste wise... well let's just say I can hear my dentist laughing all the way to the bank if I ate anymore. 

Seeing as I am a baking enthusiast and my baby sister is a HUGE fan of Macarons, I have always wanted to try baking them but have hesitated due to the difficulty and my laziness. It wasn't until last Wednesday when my friend Angela gave me one of the ones she had made that I had made up my mind and decided to go for it. 

Below is my recipe for Green Tea Macarons that I have adapted from a Chocolate Macarons Recipe.

For the macarons:

• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1 cup almond flour or almond meal
• 3 tablespoons green tea powder
• 1/4 teaspoon fine salt
• 3 large egg whites, at room temperature
• Pinch cream of tartar
• 3 tablespoons granulated sugar

For the ganache filling:

• 200g white chocolate, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter (1/4 stick), at room temperature and cut into cubes

For the macarons:

Line two baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside. Fit a large pastry bag with a 1/2-inch plain tip; set aside. To help prevent the macarons sticking to the paper, spray a little bit of water on top of the baking paper

Place the powdered sugar, almond flour, cocoa powder, and salt in a large bowl. Sift all dry ingredients twice to insure there are no large clumps

Make a meringue by placing the egg whites in the clean bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Beat on medium speed until opaque and foamy, about 30 seconds. Add the cream of tartar, increase the speed to medium high, and beat until the egg whites are white in color and hold the line of the whisk, about 1 minute. Continue to beat, slowly adding the granulated sugar, until the sugar is combined, the peaks are stiff, and the whites are shiny, about 1 minute more. Add food colouring (Do not overwhip.) Transfer the meringue to a large bowl

Using a rubber spatula, gently fold the dry mixture into the egg whites in four batches until the dry ingredients are just combined. (The meringue will deflate.)With the final addition, stop folding when there are no traces of egg whites, the mixture runs like slow-moving lava, and it looks like cake batter. (Do not overmix.)

Transfer the batter to the pastry bag. Pipe out 2cm pieces leaving approximately 2cm gaps next to each other. Pick up the baking sheets and bang them against the work surface to help create the macaron base, or foot. Let the rounds sit at room temperature for 30 minutes to dry the tops and ensure even cooking.

Heat the oven to 150°C and arrange a rack in the middle. Bake the macarons one sheet at a time for 5 minutes. Rotate the sheet and cook for 5 minutes more. Transfer the sheet to a rack to cool completely.

For the ganache filling:

Place the chopped chocolate in a large bowl.

Warm the cream in a small saucepan over medium heat until it just starts to boil. Stir it into the chocolate without creating bubbles. Add in green tea powder and stir until it is mixed in thoroughly. Let sit for 1 minute. Add the butter and stir until smooth. Chill in the refrigerator until thickened but still spreadable, about 30 minutes.

To assemble:

Pair macarons of similar size. Remove the ganache from the refrigerator. If you choose to pipe the ganache, transfer it to a resealable plastic bag and snip about a 1/2 inch off a bottom corner. Squeeze or scoop the ganache to about the size of a cherry (about 1 teaspoon) onto the center of a macaron half.

Top with another half and press gently so that it looks like a mini hamburger. The filling should not ooze out the edges. Refrigerate, covered, at least 24 hours before serving.