MOST. SUPPORTIVE. COMMUNITY. EVER.
Huge thanks to everyone who responded to my post from two days earlier! I pulsed my dry ingredients four times in the food processor; sieved my dry ingredients three times (third time directly into meringue); and played close attention to the mixing process. I even counted my macronage turns: 70 to achieve the ribbon.
The results? Still grainy, but a huge improvement. (Pictures don’t capture the improvement but it was there!). Also, the shells were sturdier. I used the same Costco almond flour as a control against the improved technique. I will try again next time with the Blue Diamond brand.
Lastly, I made normal macarons, taking the advice that I should lock in my technique before venturing into choco territory. Thanks everyone!
My earlier post in case anyone wants to reference the advice.
by croissantfufu
4 Comments
Do the Swiss method
How fine is the mesh on your sieve? I thought I had a fine mesh sieve and it turns out I didn’t, it was medium/coarse. Don’t pulse your almond flour too much, otherwise it’ll start getting oily and ruining your macs.
Those sound like good troubleshooting tips, but man, I would get frustrated if I had to do that every time I make macs. You should be able to sift once (maybe twice?) and call it a day.
I didn’t read all the previous post’s comments, but I tend to get better mixing when I add in the meringue in three rounds. (Sounds like a different method than what you’re doing, maybe worth a try?)
1) incorporate 1/3 without worrying about deflating the meringue too much, just get it into a paste
2) take a little more care and practice that macronage in this stage. You should see the paste getting less grainy, and incorporating the meringue completely (no streaks of pure meringue).
3) Use the gentlest touch here. I like pushing the batter against the bowl while turning the bowl instead of trying to cut and fold the batter directly. Go low, go slow, and enjoy the process 🙂 The slower you macronage, the more chance you give it to incorporate better. You’ll naturally speed up as you get more practice.
Other tip – if you’re using vanilla extract, take it out for now. It’s a wildcard for me, and I can never tell the difference when I don’t add it.
Good luck – your macs are looking great!
I’m at least 77% sure that the source of grainy macs is the almond flour. Just because it is sieved through the finest and most holy sieve in the universe doesn’t mean it won’t clump again later. Some brands are more oily than others, some are more unevenly cut, and some have more of the oily skin paper left in the mix. I definitely notice a difference when I use a higher end almond flour (Bob’s Red Mill, Anthony’s) over a store brand.