Macarons from Cafe Vue, 401 St Kilda Road, Melbourne
Recipe from www.userealbutter.com
All thanks to MasterChef Australia’s “Macaron Tower” challenge a couple of days ago, I have had a serious craving for macarons for days. It doesn’t go away. I was hoping it would, but it didn’t. So I’ve decided to just go for a very short drive from work to Cafe Vue on St Kilda Road, knowing from word of mouth that they will have plenty of macarons to satisfy this silly craving.
These macarons were not cheap! $12 for a box of 6 macarons – any flavor you want. I’ve decided to just try a bit of each, and they were so delightful! My favorite (not surprisingly, as portrayed in the pic above taken just minutes before I devoured it) is the Raspberry Macaron with Chocolate Ganache Filling.
So I thought it would be nice (and easy access for me) to post a recipe for these Chocolate Raspberry Macarons, I did some Google searching and found a great recipe and a great blog entry from www.userealbutter.com.
Chocolate Raspberry Macarons
based on the pistachio macarons recipe which was adapted from Tartelette
based on the pistachio macarons recipe which was adapted from Tartelette
macaron:
225g powdered sugar
125g almonds, blanched
25g sugar
red food coloring (about 5 drops)
100g egg whites (about 3)
225g powdered sugar
125g almonds, blanched
25g sugar
red food coloring (about 5 drops)
100g egg whites (about 3)
In a food processor, run the almonds and powdered sugar until finely ground. Add a drop of food coloring at a time to the granulated sugar and whisk together until evenly colored (your sugar will be darker than the final macaron). Set aside and let dry (a few minutes). Whip egg whites until foamy, slowly add the granulated sugar, until they are glossy. Slowly fold the almond and sugar mixture into the whites with a wide spatula. The mixture should remain shiny and flow easily (hold a ribbon for ten seconds, I would say). Fill a pastry bag with the batter and pipe small rounds onto parchment lined baking sheets. Let the macarons rest for 20 minutes. Preheat the oven to 315°F (325°F at 8500 feet) and when they are ready, bake them for 12-15 minutes (12 minutes). Let cool, remove from the paper and fill with the ganache. Makes 35. If making small macarons (1-inch), bake for about 10 minutes.
chocolate ganache filling:
8 oz (227g) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate
3/4 cup (180 ml) heavy whipping cream
2 tbsps (28g) unsalted butter
1 tsp almond extract
1/2 cup raspberries, halved and smooshed flat
8 oz (227g) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate
3/4 cup (180 ml) heavy whipping cream
2 tbsps (28g) unsalted butter
1 tsp almond extract
1/2 cup raspberries, halved and smooshed flat
Place the chocolate in a medium sized bowl. Set aside. Heat the cream in a medium sized saucepan over medium heat. Bring just to a boil. Immediately pour the boiling cream over the chocolate and allow to stand for 5 minutes. Add the butter and stir with a whisk until smooth. Stir in almond extract. Let cool to room temperature. Fill a piping bag with the ganache.
Assembly: Pipe a dollop of ganache onto one macaron shell. Gently press a raspberry half into the center. Place the second macaron shell on top, making sure the ganache sticks to it. Repeat for the rest of the macarons.
All I can say is, never underestimate the power of reality TV. MasterChef gets us all hungry even though we’ve all just had dinner.. and creates cravings we never knew existed. And – creates a sudden spike in sales of featured food products / featured restaurants that no one can really understand. MasterChef is a food industry’s marketer’s dream come true. And the cafe owners are thankful too.
Kimba's Living 
your blog makes me hungry.
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This is YUMMOS!!!! I am sooooo incredibly tempted to do this.
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@Cheryl: I'm tempted too! But I'll eat too many of them 😦 I have no discipline when it comes to desserts.
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@Poppy i think any photo with food in it makes us hungry ;)@Cheryl make laaa… then blog about it. Let me know if “great success” (pronounced Borat-style) lol.@fieran i can eat lots of desserts but i have to admit MAKING desserts is not really my forte 😦
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This looks fantastic!! And I love the color! Lovely blog, excited to follow!<3Marea @www.TheFoodieFixx.blogspot.com
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It does look very tempting after seeing it twice on Masterchef.Will be give this a try and post our success/failureAlekh
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I'm about to make these for mothers day tomorrow!I am so excited hopefully they are great, ill let you know.Xo
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