I've watched so many tutorials, and I cannot get it to work. The first recipe I used gave me hollow shells. Now, I'm not getting any feet. I'm using Preppy Kitchen's recipe. Rested for 50 minutes under a fan. 300 degrees for 14 minutes, rotating halfway through. What am I doing wrong?
by leeahnee
5 Comments
I know this isn’t the answer you want, but it could be anything. Make sure that once you hit stiff peaks you stop whipping. Try turning the pan upside down and baking on the bottom of the try. Try 290 degrees and 310 degrees. And make sure they’re not actually resting too long. People say to make sure the top is dry but I like the swipe test, which is very gently run your finger across the top and it should be dry.
Michelle’s Macarons was the only technique video that seemed to work for me. Definitely look her up on YouTube.
If it makes you feel any better I’m on batch seven and only half of one batch so far has turned out great. I use Sally’s French macaron recipe. Each step seems critical in nailing and for me I’m struggling with the oven/baking temp and time. Don’t give up! There’s so many helpful people on here so if you have questions ask away, they’re an amazing resource.
Honestly this has been the most frustrating lab experiment so far. I have taken to going over this with ChatGPT. People will say… to much whipping, not enough whipping, too high temperature, too low temp. With AI I have finally started to understand what is going on. I’m suffering with hollow shells. Not enough lift. Could be over whipped merengue… but I have to whip a very long time before I get the gloss look (and slightly stiffer). But what my actual problem was the eggs have a lot of water in them. So aging them overnight (Google it) reduces water content. Now they whip quicker and i can blend the flour/ sugar easier (less mixing).
Make a notebook or Google doc and keep track of what you do. Try and only change one thing each trial.
Oh, and actually measure your oven temp. Mine was +30F from setpoint.
If you mess something up go ahead and put them through. Seeing what a fail does and you knowing it will fail and how can be informative in your understanding.
Im still working on mine. People keeping telling me they are good, look great and taste good. For me they just arent what’s in my head.
Best of luck.
Are you using a scale? His recipe is what got me started and it by itself never led me astray, but my technique definitely has
Like others have said make sure the temperature isn’t too high, I cook mine at 290 and that can help. Also you may be over mixing a smidge or over whipping the meringue, it’s really hard to find that sweet spot
Also also I find that eggs can make a huge difference. My best meringue comes from freshly bought great value eggs and the worst ones were from organic free range 🤷🏻♀️