I’m not sure another page needs to be written in the great saga of humans vs. macarons but in this case it’s a rematch, a personal vendetta. We made this recipe last year as part of a week-end project at NoRecipes and i still vividly remember how extraordinarily delicious those macarons were even though the experiment wasn’t a total success. That day we struggled with oven temperatures (or was it the humidity?) and as a result half of the meringue shells sunk in the middle. The other half came out okay but were imprinted with pencil markings at the bottom because i had forgotten to turn the parchment paper over before piping the macarons. Needless to say, it didn’t keep us from devouring them later on. Even the ugly ones.

It’s a little bit like the taste got tattooed in the back of my mind and i’ve been waiting ever since for the right circumstances to take my sweet revenge. Finding fresh yuzu and fresh wasabi at the Japanese supermarket last week is what triggered attempt #2 and boy.. i’m glad i did. Let’s raise our glass to another Pierre Hermé’s recipe that hits the nail on the head. The perfect harmony between the yuzu flavored white chocolate ganache, the candied grapefruit and the fresh wasabi is just mind-boggling to me.

Of course, most people will say.. WHAT!? at the thought of wasabi in a macaron. We’re not talking about the overwhelming bite that could make you shed a tear here, just the gentle heat that tickles your nostrils.

Pierre Hermé recommends enjoying his macarons at room temperature but at the risk of receiving tickle-torture threats from his fans i’m gonna go against the opinion of the master on this one. Those are at their prime straight out of the refrigerator 2 or 3 days after they’re made. You can trust me on that, i ate about a zillion of those at every possible stage of maturation.

So here’s an translation/ adaptation of the work of the master. For ambitious bakers only.

• Yuzu Macaron with Candied Grapefruit & Wasabi (Macaron Delicieux by Pierre Hermé)

• • Recipe translated/adapted from Pierre Herme’s “Macaron”
  • Makes about 72 macarons

  

• • For the candied grapefruit:

  • 2 grapefruits
  • 1 liter water
  • 500 g granulated sugar
  • 1 star anise
  • 10 peppercorns
  • 1 vanilla bean
  • 4 tbs lemon juice

  • For the meringue:

  • 300 grams almond flour, sifted
  • 300 grams powdered sugar
  • 110 grams egg whites, aged 7 days (or left outside covered overnight)
  • 300 grams powdered sugar
  • 75 grams bottled spring water
  • 110 grams egg whites, aged 7 days (or left outside covered overnight)

  • For the yuzu ganache with wasabi:

  • 40 grams yuzu juice (or lime juice)
  • 300 grams creme fraiche
  • 375 grams Valhrona white chocolate
  • 20 grams grated fresh wasabi (or use tube)

  • For the finish:

  • 150 grams pistachios, non salted

  • For the candied grapefruit:

  • The day before, wash the grapefruits. Cut and discard the extremities and slice (top to bottom) thick chunks of the skin with one centimeter of the pulp still attached. Place them in a pot of boiling water and boil for 2 minutes. Drain. Run the grapefruit chunks under cold water. And repeat the same operation 2 more times.
  • Crush the peppercorns with the back of a saute pan and place in a small pot with the water, sugar, lemon juice, star anise and the vanilla bean split in half. Bring to a simmer. Add the grapefruit chunks. Cover the pot 3/4 and keep it at a very low simmer for 1 1/2 hour.
  • Transfer the candied grapefruit + syrup to a container. Let it cool, cover and refrigerate overnight.
  • The next day, drain the grapefruit from the syrup and cut into little cubes.
  • Dry the pistachios in a very low oven. Turn them into a powder in a food processor. Sift and reserve.

  

  • For the meringues:

  • Sift the almond flour and the powdered sugar in a medium bowl. Add them to the almond flour and to the powdered sugar. Add the first batch of egg whites (110 gr) without mixing them.
  • In a small saucepan, combine the water and sugar and bring to a boil until it reaches 118’C. Meanwhile, place the second batch of egg whites in the bowl of a mixer equipped with the whisk attachment. When the sugar is at 115’C start beating the whites on medium speed.
  • Pour the sugar at 118’C over the egg whites. Beat until the temperature of the mixture drops to 50’C and you have a compact and shiny meringue. Fold the meringue into the almond-sugar-egg white mixture until it’s homogeneous. Place in a large pastry bag with a plain #11 tip.
  • Place parchment paper on 4 baking trays and use a pencil to draw 1 1/2 inches circles to cover the surface with 1/2 inch in between. You should have about 36 circles on each parchment papers. Turn over the paper so the pencil markings won’t transfer to the meringues.
  • Pipe rounds of the meringue dough onto the prepared parchment paper. Sprinkle the pistachio powder over the meringues and let them out at room temperature for at least 30 minutes. This is a very important step where the piped meringue rounds develop a thin ‘crust’ over their surface.
  • Preheat the oven to 350’F. Bake the meringues for exactly 12 minutes. Open the oven door quickly-twice during cooking. When the cookies are cooked slide the parchment paper onto a work surface and leave them to cool.

  

  • For the yuzu ganache with wasabi:

  • Place the chopped white chocolate in a bowl of a bain-marie and melt. Heat the yuzu juice to 40’C. Bring the creme fraiche to a near simmer. Pour the creme fraiche over the white chocolate in two additions. Add the yuzu juice. Add the grated wasabi. Mix until smooth and scrap the mixture in a pyrex dish. Cover with plastic wrap and let it cool in the refrigerator.

  • Assemble the macarons:

  • Place the yuzu ganache in a pastry bag equipped with a plain tip. Garnish half the meringues with the yuzu ganache, place 3 or 4 cubes of the candied grapefruit in the middle and cover with the other half to make a sandwich. Refrigerate in an hermetic box for 24 hours. Enjoy them cold or at room temp’.

  

Tags: Macaron