Pastry recipe
Raspberry macarons with reduced aquafaba
Pink macaron shells filled generously with raspberry ganache. For this version, you start by reducing 200g of liquid VERY AQUAFABA by half. You then use 90g of the reduction to make the French meringue before folding in the dry ingredients, piping the shells and leaving them to rest. The shells bake for 30 minutes at 110 °C before you fill them with the chilled raspberry ganache. Updated: .
What do you need?
Aquafaba reduction
- 200g VERY AQUAFABA
Pink macaron shells
- 90g reduced VERY AQUAFABA
- 115g granulated sugar
- 0.24g xanthan gum
- 117g icing sugar
- 117g white chocolate powder
- 7.2g cornstarch
- 1.4g orange fibre
- 0.8g natural red colouring
Raspberry ganache
- 160g plant-based cream, 35% fat
- 250g raspberry vegan chocolate
- 50g margarine, 80% fat
The recipe is marked for nuts. Check the labels of the white chocolate powder, the raspberry chocolate and the other ingredients you use before making an allergen statement about the finished macarons.
How do you prepare the aquafaba?
Pour 200g of liquid VERY AQUAFABA into a saucepan and reduce it by half, then weigh 90g for the shells. Mix the xanthan gum into the granulated sugar before you start whipping, and separately sift together the icing sugar, white chocolate powder, cornstarch, orange fibre and red colouring. Have both mixtures ready before you start the meringue.
How do you make the shells?
- Pour the 90g of reduced aquafaba into a stand mixer fitted with the whisk and start whipping, adding the sugar and xanthan mixture gradually.
- Once the French meringue is ready, incorporate the sifted dry ingredients in three parts.
- Transfer the mixture to a piping bag fitted with a number 9 nozzle and pipe the shells onto a tray lined with a silicone paper mat. Choose your shell size and keep it consistent across the tray.
- Leave the piped shells at room temperature for 30 minutes.
- Bake in a ventilated oven at 110 °C for 30 minutes.
- When you take them out, remove the mat from the hot tray and leave the shells to cool.
How do you make the raspberry ganache?
Melt the raspberry vegan chocolate. Bring the 160g of plant-based cream to the boil and pour it over the melted chocolate in three additions, mixing after each. Add the 50g of margarine and mix until the ganache is smooth and homogeneous, then strain it into a parchment-lined bowl and chill it in the refrigerator.
How do you assemble the macarons?
Match the cooled shells by size. Fit a piping bag with a number 10 nozzle, pipe the raspberry ganache generously onto one shell and place the matching shell on top. Keep the filled macarons refrigerated.
What changes from the standard macaron method, and why?
For these raspberry macarons you start with liquid VERY AQUAFABA and reduce it before whipping: 200g before reduction, 90g of the finished reduction in the shell mixture. A macaron shell asks more of the meringue than a meringue does, because it has to stay firm while the sifted sugars and powders are folded in and then hold its shape on the tray for 30 minutes. Reducing the aquafaba by half halves the water it brings to the bowl, so the foam whips denser and the batter spreads less. The xanthan gum, mixed into the sugar, backs that up, and the white chocolate powder, cornstarch and orange fibre are part of the same formula, so follow these quantities rather than substituting the quantities from another macaron recipe.
If you want to make macarons from powder without this reduction, the standard aquafaba macaron method covers the shell with unreduced aquafaba, and macarons from aquafaba powder the pouch.
What should you check when the shells go wrong?
| What you see | What to check | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| The meringue stays loose | Reduction not taken to half, or sugar added in one go | Reduce 200g to about half; add the sugar gradually |
| Shells spread flat on the mat | Meringue over-folded in the third addition | Fold only until the dry mix has disappeared |
| Cracked tops | Rested less than 30 minutes | The full 30 minutes at room temperature before the oven |
| Pale, soft shells | Under-baked | The full 30 minutes at 110 °C with the fan on |
| Ganache splits | Cream poured in one go, or margarine added hot | Three additions, then the margarine, mixed smooth |
How many batches does a pack make?
A batch takes 200g from the pack before reduction, so a 1L Tetrapak makes 5 batches, used within the 3 to 4 days an opened pack keeps at 2 to 6 °C.
