It’s officially fall! And I can’t think of a better way to celebrate than fall flavored macarons. Macarons for EVERYONE. Even those with nut allergies!!!
My daughter loves to look through my cookbook collection and pick out things to try making with me. Awhile back she came across a macaron recipe and asked if we cold make them without almonds (she has a severe tree nut allergy). Now, if you know macarons you know they are a egg white and almond flour based cookie. (Not to be confused with macaroons!) Deliciously chewy with a crisp shell, sandwiched with a yummy filling of some sorts. They are not just any old “cookie”. Much more challenging to make as well. I’ve always prided myself on being able to figure out how to make things so she isn’t missing out but was unsure if I could do that in this case. But why not try. So after some digging on the internet and checking out an obscene amount of macaron books from the library and many many batches of attempts I present the winner.
In place of almonds I used pumpkin seeds! I’ve also had good luck with sunflower seeds and peanuts but those are for another day. If you or a loved one has a tree nut allergy these are totally worth the trouble. I’ve never seen a nut free macaron sold in any bakery so unless you make them you’re out of luck! There is a learning curve, and I’ll add a tutorial sometime when I have help (taking pictures with one hand while making macarons with the other just doesn’t work… I tried!)
Now, if you want another flavor just change the filling. You can use the macaron recipe to make just about any you want. I have tried flavoring the mac shells but it works better to flavor the filling. Yes, pumpkin seeds will have a little more flavor than almonds do. But I found that you really don’t notice it much with a good flavored filling. If you want to color the shells just use a gel food dye, not liquid, and add at the beginning of the macaronage step.
PUMPKIN MACARONS WITH SPICED CARAMEL FILLING
(NUT FREE MACARONS!)
275 grams pumpkin seeds
250 grams powdered sugar
50 grams cocoa powder, optional
210 grams egg whites, at room temperature
210 grams granulated sugar
For Spiced Caramel Filling:
1/2 cup unsalted butter
2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup homemade caramel sace
1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2-4 Tablespoons heavy cream
pink salt, to taste
Grind pumpkin seeds in a blender or with a food processor. Sift with a fine mesh sifter. If you have more than a Tablespoon or two of clumps left regrind.
Sift pumpkin seed flour with powdered sugar and cocoa powder (if chocolate shells are desired) into a large bowl.
Set aside.
Beat egg whites until frothy, then add the granulated sugar. Continue beating to stiff peaks.
Add stiff egg whites to bowl with dry mix. Mix together until combined.
Now comes the “macaronage” step. Using a bowl scraper or spatula, push the mixture against the side of the bowl for several minutes. The idea is to deflate some of the meringue. You know it’s done when you can do the “figure 8 test”. When the batter flows off of the spatula allowing you to make a figure 8. If it falls off in big clumps and doesn’t “flow like lava” you need to continue the macaronage step.
Fit a pastry bag with a round tip (or do as I do. Just use a disposable pastry bag and snip the end off, no tip.) Fill the bag and pipe onto parchment lined trays (no silicone here!). I usually make smaller macs, so hold your pastry bag straight and push some batter out until you make a circle about 1 1/2 inches across (or make larger ones if you desire). Continue to fill tray, leaving a couple inches between each cookie.
Once you have a full tray tap on the counter 3-5 times. Continue with additional trays until done. Let rest on the counter for 15 minutes.
Bake at 250 degrees for 15 minutes (If you have convection you can bake at 275).
Add a couple minutes for larger macs. Until you get the hang of it break one open before removing tray and make sure it isn’t liquidy inside. Overbaking slightly is better than underbaking. They shouldn’t be browned but you want to see little “feet” where the macs have risen up.
Let cool.
Pipe filling on half the macs then top with another. Place in covered airtight container and chill for at least 24 hours. This allows the filling to soften the macs just a little and they will have a much chewier texture.
To make the filling:
Beat everything together until fluffy and well combined. Add cream to desired consistency and additional salt to desired flavor. I like to use pink salt but sea salt works well here too.
Ingredients
- 275 grams pumpkin seeds
- 250 grams powdered sugar
- 50 grams cocoa powder, optional
- 210 grams egg whites, at room temperature
- 210 grams granulated sugar
For Spiced Caramel Filling:
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1/2 cup homemade caramel sace
- 1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 2-4 Tablespoons heavy cream
- pink salt, to taste
Instructions
- Grind pumpkin seeds in a blender or with a food processor. Sift with a fine mesh sifter. If you have more than a Tablespoon or two of clumps left regrind.
- Sift pumpkin seed flour with powdered sugar and cocoa powder (if chocolate shells are desired) into a large bowl.
- Set aside.
- Beat egg whites until frothy, then add the granulated sugar. Continue beating to stiff peaks.
- Add stiff egg whites to bowl with dry mix. Mix together until combined.
- Now comes the "macaronage" step. Using a bowl scraper or spatula, push the mixture against the side of the bowl for several minutes. The idea is to deflate some of the meringue. You know it's done when you can do the "figure 8 test". When the batter flows off of the spatula allowing you to make a figure 8. If it falls off in big clumps and doesn't "flow like lava" you need to continue the macaronage step.
- Fit a pastry bag with a round tip (or do as I do. Just use a disposable pastry bag and snip the end off, no tip.) Fill the bag and pipe onto parchment lined trays (no silicone here!). I usually make smaller macs, so hold your pastry bag straight and push some batter out until you make a circle about 1 1/2 inches across (or make larger ones if you desire). Continue to fill tray, leaving a couple inches between each cookie.
- Once you have a full tray tap on the counter 3-5 times. Continue with additional trays until done. Let rest on the counter for 15 minutes.
- Bake at 300 degrees for 15 minutes (If you have convection you can bake at 275).
- Add a couple minutes for larger macs. Until you get the hang of it break one open before removing tray and make sure it isn't liquidy inside. Overbaking slightly is better than underbaking. They shouldn't be browned but you want to see little "feet" where the macs have risen up.
- Let cool.
- Pipe filling on half the macs then top with another. Place in covered airtight container and chill for at least 24 hours. This allows the filling to soften the macs just a little and they will have a much chewier texture.
To make the filling:
- Beat everything together until fluffy and well combined. Add cream to desired consistency and additional salt to desired flavor. I like to use pink salt but sea salt works well here too.
