[ SECRET POST #4458 ]

[case]

⌈ Secret Post #4458 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.

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Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 01 pages, 15 secrets from Secret Submission Post #638.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 1 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

Comments

Re: foods/meals you wish you could cook

[(Anonymous)]

French macarons used to be my Everest, but a couple weeks ago I had another itch to retry and it makes so much sense now. Keep trying!!! I felt SO amazed when I made my first successful batch! Tips I have: be patient, plan meticulously, try to have things organized and prep as much as you can, underwhipping or overwhipping the egg whites was my first big hurdle so I imagine a lot of bakers have the same issue and what I learned is to make absolutely sure your egg whites do not come into contact with any kind of fat before and during the whipping and make sure you get stiff peaks in your mirengue but don't overwhip, when doing the macaronage make sure you are mixing well and don't leave streaks of meringue on the bowl or the spatula (pay close attention to the meringue!), and instead of wondering what "flowing lava" looks like do the figure 8 method. Buzzfeed had a video that really helped illustrate it for me (the video as a whole has some great tips):
https://youtu.be/MjVgIXccYXA?t=204

Also, bang the hell out of the baking sheets when you're done piping the macaron batter. Like, do it A LOT. Releasing air bubbles out of the macarons helps in the baking so much.
Parchment paper is a lot easier to deal with. Took me a little over a dozen batches before I felt confident enough to start using silpat mats.
Oven temperature is no joke. I'm still fiddling around with the perfect temperature and bake time for my macarons. As you get better you begin to nitpick. You want prettier feet, you want smoother tops, you don't want hollow shells, etc. and a lot of that tends to fall back on oven temperature and baking time.
Oh, and lastly, don't fret too much about the sifting and using a food processor, especially if you're still just trying to get pretty macarons that don't crack and have feet. Sift the powdered sugar and almond flour once and get rid of the clumpy stuff and you should be fine. Sifting two or three times is for those who are dedicated to absolutely perfect looking macarons, but sifting the sugar and flour once each won't ruin the whole process. I freaked out about that a lot early on, but now I realize some people made way too big of a deal out of it.
Just kidding, real last thing, you don't need cream of tartar. I used cream of tartar the first few times I successfully made my macarons, but I was getting hollow shells. I read one blog where the writer said she felt cream of tartar heightens the chance of hollow shells more than prevents it. Instead, I focused more on the perfect timing for a stiff meringue and the oven temperature. I've had more successes with no hollow shells without any cream of tartar.

Please continue your macaron baking journey! Once you get past that wall baking macarons is a lot of fun.