Macaron Murder (with Recipes) (A Patisserie Mystery) (11 page)

Clémence must’ve been on edge by the afternoon’s incident, because she was apprehensive about checking who it was. Seb noticed and offered to come with her to the door.

There was no one there when she looked through the peephole. Slowly, Seb opened the door.
 

There was a bouquet of roses on the floor. The card simply said, “To Clémence” in neat handwriting.
 

“Who’s it from?” Berenice and the others came up behind them.

Clémence cheered up. She grinned at the sight of the lavish bouquet. The red and pink roses were gorgeous.
 

“I don’t know,” she said. “I guess it’s another mystery to be solved.”

Sign up for
Harper Lin’s newsletter
to be notified when the next Patisserie Mystery is released.
 

Recipe 1: Pistachio Macarons with Oreo Cream Filling

French macarons have a reputation for being difficult to make. While it may be true that it can be a challenge for professional bakers to get the shells looking perfect, you can still make delicious macarons to enjoy at home. Don’t worry if the shells are cracked or come out a little darker in some areas. They’ll still taste just as good.
 

A perfect macaron will have a firm shell with a moist interior. It shouldn’t be too chewy, but melt-in-your-mouth light.
 

Here are some simplified macarons recipes (tradition and unique flavors) that Clémence and her friends (as well as la gardienne) have enjoyed in the book.

This Recipe Makes about 15-18 sandwiches

Macaron Shells:

• 1 1/4 cups icing sugar
  
• 1 1/4 cups ground almonds (or almond meal/almond flour)
  
• 1 ounce unsalted blanched pistachios
  
• 4 egg whites
  
• 1/4 cups Baker’s sugar/caster sugar
  

Oreo Cream Filling:

• 1 cup icing sugar, sieved
  
• 3/4 cup butter, softened
  
• Pinch of salt
  
• 5 oreo cookies, crumbled finely (including cream filling)
  

For Shells:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Line a baking tray.

In a bowl, mix the pistachios and almonds. Sift in the icing sugar.

In another bowl, whisk the egg whites until stiff, then add one tablespoon of Baker’s sugar. Continue to whisk on high speed while adding remaining sugar.

Stir almond mixture into the egg whites and gently mix with a spatula. Add green food coloring.

Put mixture into a pastry bag with a round nozzle. Pipe 1-inch circles onto the baking tray, making sure there is enough space between each (1 inch apart).

Tap the tray on a table to remove any air bubbles and set the macarons aside for 30 mins. This allows a crust to form on the macarons. Then bake in the oven for 14 mins.

Test to see if your shells are ready by lightly pressing the top. If they are still soft and moving, they are not ready yet.

Oreo Cream Filling:

Beat icing sugar, butter and salt with electric beater until smooth. Mix in crumbled cookies.

Assembly:

Take one macaron and pipe/spread the filling on the flat part, then add a second macaron on top. Repeat until no macarons are left.
 

You can eat them on the same day, but if you can resist, refrigerate and wait until the next day. It will taste better.

Recipe 2: Lychee Macarons with Raspberry Buttercream

Makes about 15 sandwiches

Macaron Shells:

• 1 cup ground almonds, sifted (or almond meal/almond flour)
  
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar, heaped and sifted
  
• 2 egg whites
  
• 5 tbsp granulated sugar
  
• 1 can lychees, drained and sliced
  

Raspberry Buttercream:

• 2/3 cup raspberries
  
• 3/4 cup butter, softened
  
• 1 1/4 cups powered sugar, sifted
  

For shells:

Preheat oven to 280 degrees F. Line a baking tray. Beat egg whites in a large mixing bowl with an electric beater for 1 min. Add in granulated sugar. After another minute, add food coloring. Beat until you can hold the bowl upside down and the egg mixture does not move, about 5 to 7 minutes.

Fold in almonds and powdered sugar with a flexible spatula. Scrape the sides of the bowl and move the mixture to the middle. Do this until everything is mixed well.

Pour the batter into a piping bag. Pipe into 1-inch circles, leaving 1 inch between each. Should be around 30 circles.

Leave shells to dry for 30 mins. Bake for 15 mins, rotating the tray halfway through baking time.

When finished baking, let shells cool completely before attempting to remove them from the tray. If the shells are cracked, they will still be delicious.

For cream:

Mix butter in a bowl on medium high until soft and fluffy.

In a saucepan, put the raspberries in with a splash of water and heat on low for 10 mins. Drain raspberries and push through a strainer to remove the seeds. Let raspberries cool before adding the butter. Mix together.

Add powdered sugar in three parts. You may add additional powdered sugar to thicken the buttercream.

Assembly:

Turn macaron shells on their backs. Fill a piping bag with the buttercream and pipe small mounds of cream onto every other shell. Place a small cut piece of lychee on the cream before topping with the second shell.
 

Recipe 3: Classic Chocolate Macarons with Chocolate Ganache

Makes about 25 sandwiches

Macaron Shells:

• 1 cup ground almonds (or almond meal/almond flour)
  
• 2 cups powdered sugar
  
• 3 large egg whites, room temperature
  
• 3 tbsp natural unsweetened cocoa powder
  
• 3 tbsp granulated sugar
  
• Pinch cream of tartar
  

Chocolate Ganache:

• 4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
  
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
  
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature, cubed
  

For shells:

Preheat oven to 350 degree F. Arrange a rack in the middle. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Put the powdered sugar, almond flour, cocoa powder and salt in a food processor and pulse several times to aerate. Process until fine and combined, around 30 seconds. Sift through a flour sifter into a large bowl.

In a clean bowl, beat egg whites with an electric mixer on medium speed until opaque and foamy, around 30 seconds. Add the cream of tartar and increase the speed to medium high. Beat until the egg whites are white in color and continue for another minute. Slowly add in granulated sugar and continue beating until sugar is combined, peaks are stiff and the whites are shiny, around 1 minute. Don’t overwhip.
 

Fold dry mixture into the egg white mix in four batches, using a rubber spatula. The meringuee will deflate. Stop folding when there are no traces of egg whites and it looks like cake batter. Don’t overmix.

Transfer batter into a patry bag. Pipe 1-inch circles on the baking sheets, 1 inch apart. There should be 25 per tray. Bang the trays on your work surface. Leave the trays at room temperature for 30 mins to dry the shells. This will ensure even cooking.

Bake the shells one tray at a time for 14 minutes each. Rotate the sheet in the middle of the cooking time. Let it cool completely.

For ganache:

Place the chopped chocolate in a large bowl.
 

In a small saucepan over medium heat, warm the cream until it starts to boil. Stir in the chocolate. Let it sit for 1 minute. Add butter and stir until smooth. Chill in the fridge until thick and spreadable, around 30 mins.

Assembly:

Pipe or scoop about a teaspoon of the ganache to the flat surface of one shell. Top with another shell and press gently. Refrigerate, covered, for at least 24 hours.

Recipe 4: Matcha Green Tea Macarons with Matcha Buttercream

Makes 15-20 sandwiches

For shells:

• 1 1/2 cup almond powder
  
• 1 cup powdered sugar
  
• 5 egg whites
  
• 1 tsp matcha powder
  
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
  
• 1/2 tsp green food coloring (optional)
  

For the buttercream:

• 1/2 cup butter, room temperature
  
• 1/4 cup
   
  icing suar
  
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
  
• 2 tbsp whipping cream
  
• 2 tbsp matcha powder
  

For shells:

Preheat oven at 300 degrees F. For best possible results, grind almond powder, powdered sugar and matcha powder together for a minute to ensure that the almonds are evenly dispersed with the sugar. Sift it into a bowl. (If there are larger pieces left, grind them and sift them again.)

In another bowl, combine egg whites, sugar, vanilla powder and beat for around three minutes until the egg whites are frothy. Turn up speed to medium high and beat for another three minutes. You should have soft peaks by now. Turn speed up to high and beat for another three minutes. This will give you stiff, dry peaks. Add food coloring and beat on high for another minute. Pour all your almond mixture in at once. Fold everything with a plastic spatula.

Pour it in a piping bag and pipe onto a lined baking tray
 
in 1-inch circles, 1 inch apart. Once finished, tap against table or counter to dislodge air bubbles. Set it aside for 30 minutes to up to 1.5 hours to dry out shells. Bake for about 15-20 minutes.

For the buttercream:

Cream the butter until light and fluffy, around 4 minutes. Add in the rest of the ingredients and beat for another 4 minutes.
 

For assembly:

Pipe the buttercream on one shell and sandwich them together. Put the macarons in the fridge for 24 hours before eating. Eat them at room temperature.
 

Recipe 5: Black Sesame Macarons with Red Bean Filling

Makes 15-20 sandwiches

Macaron Shells:

• 1 1/2 cups almond flour
  
• 1 1/2 tbsp black sesame powder (found at Asian specialty supermarkets)
  
• 1 3/4 powdered sugar
  
• 5 egg whites
  
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
  
• 1/2 tsp salt
  
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
  

Filling:

• Sweetened red bean paste
  

For Shells:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Line 3 trays with parchment paper. Grind almond flour and black sesame powder for 30 seconds in a food processor. Sift this and powdered sugar together in a bowl and set aside.

Combine egg whites, sugar and salt. Mix with an electric mixer on medium for 3 minutes. Increase speed to medium-high and whip for another 3 minutes. Go to high and whip for another 3 minutes. Add vanilla and beat for one more minute on high.

Add dry ingredients. Mix with spatula until batter melts back down in 20 seconds. Transfer to a piping bag.
 

Pipe 1-inch circles on your trays, leaving 1inch between them. Bang the tray on your work surface to let air bubbles out. Let the macarons sit for 30 minutes to an hour.

Bake for 18 minutes. Let cool completely. The shells should be a light beige color with hints of black sesames.

Assembly:

Roll a teaspoon’s worth of red bean paste into a ball. Press flat until it matches the size of a shell. Place the flattened paste on the flat surface of one shell. Top with another shell. Since the paste is firm, be careful when you press the shell, as you might accidentally crush them.
 

Bon appétit!

About the Author

Harper Lin lives in Toronto, Canada with her husband, daughter and Pomeranian puppy.
The Patisserie Mysteries
draws from Harper’s own experiences of living in Paris in her twenties. She’s currently working on more Clémence Damour and Emma Wild mysteries.

If you’ve enjoyed this book, please consider writing a book review to support the author.
 

Email Harper at
[email protected]
. She would love to hear from you!

All books by Harper Lin:

The Patisserie Mysteries

Macaron Murder

Éclair Murder (coming soon)

Baguette Murder (coming soon)

Crêpe
Murder (coming soon)

Croissant Murder (coming soon)

Crème brûlée Murder (coming soon)

The
Emma Wild Mysteries
 

4-Book Holiday Series

Killer Christmas: Book 1

New Year’s Slay: Book 2

Death of a Snowman: Book 3

Valentine’s Victim: Book 4