If you’ve never tried fig jam with cheese before then you’ve been seriously missing out! It’s a must-have with every cheeseboard in my opinion.
So of course, it left me wondering how to incorporate it into the other things I love to eat. I’d heard of savoury macarons on sale in places like Harrods but I wanted something that was still on the sweet side – and that’s how I decided to pair it with mascarpone!
Think rich and creamy with a burst of sweet fig! Delicious!
If you’re still new to making macarons, don’t be put off by the lenghty method! I try and include as much advice as I can but once you get the hang of them, they’re a breeze! For best results, check out my useful tips from my last macaron recipe here! Please don’t hesitate to send me a message via the contact page or on social media (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter) if you need any advice or help troubleshooting your macarons!
This recipe will make up to 24 macarons and take up to a total of 3 hours to make – approximately 20 mins to prepare the macaron mixture, 30 mins – 2 hrs drying time followed by up to 30 mins baking time.
Ingredients:
For the macarons:
- 95 g ground almonds, sieved until fine
- 95 g icing sugar
- 90 g egg whites (approx. 3 egg whites) at room temperature, aged if possible (see tips)
- 90 g granulated sugar
- purple food colouring, powder or gel is best
For the filling:
- 2-3 tbsp fig jam
- 50 g mascarpone cheese (kept cold)
- 100 g unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
- 300 g icing sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Useful Equipment: 2 baking trays and 2 macaron mats placed on top (if you don’t have a macaron mat, place a sheet of baking paper on each tray and draw out circle templates with a diameter of 3 cm – you can use a cookie cutter to do this), mixing bowls, hand/stand mixer with whisk attachments, stainless steel or glass mixing bowl, piping bag with a round nozzle, food processor (optional), sieve, spatula, cocktail sticks
Method:
Making the Macaron Shells:
- Sift together the almond flour and icing sugar into a bowl. If you have one, I recommend blending them together in a food processor to get the mixture as fine as possible. Add the powdered food colouring at this stage if using.
- In a clean stainless steel or glass bowl on top of a saucepan with simmering water (a bain marie) lightly whisk the egg whites and granulated sugar together until the sugar has completely dissolved. You can check this by rubbing the egg whites between your fingers – if it’s still got a grainy texture, keep heating and mixing.
- Once the sugar has dissolved, remove the bowl from the heat. Using a hand or stand mixer, whisk the egg white mixture until stiff peaks form. It should be thick and glossy!
- Add the almond flour and icing sugar mixture as well as your gel food colouring (if using) and fold until combined. As you do so, push your spatula down through the mix as you turn the bowl (making a ‘J’ shape) – the aim is to remove some of the air trapped in the mixture.
- Repeat this movement until the batter starts to fall like ribbons. This is a key step to get right as under-mixing can upset the texture of the shells. Pick up some batter with your spatula and let it fall off the end. If it is falling like a ribbon, try drawing a figure of 8. If the batter doesn’t break whilst doing this then it is ready. If it does, keep folding until the ribbon stage is reached.
- Place the mixture into a piping bag with a round nozzle and pipe onto your macaron mat/template. Try piping straight down into the centre of the circle to achieve a circular shaped macaron.
- Lift the tray about 10 cm off the surface and drop it down onto the table. Do this a couple of times to bring any air bubbles to the surface. You can then smoothen the top with a cocktail stick.
- Let the macarons sit at room temperature until dry on top. This can take from 30 mins to 2 hrs (to overnight!) depending on the conditions of the room. You will know they are ready when you can touch the top and it isn’t sticky.
- Whilst the macarons are drying, preheat the oven to 150 °C/320 °F. If you have a fan oven, I suggest baking them at 130 °C/270 °F
- Bake for 13-15 mins at 150 °C/320 °F or up to 25-30 mins at 130 °C/270 °F. Cool completely on the tray.
Making the Filling:
- Beat the butter in a mixing bowl until pale. Gradually add the icing sugar and continue to mix together until smooth and creamy. Add the mascarpone and vanilla and mix to combine.
Assembling the Macarons:
- In order to get neat looking macarons, try and pair similarly shaped shells together.
- Pipe the mascarpone filling in a ring around the edge of one of the macaron shells and then pipe the fig jam into the centre of the shell.
- Sandwich the top shell to the bottom shell (I find this step so satisfying!)
- Decorate however you choose! I brushed pink and gold lustre dust on top! Simple yet effective!
- Enjoy!
These macarons will keep up to 5 days in an airtight container in the fridge.
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