Mandarin Hojicha Macarons

Ingredients

• 1.75 cup powdered sugar (Sifted)
• 1 cup almond flour (Finely ground and sifted)
• 0.75 cup granulated sugar
• 3 egg whites (About 90 g, brought to room temperature)
• 0.25 tsp cream of tartar
• 2 tsp hojicha powder (Divided between the macaron shells and filling as needed)
• 0.5 cup unsalted butter (Softened)
• 1.5 cup powdered sugar (For the buttercream)
• 2 mandarin orange zest (Finely grated)
• 2 mandarin orange juice (Freshly squeezed; approximately 60 ml)
• 1 tbsp heavy cream (For loosening the filling if needed)
• fine salt (To taste)

Steps

1. 1

   Sift the powdered sugar and almond flour together into a bowl. Whisk in the hojicha powder, if using it in the shells, and discard any large almond-flour pieces.

2. 2

   Place the room-temperature egg whites in a clean mixing bowl. Whip until foamy, add the cream of tartar, and gradually beat in the granulated sugar until the meringue is glossy and forms stiff peaks.

3. 3

   Fold the sifted dry ingredients into the meringue in several additions. Continue folding until the batter flows slowly from the spatula and settles back into itself; do not overmix.

4. 4

   Transfer the batter to a piping bag and pipe evenly sized rounds onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. Tap the sheet firmly on the counter several times to release air bubbles, then pop any visible bubbles with a toothpick.

5. 5

   Leave the piped shells at room temperature until the surfaces are dry and no batter transfers to a fingertip when lightly touched, about 30–60 minutes.

6. 6

   Preheat the oven to 300°F (150°C). Bake one tray at a time for approximately 14–17 minutes, rotating halfway through, until the shells have set and their feet are firm. Cool completely before removing them from the parchment.

7. 7

   Beat the softened butter until smooth and pale. Gradually add the powdered sugar and hojicha powder, then mix in the mandarin zest, mandarin juice, and salt. Beat until light and creamy; add a little heavy cream if the filling is too thick.

8. 8

   Pair the cooled macaron shells by size. Pipe the mandarin-hojicha filling onto half of the shells and sandwich with the remaining shells, pressing gently until the filling reaches the edges.

9. 9

   Refrigerate the assembled macarons in an airtight container for at least 12 hours so the filling can mature the shells. Bring them to room temperature before serving.

Notes

The supplied page excerpt contains only the title and description; the ingredient quantities and method above are a low-confidence reconstruction rather than an extraction of the author's full paid recipe. Macarons are generally best after resting overnight in the refrigerator and can be stored airtight for several days.

Nutrition per serving

• dessert
• cookies
• French pastry
• baked
• Lunar New Year
• citrus
• hojicha
• vegetarian