German Chocolate Cake Macaron
Coconut chips are the basis for these delicious cookies. German Chocolate Cake Macaron have sweet coconut flavor and chocolate deliciousness of the cake in a cookie.
It’s chocolate lovers month! Did you know that? My friend Ellen from Family Around the Table is hosting this delicious event. She asked us to share one of our favorite chocolate recipes, so I chose macaron, of course! I mean, they’re the most romantic little cookie you can serve your sweetie. And, it just so happens that these are centered around the famous cake of the same name.
While some are addicted to chocolate, I have another serious addiction.
This addiction has no twelve-step program. I don’t see any way to get help. I just have to live with it. I’m addicted to making these delectable little cookies. Yes. They’re totally finicky to make. Yes. You can easily mess up the macaronage. Yes. They take patience and can frustrate you easily.
But. The first time you see those pied, or feet, you do a dance in your kitchen in your sweats. And not the YouTube viral kind of dance. Though maybe…
It’s that success that makes it all worthwhile. The looks on my mother’s face when she tastes the pizza flavored cookies we made or the Derby Pie cookies we made. And it’s the look on the faces of the co-workers who feel special when I share these little gems with them. AND the look on their face when I tell them there are cookies to be eaten.
That’s the main reason I take the time to process, measure, sift, sift, sift, pipe, rest, bake, and fill these little finicky gems. That and the pied. Or feet.
These German chocolate cake macaron came about because I received some coconut chips in a subscription snack box. I wasn’t really planning on eating them, even though they were addictive. I immediately thought about processing them and putting them into the shells for a macaron.
But filling. Hmm… What kind of filling? Curry? That would be interesting. Lime. Nah. Banana? No. Then it hit me! I was in the baking aisle getting the white chocolate for the matcha ones I made and saw the German chocolate bars there. Perfect!
Besides, what goes better with coconut than chocolate!!
And one can never have too much chocolate. Or reasons to eat chocolate. Or reasons to eat those coconut chips. And finally, reasons to bake macaron!
I jumped in making these. With both feet. My first flavor? Bananas Foster-ita. It was a recipe challenge to bake with alcohol. I used to love those! I read, researched, wrote down recipes, evaluated, estimated, made a spreadsheet, and then jumped in with both feet and baked a batch. They didn’t have feet. They had some semblance of feet, but not pied officially. I was hooked.
I’ve made several batches since then. Some have been picture perfect and some have been completely failures. No matter how they turn out, I’ve never been afraid to make them and they’ve always tasted amazing! The crisp shells, the chewy centers, and the filling! They all make for an amazing culinary experience.
You shouldn’t be afraid to make them, either. Yes, they can seem a little intimidating. It’s the whole “lava” thing that I just couldn’t get. I would over mix, then under mix, then was just afraid to mix. The lava flow. It’s not a cake batter flow. It’s a slightly thick brownie batter flow.
I think most people consider that making a meringue means you fold gently and try to keep the air. Nothing could be farther from the truth with this one. You do want to deflate the meringue, but gently. So, you fold, then you usually wind up stirring gently to get the lava flow texture.
Once you master that and allow the shells to dry out on the counter, then you will always have feet. You will always have picture perfect macaron. Now, for them to taste perfect you must take them out before you think they’re done.
The wiggle test.
Grab the top of the shell and shimmy it back and forth. If it moves a lot, they’re not done. If it doesn’t move, then you take them out and let them cool completely. COMPLETELY! Before you even try to take them off your parchment or silpat. I suggest a silpat. They’re even at Walmart now. And they make removing them oh so easy.
Now, fill them. Fill them with buttercream, ganache, caramel, whatever you want! DO NOT eat them just yet. Let them set. Rest. Marinate with the filling. NOW eat them! And enjoy!
I hope I’ve taken some of the mystery and fear out of making these finicky little cookies. I hope you have enjoyed my story. And, I hope I have made a few new friends. Please do try to make some macaron. You should never by afraid to try something new in the kitchen.
German Chocolate Cake Macaron
Coconut chips are the basis for these delicious cookies. German Chocolate Cake Macaron have sweet coconut flavor and chocolate deliciousness of the cake in a cookie.
Ingredients
- 4 ounces egg whites, room temperature
- pinch cream of tartar
- 30 grams granulated sugar
- 7 ounces powdered sugar
- 4 ounces almond meal
- 2 ounces coconut chips
- 4 ounces Bakers German chocolate
- 1 tablespoon half and half
- 1 tablespoon Ciroc coconut vodka
Instructions
- Place half the almond meal and the half of the powdered sugar in the bowl of a food processor and process until the mixture is finely ground. Sift into a large bowl and repeat process with remaining almond meal and powdered sugar along with the coconut chips. Sift the mixture two more times and set aside.
- Place the egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer. Sprinkle the cream of tartar over the eggs and hand mix the two together with the whisk attachment for the stand mixer. Fasten the whisk attachment and beat the mixture on medium speed until foamy. Slowly add the granulated sugar and beat on medium speed until soft peaks form. Increase the speed to high and beat until stiff peaks form.
- Sift 1/3 of the almond mixture into the bowl with the meringue. Fold the ingredients together with a large spatula until incorporated. Continue sifting and folding until all the almond mixture is incorporated into the meringue and the mixture should drip slowly off the spatula; like lava flowing. (I suggest search Youtube to get a good visual of this texture. For me, it’s like pouring a really thick brownie batter or quick bread batter.)
- Transfer the batter to a large piping bag fitted with a 1/2 inch tip and pipe 1 1/3 inch rounds onto a silpat covered baking sheet. There are several different templates out there. Two that I liked are here and here.
- Preheat oven to 325.
- You’re going to LOVE this next part! Once all the batter has been piped or your sheets are full, grab the edges of the pan, secure the silpat with your thumbs (or any extra batter) and rap the pans on the counter. This releases any remaining air bubbles in the meringue. Continue rapping the sheets, turning occasionally, until no more air bubbles surface. If there are a few that are being stubborn, take a toothpick and carefully pop them yourself. Allow the macaron to rest on the counter at least 30 minutes.
- Once they’ve rested and the tops are no longer sticky to the touch, bake at 325 for 9 minutes. Rotate the pans front to back and top to bottom and bake an additional 9 minutes. Do the wiggle test to see if the meringue is cooked. If the tops move easily from side to side when wiggled, indicating the meringue isn’t completely cooked, then continue to cook in 4 to 5 minutes intervals until they no longer wiggle.
- Remove from heat and allow to cool completely before filling.
- While the macaron cool, make the ganache.
- Place the chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl and microwave on high one minute. Stir with a spoon. If the chocolate is not completely melted, microwave at 15 to 20 second intervals, stirring in between, until the chocolate is completely melted. Add the cream and vodka. Stir well to combine.
- Pour into a piping bag with a 1/2 inch tip and allow to cool to room temperature before piping a quarter sized dot of ganache in the center of the shell. Top with a matching shell. Repeat with remaining shells and ganache.
Chocolate Lovers Month
- Browned Butter Dark Chocolate Marshmallow Muffins by Food Lust People Love
- Chocolate Dream Whoopie Pies by Jolene’s Recipe Journal
- Chocolate Tart with a Shortbread Crust by Karen’s Kitchen Stories
- Easy Homemade Chocolate Cupcakes by Our Good Life
- German Chocolate Cake Macarons by A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures
- Homemade Chocolate Praline Easter Eggs by Sneha’s Recipe
- Sachertorte by A Day in the Life on the Farm
- Slow-Cooker Sweet Potato Chocolate Mole Soup by Faith, Hope, Love and Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered
Accomplice
I am so impressed, Christie! Your macaron are gorgeous, absolutely perfect. They are on my to-do list!
Thank you! I hope you try them. I plan on making a video of them.
These are stunning! Shared on FB!! I’ve had successes and failures with macarons. I need to try these.
Thank you! I can trouble shoot if you have failures.
I love your dedication to macaron! And these look like a delicious version too. Yum!
Thank you!
These little beauties are welcome to show up at my house any day! I would never turn them away!!!
Thank you! I hear that a lot… 🙂
You make it sound so easy …but I am way to scared of these until I have the house totally to myself and NO distractions- which may never happen, so I will let myself look at how lovely yours are! Just beautiful!
You should just bite the bullet! I plan on making a video of how I make them some day.
These look perfect! I’m going to have to give them a try!
I hope you do! Let me know how they turn out.
Such beautiful macarons! Your flavors sound incredible. It has been a couple of years since I have made these cookies, but definitely need to try them again. I even recently got a couple of the silicon macaron mats so no excuses now.
I hope you try them! I love making them. They’re so rewarding.
Great tips and I love the coconut and chocolate combo!
Thank you! They’re a perfect pair for me.
You are definitely the macaron queen Christie.
Awww. I just love making them. Thank you!
I really need to get rid of the fear of making macarons… yours look amazing, better than what I’ve seen in many bakeries actually. That crunchy merengue cookie with coconut and that chocolatey cream… divine! Wish me luck, maybe I’ll get the courage to make them before the holidays.
You really should! They’re not as daunting as most think. I’m thinking of doing a video on them. But we’ll see how that works. 🙂