Spiced Pumpkin Seed Macarons with Chestnut Buttercream

In my mind, the process of making French macarons perfectly represents the frustrations inherent in the world of pastry. Yes, there are rules in the world of savory cooking, but the penalties for disobeying them are not as severe as with pastry. For example, if you overcook the meat or fish a bit, though it might not be perfect, it’s probably still presentable. Pastry, on the other hand, presents a 

minefield of possible disasters that can be downright demoralizing. Over-cook the crème Anglaise, and you’ve got a curdled mess of egg pieces and milk on your hands. Undercook the sugar syrup for your buttercream, and it’s a soupy mess fit only for the poubelle. Get your chocolate too hot as you’re melting it, and it seizes up, transformed into a dull, grainy clump of expensive brown gunk

with not much of a future as the star of a dessert. Making perfect macarons requires precision and practice. They should be smooth and shiny on top, with a textured ‘pied’ or ‘foot’ at the base. Start with a recipe from a reliable source, and follow it to a tee. If they don’t come out perfectly, try to determine the cause and make the necessary adjustments next time you make them. If they never 

come out right, it’s time to move on to a new recipe.

     Since Thanksgiving is right around the corner, I decided to make macarons with the flavors of fall: Spiced Pumpkin Seed Macarons with a Chestnut Buttercream filling. The macarons are flavored with cinnamon and ginger and topped with three raw pumpkin seeds. The filling is a standard French buttercream (my 

favorite filling for macarons) flavored with chestnut puree. You can make your own or buy it canned from a gourmet shop. If you’re brave, you can serve these with the coffee after Thanksgiving dinner, but my guess is they won’t be appreciated then. Better to give each guest two or three macarons (wrapped in a cello-bag tied with a ribbon) to take home to enjoy the next day, when eating is once again possible.

Espresso Macarons with Caramel Buttercream Filling

I remember tasting my first French macaron. It was the mid-1980’s, and I was a poor cooking school student attending La Varenne École de Cuisine in Paris. At Christmas I visited the home of some French friends, and after dinner my indulgent host offered a plate of assorted macarons from Fauchon. I chose a hazelnut macaron with a chocolate ganache filling. Never before had I had something so light, yet so satisfyingly rich and flavorful. A crisp, 

slightly chewy shell paired with a creamy, rich filling—genius! Well, it’s taken over twenty years, but macarons have finally begun to catch on here in the U.S. Yesterday I saw a beautiful assortment of extra-large macarons at a pastry shop called Financier in Grand Central station, and there’s a small shop near my office called 

Macaron Café. They have a huge selection of macarons—everything from Caramel Fleur de Sel to Cassis to Raisin Rum (they got that one backwards, but, hey, who’s to quibble).  My friend Florian Bellanger, formerly pastry chef of Fauchon NYC, opened MadMac a few years ago, a business entirely devoted to 

madeleines (Mad) and macarons (Mac). They are excellent, and actually ship well, owing to his strategically designed packaging. Making macarons at home can be a bit tricky, but is relatively easy if you follow the directions to the letter. If you are a fly-by-the-cuff sort of cook, I suggest you stick to something less demanding in the detail department. 

Chocolate chip cookies, for example. Macarons require your complete attention, a dry environment, and a bit of patience. After all, if they were easy to make, everyone would be whipping up batches at home, and they probably wouldn’t taste so heavenly, right?

P.S.: If you want to bump up the espresso flavor, add 1 teaspoon of espresso powder dissolved in 2 teaspoons of hot water to the buttercream along with the vanilla.