little miss sweetie: Black sesame & matcha macarons

I have a love-hate relationship with macarons. Obviously, they're adorable and delectable...what's not to love? They're also notoriously temperamental and finicky. My first five batches of macarons have all gone terribly wrong to varying degrees. Though the more I failed (and yes, I have sacrificed countless eggs), the more obsessed I became with getting it right! So I started reading other people's blogs and collected books dedicated to the little sweet monster. When my macarons finally started looking right consistently, the feeling was indescribably exhilarating! I have to admit, they're not my absolute favorite thing to eat (a little sweet for my taste), but I make them intermittently to taste the sweetness of success. Yes, it's minute in the scale of things...but we can all use a little win once in a while, non?

Black sesame macarons with matcha buttercream

For the shells
100 grams egg whites, room temperature
pinch of salt
25 grams granulated sugar
100 grams almond powder
200 grams icing sugar
15 grams black sesame seeds

In the bowl of food processor, combine almond powder, icing sugar and black sesame seeds. Pulse until the mixture becomes a fine powder. Sift into a large bowl or baking sheet, breaking up any lumps.

In a large bowl, beat egg whites with salt until frothy. While beating, gradually add in granulated sugar and continue beating until stiff peaks form. (If you can turn the bowl over the top of your head and nothing falls, then it's ready!)

Gently fold in one-third of the sifted dry ingredients into the egg whites with a spatula.

When the dry ingredients have been incorporated, fold in half of the remaining sifted dry ingredients. While holding the bowl with one hand, hold the spatula in the other, scraping everything from the bottom of the bowl and bringing it to the top. Give the bowl a quarter turn at every stroke to make sure everything is incorporated. Add in rest of the dry ingredients and continue folding in the same manner. Do not over-mix.

When the batter is ready, it should drip slowly from your spatula, forming a thick ribbon. Some say that it resembles pancake batter. Some recipes describe it as "flowing like lava", so I imagine magma slowly oozing down a volcano...

Prepare a piping bag fitted with a 1/2 inch round tip. I clip the piping bag just above the tip to prevent spillage, then set it in a water glass to fill it easily.

Pour batter into piping bag and pipe 1" rounds onto baking trays lined with silicone baking sheets or parchment paper. Leave at least 3/4" between each round, as the batter will spread. Firmly tap the baking tray against the counter a couple of times to release any air bubbles.

Let the cookies sit at room temperature for 30-60 minutes, until a film forms on the surface of the cookies. It is ready when the tops are no longer sticky when you touch it with your finger. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 150°F.

Bake for 18 minutes. I keep my oven slightly ajar with a wooden spoon. (Some ovens may not need this, but I find that my oven gets especially hot in the middle and causes some cookies to crack!)

When the cookies are ready, it should peel easily off the baking sheets. If not, return to oven for 3-4 more minutes. Let cool on wire rack. Meanwhile prepare the buttercream

For the matcha buttercream
50 grams egg white
80 grams granulated sugar
6 tablespoons butter, room temperature, cut into small cubes
1 tablespoon matcha powder

In mixing bowl of stand mixer, combine egg whites and sugar. Place over a bowl of gently simmering water. Whisk until sugar dissolves and egg whites are hot to the touch, about 140°F.

Remove from heat and set on stand mixer. Beat with wire whisk on medium speed until bowl is at room temperature, about 10 minutes.

Switch to paddle attachment and continue to beat on medium speed, gradually add in cubed butter pieces. Continue beating until mixture is creamy and satiny. Beat in matcha powder until incorporated.

Scoop buttercream into clean Ziplock bag.

Assembly
Pair up shells of similar sizes and turn upside down on a baking sheet. Cut off tip of Ziplock bag and pipe desired amount of buttercream onto one shell and sandwich with another one.