craving challenge #1... almonds, raspberries and chocolate...

well here we are ladies and gentlemen... the first of what i hope to many of my "what you craving" challenge... and i have to say... i like the way this is all starting out...

as you may have read in my previous post, i will be asking every monday for peoples "cravings" and i will randomly pick one and bake it up... i figured i needed something to push me a little, so i am leaving some of my baking up to you, my friends and my fellow bloggers...

well... back to the post at hand... for craving # 1 i went with the first craving i recieved by the lovely shanna, which involved something with chocolate, toffee, almonds and raspberries... hmmm... that gave me a lot to work with... now... what to make, what to bake...

first thing that came to mind would be some awesome, delicate and oh so tasty linzer cookies... but... then again... why not go a little more complex, you know...

so whilst racking my brain and thumbing through one of my many new baking books i got for christmas, which happened to be "i heart macarons" and constructing a macaron using those flavors would be easy peasy...

i mean, what is a macaron but a lovely combination of whipped and slightly sweetened egg whites, almonds (which is one of my craving flavors) and confectioners sugar...

so there you go... i had reached my decision... macarons, filled with a dark chocolate ganache and fresh raspberries... i was ready...

macron recipe taken from "i heart macarons"

ingredients: (makes about 2 dozen)

2/3 cup ground almonds

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

3 lrg. egg whites

5 tbsp granulated sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract



directions:

1. place the powdered sugar and ground almonds in a food processor and give them a good pulse until the nuts are finely ground, and then sift through a mesh sieve twice

2.in a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the egg whites to a foam, gradually add the sugar until you obtain a glossy meringue, do not overbeat your meringue or it will be too dry

3. add half of the flour mixture to the meringue and stir it with a spatula while scooping it up from the bottom of the bowl

4.add the rest of the flour and mix it lightly in a circular motion

5. when the batter becomes slightly firm and drips slowly from the spatula, the mixing is done

6. place batter in a piping bag and pipe onto parchment or silicon lined baking sheets

7. rap the baking sheet firmly against the counter top (this will help the macarons hold their rounded shape and help the little "pied" foot to form

8. dry the macarons at room temperature for about 15-30 minutes, or until the batter doesnt stick to your fingers when touched

9.place oven racks in the center of the oven and preheat oven to 375 and bake 15-18 minutes (rotating half way through for even baking)

i filled the centers with a yummy whipped dark chocolate ganache and some fresh ripe raspberries...

i made a mistake one mistake though... after i finished whipping the ganache i should have used it right away, but my littlest guy was getting a wee bit cranky... so i had to put it in the fridge while i took care of some mommy business... and when i took it out, it was more of a mousse then a ganache... still tasty but not the consistency i was going for...

if you notice the center of the macaron its a lovely pink color... i added some red food coloring to the batter, but as you can see it baked off and turned the top more of an apricot color... so for next time i'm going to double it up, or get some powdered food coloring...

all and all i was happy with the results... the macarons, although a little overcooked, still had a nice taste and texture... so that paired with the creamy dark chocolate and a semi-sweet and semi-tart raspberry was very enjoyable... until next time...

happy baking everyone!!