Chocolate Macarons with Mars Ganache by Vanessa Tay

Chocolate Macarons with Mars Ganache

Ingredients:

(Makes 20 sandwiches)

For the macaron shells:

110g icing sugar
65g ground almond (I used superfine almond meal)
13g Dutch processed cocoa powder
60g egg whites, at room temperature
20g caster sugar
A pinch of cream of tartar

For Mars ganache filling:

3 Mars chocolate candy bars (36g/piece)
60ml whipping

Method:

1. Sift icing sugar, ground almonds, cocoa through a fine sieve, pushing mixture through with a wooden spoon. This will help make a smooth macaron.

2. Using an electric mixer, whisk egg whites until foamy. Add cream of tartar, whisk to combine and add caster sugar a little at a time, until all added and whish to firm peaks.

3. Stir in almond mixture, in 3 or 4 additions. When all the dry ingredients are incorporated, the mixture will look like a cake batter.

4. Spoon mixture into a piping bag fitted with a 5mm round nozzle. Pipe into 3.5cm rounds onto baking paper-lined (or mats) trays. When you have piped all the macarons, lift the baking tray with both hands and bang it down on the counter (to get the air out of the batter).

5. Set aside for an hour (I left mine in air-conditioned room). After an hour, the top of the macarons will be dry and are ready to bake.

6. Preheat oven to 150 deg cel. Bake for 15 min (baking time can varied depending on your oven, from 10 to 15 min) or until firm to the touch.

7. Remove from oven and cool on the tray (I placed my tray on the rack). Slide a knife under each macaron to remove from the paper (I used macaron mats and the macarons were easily removed using a spatula). Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week or until ready to assemble.

For the Mars Ganache filling:

1. Cut the candy bars into small pieces and put in a pan with the whipping cream. Place over medium heat and stir until melt. Sandwich the macarons with the mars ganache and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Notes:
Personally I find the Mars ganache too sweet a filling. You may want to consider changing to another filling. Also, the Mars ganache is runny yet sticky, thus tricky to handle.

Source: http://dailydelicious.blogspot.sg/2011/02/chocolate-macarons-with-mars-ganache.html