If you thought that chamomile was just for tea at bedtime, then think again! The chamomile plant produces beautiful yellow and white flowers and they’re perfect for using in baking to add a delicate flavor and fragrance. Sure, Nature Restore Organic Chamomile Whole Flowers can be steeped in water to make a relaxing bedtime tea, but why not get creative?
Karlee Flores from @oliveandartisan has done just that with her Chamomile and Honey Macarons, and take it from us, they taste as good as they look! Don’t be put off by the complexity of making macarons, Karlee has made them super simple, and you’ll be able to wow your friends and colleagues with these beauties.
Prep Time: 1 hour
Cook Time: 13 minutes
Time: 1 hour, 13 minutes
Makes: 12-16
Ingredients
For the macarons
100g egg whites at room temperature
100g granulated sugar
100g super fine almond flour
100g powdered sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 drops gel food coloring of your choice
Food grade glitter, optional
For the chamomile honey buttercream
½ cup sweet cream butter at room temperature
1 tbsp Organic Chamomile Whole Flowers, ground and sifted
2 tbsp honey
1 cup powdered sugar
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.
- In a medium bowl, mix the egg whites with 3 tablespoons of the granulated sugar. Place over a double boiler and cook for about 5 minutes until the sugar granules melt.
- Using a stand mixer or hand mixer with the whisk attachment, whisk the egg whites until frothy. Continue to whisk while slowly pouring in the rest of the granulated sugar. Add the food coloring if using and continue to whisk until stiff glossy peaks appear.
- Sift the almond flour, powdered sugar and salt twice through a sieve. Add to the egg whites all at once and fold together. Continue to fold the batter until you can form a figure 8 with the batter without the batter breaking from the spatula. Another way to tell it’s done is to spoon the batter on top of itself and if the folds go away slowly after 5-10 seconds, then it’s ready.
- Fill a piping bag fitted with a Wilton 2A or Ateco 805 tip. Pipe silver-dollar-sized rounds onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Bang the sheet on the counter a few times to release any air bubbles.
- Let the macarons sit on the counter until the tops and sides dry out. This could take 15 minutes to 30 minutes depending on the moisture in the air. If the macarons aren’t drying, sit them next to a fan on low speed and rotate every 5 minutes.
- Place the macarons in the oven on the middle rack for 6 minutes, then rotate and continue to bake for another 6 minutes. Let cool.
- For the Chamomile Honey buttercream, beat the ingredients together until a creamy frosting appears, about 2 minutes. Place into a piping bag fitted with a small star tip of your choice. Pipe the frosting on the bottom of one macaron and sandwich together with another.
- To top with edible glitter, with a small brush lightly dipped in water, brush over the top of one cookie and brush again with edible glitter. Do not over-wet the cookies.
Notes
- Macarons will keep up to 3 days, covered on the counter.
- As with most meringue-based items, macarons are best made on less humid days.
- Take your time folding the batter. If you go too far and fold out too much of the air, it’s not possible to recover the batter. If this is your first-time trying macarons, find a video to visualize the best batter consistency.
