Flower Power! Lemon Daisy Macarons

I feel incredibly proud of myself, you guys. If you’ve been following my Great British Baking Show addiction, you know I’ve been practicing my baking A LOT and it’s truly paying off. After many sad attempts, I made a delicious and pretty batch of lemon daisy macarons!! This feels like quite the triumph for me after failing so many times. These daisy shaped lemon macarons are filled with a bit of vanilla buttercream and a punch of homemade lemon curd. As much as I loved the macarons, I think the lemon curd was my favorite! I ended up eating half the batch of macarons the first day in place of lunch – oops! – and it was absolutely worth it. 

To me, lemon is one of those flavors that screams summer. I know it’s not quite summer yet, but it feels like it in SoCal right now. I wouldn’t mind sitting by the pool with a glass of rose and a few of these daisy macarons. Lemon is such a spring/summer flavor, and flowers obviously make me think of spring, so I was thrilled to find this flower-shaped macaron mat for making perfectly sized macaron shells that I turned into “daisies” with white macaron batter and a yellow sprinkle in the middle. 

Scroll down for the full recipe card! 👇🏼

I tried this exact macaron recipe three times before I got it right. I’ve tried many others over the years with little luck, so I kept it simple and kept telling myself that if I can get the vanilla macaron recipe figured out, I’d move on to more flavors. And I did it, so I’m excited to branch out a bit more next time! Here’s what I’ve learned that I think will help you if you’re new to making macarons:

• Don’t use packaged egg whites; separate your egg whites by hand. I used fresh egg whites, but many people suggest aging them before making macarons.
• Don’t add the sugar too early when whipping the meringue. Whip the egg whites until they are foamy and you can actually turn the bowl upside down without them moving BEFORE adding any sugar.
• Make sure the meringue has very stiff peaks before adding the dry ingredients, but be careful not to deflate it at this stage either.
• When folding in the dry ingredients, do the “figure 8 test.” When you’d removed enough air from the meringue that the batter drip off the spatula and you can create a figure 8 pattern in the batter that sinks back into it within about 20 seconds, your batter is ready to be piped.
• Always leave the macarons at room temperature to form a skin before baking. At least 30 minutes has been the sweet spot for me (particularly with these smaller macarons).

Are you ready to get out there and making some lemony macarons?! I believe in you. As my dad always said, “practice, practice practice.” I know, it drove me crazy when he told me that as a teenager, but it’s the truth!

Lemon Daisy Macarons

2018-04-11 15:50:19

Yields 24

Classic vanilla macarons shared like a flower with a simple yellow buttercream and homemade tangy lemon curd filling decorated to look like daisies

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For the Vanilla Macarons

1. 3 egg whites
2. 1/2 cup granulated sugar
3. 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
4. 1 cup + 2 tbs almond flour

For the Lemon Curd

1. 2 egg yolks
2. 1/3 cup + 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
3. 2 ounces lemon juice (approx 1 large lemon)
4. 1 tbsp lemon zest
5. Pinch of salt
6. 2 tbsp butter, room temperature

For the Vanilla Buttercream

1. 1/2 cup butter, room temperature
2. 1 cup powdered sugar
3. 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
4. Yellow food coloring
5. Round yellow sprinkles

For the Vanilla Macarons

1. Line a baking sheet with a silicone flower macaron mold and fit a pastry bag with a 1/4-inch round piping tip
2. In one bowl, sift together the almond flour and powdered sugar and set aside
3. In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, whip the egg whites on high speed until the form foamy soft peaks. When you can turn the bowl without the egg whites moving, they're ready!
4. Mixing on medium speed, add the granulated sugar one spoonful at a time and return to high speed, mixing until stiff, glossy peaks form
5. Remove the mixing bowl from the stand and begin folding in the almond flour mixture with spatula. You must fold pretty aggressively to remove some air from the meringue and create a thinner batter
6. Mix until the batter drips easily off the spatula and you can create a figure 8 pattern that dissolves back into the batter within 20 seconds
7. Move about half of the batter to the prepared piping bag and pipe within the flower-shaped constraints of the mat, allowing space for the batter to spread as it settles
8. Once the macarons are piped, tap the sheet on the countertop to remove air bubbles and spread the batter
9. Allow the macarons to rest at room temperature for at least 30 minutes until they form a "skin" and cover remaining batter with plastic wrap at room temperature
10. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F
11. Bake the macarons for about 9-11 minutes until they appear set and the feet have formed
12. Allow to cool for about 15 minutes before peeling the shells from the mat. Repeat with remaining batter.

For the Lemon Curd

1. In a small saucepan, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar over medium-low heat
2. Whisk in the lemon juice, zest and salt until smooth
3. Cook over medium-low heat for about 3 minutes
4. Stir in the butter in chunks and whisk until incorporated and thick. If a white layer forms on top, keeping heating and mixing until it disappears
5. Strain the mixture into a small bowl and whisk until only the zest and proteins remain in the strainer
6. Let cool 5 minutes, then cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 30 minutes until set

For the Vanilla Buttercream

1. Beat the butter with a paddle attachment for 2 minutes until light and fluffy
2. Add powdered sugar and mix until smooth, scraping sides of the bowl as needed
3. Mix in vanilla and yellow food coloring until pale yellow color is reached

To Assemble the Macarons

1. Match the macaron shells in pairs
2. Move the buttercream icing to a pastry bag fitted with a small piping tip
3. Move the set lemon curd to a pastry bag or ziplock bag with the tip cut off
4. Pipe around the edge of a macaron shell with the buttercream, then fill the middle generously with lemon curd and lightly press another shell on top
5. Dot a tiny bit of buttercream in the center of the top shell and place a yellow sprinkle on top to create the middle of the flower
6. Refrigerate macarons in an airtight container for up to two days

Notes

1. Floral macaron mat: https://amzn.to/2GU1OoC

By Holly Wade

Club Crafted https://www.clubcrafted.com/