How To Make: Pistachio Macarons With Pistachio Buttercream

Here is another fun recipe. This is for all the pistachio lovers out there!

INGREDIENTS (20 Macarons)

Pistachio Macaron Shells

1 cup powdered sugar (confectioner’s sugar)

2/3 cup almond meal/flour

2 tablespoons of finely ground pistachio nuts

2 large egg whites

3 tablespoons granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon liquid green food color

Pistachio Buttercream

1 egg

3 tablespoons of granulated sugar

3 tablespoons of finely ground pistachio nuts

4 tablespoons unsalted butter (room temperature)

Equipment

Baking pans

Parchment paper or silpat liners

Sifter

Handheld electric mixer

Rubber or wooden spatula

Piping bags fitted with 1/2-inch round tip

Food Processor

Instructions for the pistachio buttercream filling

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Step 1: In order to make the finely ground pistachio nuts, first take the pistachio nuts out of their shells and put them into a food processor. You can get one for under $20 at World Market. Grind the pistachios until they turn into a fine powder. Make sure you grind enough to add into the macaron shell recipe as well.

Step 2: Crack your egg and put it in a medium bowl with the granulated sugar. Beat together with an electric mixer on high speed for around 5 minutes. The mixture should be doubled in volume and fluffy.

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Step 3: Pour the mixture into a saucepan along with the finely ground pistachio nuts. Stir this mixture constantly on medium low heat until it forms a thick batter. Once the mixture is a thick batter, pour it into a pan, cover it with plastic wrap and let it chill in the refrigerator until it solidifies.

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Step 4: Put the unsalted butter in a medium bowl and beat it with an electric mixer until it is soft and fluffy. Then add the egg, sugar and pistachio batter and mix together until smooth and creamy. Put this mixture into a piping bag and leave it in the refrigerator until ready to use.

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Instructions for macaron shells

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Step 1: Get your baking pans and line it with either your parchment paper or silpat liners. I recommend investing in a silpat just because I’ve had the best results with the silpat liner. They sell them for under $20 on Amazon.

Step 2: Fill a bowl or cup with warm water from the faucet and put your 2 large eggs in there. The reason for this is because macarons come out the best when using room temperature egg whites. The eggs should be room temperature once they do not feel hot or cold to the touch. Once they are at room temperature, separate the egg whites from the yolk (you don’t need egg yolks in this recipe) and put them in a medium bowl.

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Step 3: In another medium bowl,  sift all your dry ingredients (powdered sugar, almond meal/flour and finely ground pistachio nuts) with your sifter. Once all the dry ingredients are sifted thoroughly, mixed them all together.

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Step 4: Go back to your egg whites in the medium bowl and use a handheld electric mixer to whip them on low. Once they start to look foamy (picture below), put in a third of the granulated sugar.

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Mix for another minute and put in another third of the granulated sugar. After another minute of mixing, put in the rest of the granulated sugar and whip on high. Once the egg whites look stiff and glossy, put in the liquid green food color. Whip on high until your mixture has stiff, glossy and high peaks (pictured below). This mixture is now called meringue.

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Step 5: Once your meringue is done, pour about a third of your mixed dry ingredients into it and use your rubber or wooden spatula to fold the dry ingredients into the meringue. Keep pouring the rest of your dry ingredients by thirds and continue folding.

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**This is the most important step** Fold until your mixture has a smooth and shiny surface and flows like lava (pictured below). If you under mix, your macarons will end up cracking. If you over mix, your macarons will turn out flat. So be really mindful of this step. It took me a few times to get the perfect mixture so do not worry if you don’t get it the first time! Practice makes perfect.

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Step 6: Pour the batter into a piping bag fitted with a round tip. Then get your baking pans and pipe 1 inch circles of the batter onto your parchment paper or silpat liners. Leave some space in between each macaron to avoid them from merging together. Once you are done piping, take your baking pan and tap it on the countertop a few times to get rid of any air bubbles.

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Step 7: Let the piped out macarons sit in room temperature for about 15-30 minutes until they are dry to the touch. **This is important** If you do not let them dry, your macarons will not have that pretty macaron shape.

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Step 8: Pre-heat the oven to 300F. Once it reaches this temperature, put in your dry-to-the-touch macarons and let them bake for 10-15 minutes.

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Step 9: Take them out after they are done and let them cool for 30 minutes. **This is important** If you do not let them cool, the macarons will not be easy to flip over and will stick to the parchment paper or silpat.

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Step 10: Once the macarons are cooled, take your pistachio buttercream filling and pipe it onto half of the macaron shells. Then stick two macaron shells together to get the finished macaron.

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 These are such wonderful treats to have out for a holiday party. If you follow these steps exactly, you will have beautiful and tasty macarons. Have fun and enjoy your pistachio macarons!

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