Strawberry Sweetheart Macarons Filled with Dark Chocolate Ganache—For Valentine’s Day!

Do you still celebrate Valentine’s Day?  I hope you do because I have a special treat for you this year.  These Strawberry Sweetheart Macarons filled with Dark Chocolate Ganache will definitely put a smile on your face, and your Valentine’s.   




My hubby and I still celebrate Valentine’s Day.  But instead of having to fight with the crowds with restaurant reservations, troubles with the L.A.’s traffics and look for a babysitter, we both enjoy celebrating right at home (yeah, that’s a sign of getting OLD!  hahahaha….).  Don’t get me wrong, I still enjoy having a date night with my hubby every once in a while on special occasions, but just not on Valentine’s day when almost everyone is dining out!   




The day when I made these Strawberry Macarons, my Baby Girl was so excited and kept requesting to have more of these “heart shaped cookies”, which is how she referred to them.  When my Son got home from school, he did the same.  After he had a couple, he requested that I pack some up for him so that he can enjoy them at school the next day during snack time!  He is so spoiled!  (At least, I bet that’s what the teacher would think when she sees these Macarons in a 4 year old’s lunch bag! hahaha…) I put aside a few Macarons for my hubby’s cousin, who is visiting from Hong Kong; I packed two Macarons for my boy’s lunch bag.  And don’t know how it happened, the whole batch was gone the very next day!  There were 30+ macarons in a batch!  Oh well, I guess I’ll have to make another batch to enjoy on Valentine’s Day then.  




If you don’t feel comfortable in making your own Macarons, please refer to this post here with Tips on How to Make Perfect French Macarons.  Before I made my very first batch, I was very nervous and waited for a looong time before I got the courage to try my hands on them.  After a few trials, I’ve learned a few tips and tricks (as shared in the “How-To” post) and I’m more comfortable with them now.  I hope you’ll give them a try because they are so worth it. 




I've tasted quite a few Macarons from different places, mostly priced from $1.75 to $2.00 each.  Some tasted great, while some were not up to par.  For example, I've tried a Lychee Macaron that tasted more like a bar of soap!  Yike!  I would bet that there wasn't any real Lychee in that thing at all!  The “issue” was the use of artificial flavoring.  If you use quality ingredients and real fruit, you can really taste the difference.  I’m okay with using artificial flavoring.  But only for minor enhancements, and not as the primary source of flavor.  Since Macarons don’t like moisture, it’s much better to use freeze dried fruits in the batter for the Macarons shells.  With the broad availability on freeze dried fruit, making fruity Macaron shells with real fruit is a breeze.  My local Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, and Target all carry the freeze dried fruits.  Otherwise, you can always get them online here these days.   
 



I simply filled these Strawberry Sweetheart Macarons with some Dark Chocolate Ganache.  Simple and elegant.  The tartness from the strawberries really balanced well with the sweetness of these cookies (the tartness is something that the artificial flavoring cannot provide).  Strawberry and chocolate is such a classic combination, you can’t go wrong with that.  I used some Valrhona 70% Dark Chocolate to make the Ganache.  It’s rich, smooth and complex.  hm….each bite is heavenly!



I want to wish you all a beautiful, romantic and sweet Valentine’s Day!   So, what are your plans on Valentine’s day?  I would love to hear from you.




Strawberry Sweetheart Macarons with Dark Chocolate Ganache
(Printable Recipe)
Makes: 30 to 35 filled macarons



For the macaron shells:
90 grams egg whites (about 3) preferably aged 3-5 days in the fridge
pinch of kosher salt
30 grams granulated sugar
185 grams powdered sugar
110 grams almonds
10 grams freeze dried strawberries
A pinch of powdered red food coloring (optional)

Prepare the macarons:
In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the egg whites and salt on high, gradually add the sugar until stiff peak forms. Place the almonds, powdered sugar, strawberries and food coloring (if using) in a food processor and pulse until the nuts are finely ground. Add them to the meringue.

Fold the mixtures carefully until you obtain a batter that falls back on itself after counting to 10. The entire process should not take more than 50 strokes. Test a small amount on a plate; if the tops flatten on its own, the batter is ready. If there is a small beak, give the batter a couple more turns.

Fill a pastry bag fitted with a large plain tip with the batter and pipe batter in heart shapes (1 inch to 1.5 inches in diameter) onto parchment paper or silicone mats lined baking sheets. Preheat the oven to 280F. Let the macarons sit out at room temperature for 30 minutes to an hour to harden their shells a bit and bake for 20 to 22 minutes, depending on their size. Rotate baking pans once half way through baking.

For the Dark Chocolate Ganache:
4 oz dark chocolate, chopped
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon instant coffee granules
Place chocolate and instant coffee in a heat proofed bowl.  In a small sauce pan, heat the heavy cream until simmer.  Pour hot cream into the bowl of chocolate mixture and stir until smooth and shinny.  Let cool slightly before use.

To Assemble:
With a small teaspoon, fill 1 macaron shell with a teaspoon of cooled chocolate ganache and top with another shell.  Fill the rest of the macaron shells.  Place filled macarons in room temperature until chocolate ganache harden.


This recipe is shared with:

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Everyday Sister Sharing Sunday
Melt in Your Mouth Monday
Theme Baker Sunday
Mingle Monday
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These Chicks Cooked
Foodie Friday
Friday Food
Kitchen Fun and Craft Friday
Friday Favorite

Palmiers 2 ways—Italian Savory Palmiers & Vanilla Sugar Palmiers

Palmiers are one of my all time favorite cookies.  Some people call them elephant ears, palm leaves, or French Hearts.  Back in Hong Kong, we called them butterfly cookies.  And these butterflies always fly their way straight into my tummy.  No matter what you call them, they are definitely decadent treats.




You can find sweet palmiers at many bakeries or even packaged ones from supermarkets in the cookies isle.  However, if you’ve never tasted a fresh palmier from the oven, I highly recommend you to make some.  Not only they are easy to make, they are WAY better than the packaged ones from the grocery.  The ingredients are super simple as well.  There are only 3 ingredients for the sweet palmiers.  Thanks for the convenience of store bought puff pastry, all you need are vanilla sugar and salt to make this treat.  They are elegant for parties, and simple to make on any afternoon if you want a quick pick me up treat. 

Click here for the post to read about how to make your own vanilla sugar at home.  Otherwise, they are just one click away if you prefer to order them online.




Onto the Italian Savory Palmier.  These are definitely wonderful appetizers and perfect for any parties or gatherings.  You can fill the dough ahead of time and keep it chilled in the refrigerator.  Then, simply cut out individual cookies and bake them right before your party.  They are unique and packed with tons of flavors.  Crispy and buttery puff pastry, filled with the classic Italian flare of pesto, sundried tomatoes and parmesan cheese.  The pine nuts add a crunchy texture and wonderful nutty flavor. Since a package of puff pastry comes with two sheets, you can (and should) definitely try both recipes out.  

Thank you for stopping by today, I hope you’ll enjoy today’s recipes. 







P.S.:  I think these cookies are in perfect shapes for Valentine's Day too!





Italian Savory Palmiers (Printable Recipe)
Makes: 28 cookies

1 sheet frozen puff pastry, defrosted
2 tablespoons pesto
1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated
2 tablespoons finely chopped sundried tomatoes in oil, drained
2 tablespoons toasted pine nuts
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

On a lightly flour surface, unfold one sheet of puff pastry. Roll it with a lightly floured rolling pin until it's 9 by 11-inches. Spread the sheet of puff pastry with the pesto, and then sprinkle with the cheese, sundried tomatoes, and the pine nuts. Sprinkle with teaspoon salt.

Working from the short ends, fold each end halfway to the center. Then fold each side again towards the center until the folded edges almost touches each other. Gently fold one side over the other and press lightly. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at 1 hour.

Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Cut the chilled puff pastry in 1/4 inch thick slices; place them cut side up and 2 inches apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool on a wiring rack.
 
 

Vanilla Sugar Palmiers (Printable Recipe)
Makes: 24-26 cookies

1/2 cup vanilla sugar
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
1 sheet puff pastry
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Combine the sugar and kosher salt. Evenly sprinkle 1/4 cup of the sugar/salt mixture on a clean working surface. Unfold a puff pastry onto the sugar and sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup of the sugar mixture on top, spreading it evenly on the puff pastry. With a rolling pin, roll the dough until it's 13 by 13-inches square and the sugar is pressed into the puff pastry on top and bottom.

Fold the sides of the square towards the center so they go halfway to the middle. Fold them again so the two folds meet exactly at the middle of the dough. Then fold 1 half over the other half, like closing a book.
Slice the dough into 3/8-inch slices and place the slices, cut side up, on baking sheets lined with parchment paper.

Bake for around 6 minutes, or until the bottom is caramelized and brown; then turn with a spatula and bake another 3 to 5 minutes, until both sides are caramelized. Cool on a wiring rack.

Note:  You probably will have some sugar left on the board after rolling the puff pastry and that's okay.


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Snow Ball Cookies (a.k.a. Mexican Wedding Cookies)

I call these Snow Ball Cookies because that’s what my little boy likes to call them.  When I was taking pictures for this post, he happily exclaimed, “Wow, snow balls!”  After he tasted one, he kept asking for more snow balls.  Of course, my Baby Girl got her fair shares as well.



By now, you probably have heard the other dozen names that these cookies also referred to. Such as Mexican Wedding Cookies, Italian Wedding cookies, Italian Tea Cakes, Russian Tea Cakes, so on and so forth.  I thought I had many nick names when I was young. I can’t believe my record got beat by some cookies! LOL…Mind you, these are not just any cookies. These are some buttery, melt in my mouth, and highly addictive cookies.  I love the crunch and nutty flavor from the chopped pecans in them.  Another big plus of these cookies? They are super simple to prepare and your kids would probably want to help out in rolling the dough.  And it’s okay to let them taste the dough, it’s eggless.    



I've packaged these Snow Ball Cookies during the holiday to share with my friends and family as they are very popular during the holiday season.  But I’ve already made more batches afterwards because they are simply amazing.  After you've tried them, you would want to make them all year round too, and not just during the Holidays.







Snow Ball Cookies: (Printable Recipe)
Makes about 48 Cookies

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, room temperature
1 cup powdered sugar, divided
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup pecans, toasted and finely chopped

In the bowl of the stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment (or with a hand held mixer), beat butter and 1/2 cup powdered sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and beat until well incorporated. Turn mixer to low, beat in flour and pecans, mix until just combined. Divide dough in half, form each into a flat disk and wrap with plastic wrap. Chill the dough in refrigerator until cold, about 30 minutes to an hour.

Preheat oven to 325°F. With a small/mini ice cream scoop, scoop dough by one tablespoonful and roll in between palms into balls. Arrange dough balls on baking sheet lined with silpat or parchment paper spacing 1/2 inch apart. Bake until golden brown on bottom and pale golden on top, about 15 to 18 minutes.

Cool cookies on baking sheet for a few minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and cool completely. Place remaining 1/2 cup powdered sugar in a shallow dish; gently roll completely cooled cookies in powdered sugar to coat.





This recipe is shared with:

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Friday Favorite
Friday Food
Foodie Friday
Sweets For Saturday
Pink Saturday
Melt in Your Mouth Monday
Mingle Monday

Vanilla Meringue Mushrooms

These Vanilla Meringue Mushrooms are super adorable and look just like the real thing.  They are crunchy and sweet, the total opposite of the real mushrooms.  The only thing they have in common are their appearance and weight.  These Meringue Mushrooms are light and airy.  They are really easy to make and only needs a few ingredients.  Let’s take a look at how to make them, shall we?

After beating the meringue, use a 1/2-inch plain round tip to pipe the “stems” first.  Have the tip around half an inch above the baking sheet and lift the piping bag upward while gently adding pressure on the pastry bag to release the meringue.  When it reach the height you desired, stop the pressure and continue lifting the pastry bag.  If some of them tilted to the side, don’t worry, that will make them look more natural.  



Then, pipe the mushroom “caps”.  Have the piping tip around 1/4-inch above the baking sheet and gently add pressure on the pastry bag to release meringue until it’s the size/diameter you want.  I pipe my caps at around 1 to 1 1/2-inch in diameter.  When it reached the size you want, stop the pressure and turn the pastry tip around the piped cap.  If the meringue leaves a pointy tip, gently pad on the tip with a damp finger to achieve a smooth surface.



Bake at 200 degree F for 2 hours and they’re done.  After they are cooled, cut the tips off the stems so you get a flat surface. 



Melt the chocolate chips and spread a thin layer on the flat side of the cap.



Place the cut side of the step onto the melted chocolate and let the chocolate set.



You can leave them as is for white button mushrooms.



Or, dust them with cocoa powder and brush the excess off with a pastry brush for a more rustic and natural look.



When I was taking picture of these meringue mushrooms, my Baby Girl heard the click click click sounds from the camera and she knows Mommy is taking pictures of some yummy treats.    She just reach over the bowl, grabbed a mushroom, gave me the sweetest smile and started munching.  She finished it in no time and had another. 



Now, you have these cute little Meringue mushrooms to munch on or save a few for decorations. I will show you what I did with them on my next post. So, stay tuned.







Vanilla Meringue Mushrooms (Printable Recipe)



2 large egg whites, at room temperature
a pinch of kosher salt
1/2 cup caster (superfine baker's) sugar
1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup bittersweet chocolate chips (act as “glue” for the stems)
1 tablespoon cocoa powder (for dusting)

Preheat the oven 200 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.

In a bowl of the stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites, cream of tarar, and salt until frothy, about 2 minute. With the machine on medium-high speed, gradually add the sugar, about 1 tablespoon at a time. Then, add the vanilla extract.  Increase the speed to high and beat until the mixture is thick, shiny and holds stiff peaks, about 5 to 7 minutes.

Transfer the meringue into a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch round plain tip. Pipe the “stems” first as the meringue still holds up well.  Have the pastry tip around half an inch above the baking sheet and lift the piping bag upward while gently adding pressure on the pastry bag to release the meringue. When it reach the height you desired, stop the pressure and continue lifting the pastry bag. If some of them tilted to the side, don’t worry, that will make them look more natural.

Then, pipe the mushroom “caps”. Have the piping tip around 1/4-inch above the baking sheet and gently add pressure on the pastry bag to release meringue until it’s the size/diameter you want. I pipe my caps at around 1 to 1 1/2-inch in diameter. When it reached the size you want, stop the pressure and turn the pastry tip around the piped cap. If the meringue leaves a pointy tip, gently pad on the tip with a damp finger to achieve a smooth surface.

Bake for 2 hours and let cool on a wiring rack.  In a microwave safe bowl, melt chocolate chip on high.  Stir every 30 second intervals until melted.  Let melted chocolate cool slightly. 

Cut the tips off the stems so you get a flat surface.  Spread a thin layer of melted chocolate on the flat side of the cap.  Place the cut side of the step onto the melted chocolate and let the chocolate set. Dust them with cocoa powder and brush the excess off with a pastry brush for a more rustic and natural look.

This recipe is Shared with:

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Strut Your Stuff Saturday

Building a Gingerbread House—A Fun Activity with the Kids for the Holiday Season

I don’t recall ever building a Gingerbread House myself when I was a kid, period.  If my memory serves me right, seeing one exhibited in a restaurant or hotel during the holiday season was the closest encounter I had with a Gingerbread House.  That is, until last weekend.  Yeah, I built a Gingerbread House with my kids, with the help of this kit below.  No, this is NOT a sponsored post.  But I had so much fun building the Gingerbread House with my kids that the entire process made me want to share this wonderful product and experience with you.  I got this kit from Bed Bath and Beyond for $9.99.  What a wonderful deal to build memories together with the kids, right?
 

This kit included everything you see from the picture below.   The Gingerbread cookies, the candies, the icing (as decoration and “glue”) and the plastic tray that you build the house on.  Those who know me well probably know I’m not a crafty person.  But with the help of this kit, it’s almost foolproof.  The only thing I didn’t like was the icing/icing bag.  After I cut 1/4-inch of the corning of the bag (suggested by the instruction on the box) to glue the edges of the house, the cut was way too big for a neat/clean decoration.  Other than that, this was a wonderful kit to have fun with the kiddos.  It kept us busy for the whole morning.



The picture below shows you the back of the box.  It tells you what are included in the kit, simple step by step instructions on how to build the structure, and decorating ideas.



Pay attention to the picture below, as I was laying out my ingredients on a sheet tray as suggested by the instruction, my kids were “fighting” for the box at the background!  LOL…They both wanted to read the instructions for their Mama as they know she doesn’t read instructions that well. 



Once all the sides of the wall were on, up next was the roof.



When all the structural pieces were glued on, we needed to wait 15 minutes for the icing/glue to dry before we can start decorating.  While we were waiting, my big boy and baby girl got too bored…they said the house smells really delicious and wanted to give it a taste test, literally!    Good I didn’t let that happen.  But it was close!  hahaha...what can I say, like Mother like Son/Daughter, they sure are little foodies and want to taste test everything.



Finally, the wait was over and let’s get the fun begin, shall we?!  My baby girl always say “lady first, lady first…” (referring to herself) whenever she wanted to cut in line, in front of her brother.  Luckily, my big boy is such a gentleman and almost always let his sister go first. 



Now, it’s the gentleman’s turn. 



Okay, it’s more fun to do it together.  So, they both started going at it.



I think we did a pretty good job as first timers, right?  What do you think?





By the way, the kit came with a gingerbread tree, gingerbread man and a gingerbread snowman.  But they were quite big, in ratio, when compared to the house; the slots to place them in were too closed to the house and would block the decorations.  So I used some candy penguins I had (originally purchased for another holiday project I had in mind).  They fitted right in (see the picture below).   




So, this Gingerbread house will be "on display" until Christmas.  I might take pictures during the demolition process, if I remember (and not too busy eating candies and cookies).   I had so much fun with the kids building this adorable Gingerbread House together. 

Thank you so much for reading and I hope you all are having fun with your kids (or Grandkids) doing craft projects or preparing favorite recipes together.





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