I recently made these macarons as a Valentine’s Day treat for my husband. I thought it would be a good idea to share the recipe for anyone looking for ideas. Macarons always make a really good gift!
What I’ve been up to?
Also, I am back after a eternity… or at least I feel it that way. I have been thinking about what to do with this blog lately, to avoid it being so unused. Thought about multiple options, making it a lifestyle/maternity blog given that all that I do now is being a mom (not for long sadly, I have to go back to work), making it a baby food blog (because I became fond of making my baby funny foods), keeping it a pastry blog and try my best to update it.
I decided I did not want to go the path of making it another mom or babies blog. Specially because I won’t be a stay at home mom for long and things are going to get messy very soon and not fun to post about. My true hobby will always be pastry so I prefer to post less frequently but content that I love.
I want to try to have a bi-weekly project at least (I don’t think weekly will be a reasonable commitment) and do a nice blog post about it. Also I need to start investing some time on looking for ways to photograph at night or with low light. I have always been a fan of shooting with natural light, and always will be. But the reality has hit me and the only spare time I have are nights and weekends for now (and weekends are for family) so I need to learn how to shoot with artificial light. I will also would like to learn a bit about video, so I can make some good reels. I think still life photography less interesting nowadays in social media.
Lets go back to the purpose of the post: Rose Petal Macarons! These are actually really easy to do and they can serve as a really nice gift for our loved ones. Flavour wise they are sweet, with a subtle rose flavour.
Rose cream filling
One good thing about this specific recipe is that you don’t have spare yolks after making the macaron shells, because the rose cream is a French Buttercream. Never heard about it? I recently learnt to make it and trust me, its soo delicious as filling for many recipes. And you can flavour similarly than any other buttercream, using fruits, nut pastes, flower syrups, extracts… It’s basically a buttercream made with a Pate a Bombé base (egg yolks whipped with syrup), but its so much richer in flavour than the normal Swiss or Italian ones. I wouldn’t recommend using for cake decorating because it has a base yellow tone but for fillings where color does not matter a lot it is actually better than the other buttercreams.
My rose buttercream is flavoured with rose petal syrup and rose water. And tinted with a little bit of pink color. You can also use a strong pink for the shells and leave the buttercream as it is.
Rose Petal Syrup
In this recipe, I made my own rose petal syrup from dried rose buds. I think dried or even fresh petals would have lead to a stronger flavour but if you don’t have them its ok to use the buds. Please don’t use any store bought fresh flower for this, they are usually not edible and treated with some chemicals to make them last more. Only use edible grade roses. The same recipe would work for other flowers but the quantities might vary as some flowers have a stronger scent (like lavender for example). Make sure to make the syrup the previous day (or use a pre made one from the store).
What about the macaron shells?
The recipe on this post will only be about the rose cream. For macaron shells you can refer to my Orange Macarons post where I explain the process of making the full macaron. The shell is exactly the same, the only difference is the color. This time I tried “Candy Pink” by Haute colors and added just a tiny bit as they are pretty strong. My recommendation is to make the shells first, then the cream. Assembly the macarons as soon as you make the cream and then leave the macarons in the fridge for at least 24 hours so they soften.
Pardon me the quality of the pictures and videos, I am working on it! But the best advice I think I received up to now related to blogging, is keep posting even when the visual part is not perfect, it will get better with time!
Finally lets jump to the recipes, let me know in the comments if there are any doubts or anything I should clarify. Thanks for reading me!
Fragrant syrup which can be used in many dessert preparations and also in hot or cold drinks 🌹
Ingredients
UnitsScale
12grams of dried rose buds or 5gr rose petals
240 gr water
200 gr granulated sugar
Some drops of rose water
Instructions
Remove the petals from the rose buds, discard centres and leaves
Add sugar and water to a small sauce pan and bring to a boil in medium high
Once the sugar has dissolved (about 2 mins) add the rose petals
Bring to low and simmer for around 8 to 10 mins, the syrup will thicken and the colour will turn red/pink/orange (depending on which roses you are using).
Add a dash of rose water
Strain to remove the petals and transfer to a air tight container (like a jar or bottle) and store in the fridge.
Soft, silky and fragrant rose petal flavoured French buttercream. It can be used as a filling for macarons, cakes, cupcakes or other desserts and also to decorate cakes and cupcakes. It has a slightly yellow tint to it so be mindful when looking for specific colors.
Ingredients
UnitsScale
100 gr granulated sugar
25 gr water
50 gr yolks
125 gr unsalted butter softened and cut in cubes
15ml rose syrup
5ml rose water
Instructions
In a small saucepan combine water and sugar
Add the egg yolks to the bowl of a stand mixer (for other types of mixers read my notes) and using the whisk attachment start whisking at low speed but slowly increasing it
In the meantime, take the water sugar mixture to a medium heat to prepare a soft ball syrup. You need to have a thermometer at hand or use my trick to check the temperature. To do the temperature check without thermometer you’ll need a small bowl of cold water just besides the saucepan.
Sugar will start to dissolve and the mixture will start boiling and creating big bubbles, as soon as this bubbles turn smaller start to check the temperature, about 5 min. The syrup is ready when it reaches 118º C (244º F) or grab a small quantity with a spoon and drop it in the cold water bowl. If it forms a “ball” that is soft to the touch then its ready!
Once the syrup is ready, decrease the speed of the mixer and pour the syrup really slowly into the mixer with the yolks (they should be already foamy).
Turn back the speed to high and continue whisking. The yolks will become thicker and foamier, the color will also lighten until they are light yellow, the bowl should cool off too to room temperature. This will take about 10 mins
Decrease the speed to 1 and start adding the butter progressively. Wait until the butter is incorporated before adding more
Continue until all the butter is in and increase the speed again to medium high. The cream is ready when the consistency is smooth and creamy, about 5 min in total, at this point you can also add the food colouring if needed
Finally add the rose syrup and rose water extract and whisk at low speed for 30 seconds!
If the room temperature is not super hot this cream can stay outside the fridge for a couple of hours. If you need to save it for another time refrigerate it. It will harden. When you need to use it, remove it from the fridge 1 hour before using and whisk at medium high speed until the buttercream consistency is reached again.
Notes
About mixers: If you don’t own a stand mixer and you are using a handheld mixer you will need to be close to the stove while you prepare the syrup so you can whisk with one hand and pour the syrup with the other hand. It will be tricky but its doable. I don’t recommend mixing by hand as it will be really hard to do 2 things at the same time
It lasts up to 7 days in the fridge in an airtight container or 3 months in the freezer. In each of those cases the buttercream should be thawed and left 1 hour at room temperature and rewhipped before using
