Crème Brûlée Macarons
Chewy and delicate vanilla bean macarons filled with vanilla bean pastry cream and silky German buttercream topped with sugar and caramelized.
Ingredients
Pastry Cream
- ⅔ cup whole milk
- 2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
- ⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2 large egg yolks
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon unsalted butter, room temperature
- ¼ teaspoon pure vanilla extract or paste
Vanilla Bean Macaron Shells
- 90 grams large egg whites, about 3 egg whites
- 50 grams superfine, caster or granulated sugar
- ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
- ⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 200 grams confectioners sugar
- 120 grams finely ground almond flour
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract or paste
German Buttercream
- ½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- ⅓ cup confectioners sugar
- pinch of fine sea salt
- ½ of the prepared pastry cream
- ¼ cup granulated sugar, to brûlée the tops
Instructions
Pastry Cream
- In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, combine the milk, sugar and salt and bring to a simmer.⅔ cup whole milk, 2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons granulated sugar, ⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt
- Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk the egg yolks, about 30 seconds. Whisk in the cornstarch until thickened, for about a minute.2 large egg yolks, 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- When the milk mixture is simmering, remove the saucepan from the heat. Carefully and slowly, whisk the milk into the egg mixture.
- Pour the egg/milk mixture back into the saucepan and place over medium heat, whisking continuously until the pastry cream thickens and slow bubbles pop on the surface.
- Strain the mixture through a fine mesh sieve into a clean bowl to remove any curdled bits, and to smooth out the cream.
- Whisk in the butter and vanilla extract.1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon unsalted butter, room temperature, ¼ teaspoon pure vanilla extract or paste
- Cover the surface of the pastry cream with plastic wrap so that a skin doesn't form. Allow the pastry cream to cool to room temperature.
Macaron Shells
- Place the egg whites into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes.90 grams large egg whites, about 3 egg whites
- Meanwhile, in medium size bowl, sift together the superfine sugar, cream of tartar and salt. Discard any large pieces of sugar left. Set bowl aside.50 grams superfine, caster or granulated sugar, ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar, ⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt
- In a separate large bowl, sift together the confectioner's sugar and almond flour. Discard any large pieces of almond remaining. Set the bowl aside.200 grams confectioners sugar, 120 grams finely ground almond flour
- Line half baking sheets with parchment paper. Place templates under the parchment, if using.
- Beat the egg whites on medium speed until foamy, about 8 minutes.
- Beat in the granulated sugar, cream of tartar and salt mixture.
- Whip the egg white mixture until stiff peaks form. The meringue will stand up straight when the whisk is removed. The egg white mixture will be thick and glossy. Beat in the vanilla bean paste.½ teaspoon vanilla extract or paste
- Remove the bowl from the stand mixer. Remove the bowl from the stand mixer and folding in the almond flour mixture. The egg whites will deflate a bit and that is ok. The batter is ready when it "ribbons", which means it falls off the batter in a stream. You should be able to make a "8" with the batter falling off the spatula. This means the batter is ready. You're looking for about 50-75 folds. Check for the ribboning after every 15-20 seconds.
- Fill a piping bag fitted with a round tip (Wilton 1A or 2A) and pipe 1 ½" rounds on the parchment paper.
- Firmly tap the pans on the counter 2-3 times to remove air bubbles. Let the macarons sit until just slightly tacky, but no batter comes off on your fingers, about 30-60 minutes.
- Meanwhile preheat the oven to 300F. Bake the macarons for 20 minutes. Cool completely.
German Buttercream
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter, confectioners' sugar and salt on high for 5 minutes, or until light and fluffy.½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature, ⅓ cup confectioners sugar, pinch of fine sea salt
- Decrease the speed to medium-low and beat in half of the prepared and cooled pastry cream, 1 tablespoon at a time.½ of the prepared pastry cream
- Increase the speed to medium high and beat for 3 minutes, or until light and fluffy.
- Spoon the German buttercream into a piping bag fitted with a round piping tip( I used a Wilton 2A).
- Flip half of the macaron shells over, flat side up. Pipe a ring of buttercream around the perimeter of flipped shells.
- Spoon ½ teaspoon of pastry cream into the center of the buttercream ring.
- Place the remaining macaron shells on top of the cookies with filling and squeeze gently, until the filling just reaches the edges.
- Brush the tops of the macarons with very little water. You just need a tiny bit to get the sugar to stick.
- Chill the macarons for 2-3 hours to firm up the buttercream before torching the tops.
- Sprinkle ¼ teaspoon of sugar on top of the macarons.¼ cup granulated sugar, to brûlée the tops
- Use a kitchen torch to caramelize the sugar on top.
Nutrition
Calories: 103kcalCarbohydrates: 18gProtein: 2gFat: 8gSaturated Fat: 3gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.2gMonounsaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0.2gCholesterol: 28mgSodium: 34mgPotassium: 25mgFiber: 1gSugar: 6gVitamin A: 170IUCalcium: 22mgIron: 0.2mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!