The Best Pumpkin Macarons

Pumpkin macarons are the finest desserts to end up a winter meal: Crunchy, light, and the spiced pumpkin filling, flavored with orange juice, accentuate the taste. This recipe is made with Italian meringue.

Yield: ~36 Macarons (72 shells)

Pumpkin Pie Spice Macarons Shells:

• 150 g ground almond (almond meal)
• 150 g icing sugar
• 55 g egg white, aged
• 1/4 teaspoon orange gel food coloring
• 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
• +
• 150 g granulated sugar
• 55 g egg white, aged
• 37 g water

Pumpkin Buttercream Filling:

• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• 1/2 cup cream cheese
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• A dash of salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon orange zest finely grated
• 2 tablespoons orange juice
• 2 tablespoons honey or maple syrup

Method:

The Making Of Macarons Shells:

1. Sift the “tant pour tant” (almond meal and powdered sugar). Set aside.
2. Add the food coloring gel and pumpkin pie spice to the first 55 egg whites. Don’t mix. Set aside.
3. In a saucepan, bring the water and caster sugar to the boil. Without stirring, make sure the temperature of the resulting syrup doesn’t go above 240° F (keep watching, use a thermometer)
4. When the syrup, reaches 239°F, beat the second 55 g egg white to soft peaks. When the temperature of the syrup reaches 244° F, When the syrup reaches 240°F removes the saucepan from the heat and pour the syrup into the beaten egg whites.
5. Continue to beat the meringue and syrup for about 10 minutes, until it cools slightly, and the temperature of the meringue reaches 122° F.
6. Using a flexible spatula, incorporate about a third of the meringue into the “tant pour tant” (almond and powdered sugar)and food coloring paste, then add the rest of the meringue, carefully working the batter.
7. Fill a piping bag fitted with a 3/8 in the nozzle. Pipe out small, regular, and spaced rounds. Lightly tap the bottom of the trays and allow the Macarons to form a crust, at room temperature, for 30 minutes.
8. Preheat the oven to 356° F. Cook in the oven for 12 minutes, open the door of the oven, quickly, two times. Make sure to rotate the sheet halfway through, for even baking.
9. As soon as they come out of the oven let the shells, to cool for 5 minutes before transferring parchment sheet to a wire rack to finish cooling.

The Making Of Pumpkin Buttercream Filling:

1. In a mixing bowl with a whisk attachment, beat the pumpkin puree, cream cheese, butter, and powdered sugar until creamy.
2. Add pumpkin pie spice, vanilla extract, orange zest and juice, and salt. Beat until fluffy, then add honey, beat for a few minutes, to aerate the cream and give it lightness.

Assembly:

1. Pipe the pumpkin buttercream onto shells, using a plastic storage bag without a piping tip. Cut a small corner off the bag and begin the Macaron assembly.
2. Allow the Macarons to rest at room temperature about an hour before serving.

La Dorure’s Tips:

• To get a strong flavor, preferably prepare the filling one day before, and store it in a container, in the refrigerator.