Gluten-free vegan chocolate macarons with mint chocolate chip frosting

Today, I’mma blow your mind.

Partly with the magical amazingness of this recipe, and partly with my own incredible ability to fuck simple tasks up the patootie.

Shortly after flipping through my new copy of Vegan Desserts by the wonderful Hannah Kaminsky, I discovered something unprecedented, something so completely earth-shaking that I could hardly believe it existed: vegan. macarons.

Yep—those light and airy and so hot right now Parisian cookie sandwiches standard of every patisserie worth its croissants, notoriously difficult and made from finely ground almond flour and meringue—meringue being distinctly non-vegan, with its reliance on egg whites. Those cookies which I have made a few times with the chicken-product to varying degrees of success but always the highest approval from my taste-testers. But now I learn this can be made vegan? And with an easy-to-find ingredient like Ener-g egg replacer?!

Woah. source

Obviously I had to try those, stat. So after school one day, I tromped over to the Whole Foods across the street (yes, there is a Whole Foods across from my new school, and that is exactly why the tuition is so expensive) to buy my first-ever box of Ener-g egg replacer. I then proceeded to whip up not one but two batches after arriving at home. The first time around, I forgot the vanilla and chocolate extracts and foolishly attempted to pipe the batter with a star tip, since that was the largest one I had. And so the first batch was rather mediocre. The second time, I was sure to add the extracts and piped the batter without a tip. Yes, the resulting macarons looked a little like that poop emoji—

I fucking hate this emoji. source

—but they were much, much better than before. My extensive taste-testing proves that they taste amazing as well.

Doesn't matter; had sugar.

So as you can see, my macarons are far from perfect. Hell, they’re hardly macarons, being both vegan and stuffed with the most American of buttercreams, mint chocolate chip (my own variation being filled with food coloring, since I didn’t have any matcha on hand). They’ve got feet, yes, but the tops are somewhat misshapen and not at all smooth and flat like the authentic Parisian variety.

But you know what? Fuck perfection. They’re still awesome. They taste like freaking ice cream sandwiched between two glorious meringue cookies. They’re heaven in texture and in flavor, a miracle of modern food science. And I’m goddamn proud.

*sniffs*

You see that heart in the top of one of those cookies? That’s my heart. I put it into the cookies. Send help. 

Here’s the recipe.

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Gluten-free vegan chocolate macarons with mint chocolate chip frosting

Adapted from Vegan Desserts

Ingredients

Macaron shells

24 grams • Ener-g egg replacer • 3 tablespoons

120 grams • water • ½ cup

50 grams • granulated sugar • ¼ cup

210 grams • powdered sugar • 1 ¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons

112 grams • almond flour • 1 cup

10 grams • cocoa powder • 2 tablespoons

6 grams • vanilla extract • 1 ½ teaspoons

6 grams • chocolate extract • 1 ½ teaspoons

Filling

223 grams • nondairy margarine, softened • 1 cup

360 grams • powdered sugar • 3 cups

2 grams • matcha powder (optional, for color) or green food coloring • ½ teaspoon

30 grams • nondairy milk • 2 tablespoons

4 grams • peppermint extract • 1 teaspoon

4 grams • vanilla extract (or one whole vanilla bean) • 1 teaspoon

85 grams • chocolate chips • ½ cup

Instructions

Start by whisking together Ener-g egg replacer and water in a small bowl. Once all lumps and bumps have been incorporated, microwave mixture for about 30 seconds. Let sit for two minutes before putting in stand mixer.

In the bowl of an electric stand mixer, beat Ener-g mixture until a fairly tight foam has been formed, about 3 minutes. Slowly start sprinkling in granulated sugar, a spoonful at a time. Beat for a total of about 7 to 8 minutes or until a fluffy, glossy meringue has been achieved.

Meanwhile, combine powdered sugar, almond meal, and cocoa powder in a food processor. Pulse a few times until all lumps have been broken up and mixture is fully incorporated. Sift the mixture through a fine sieve into a large bowl.

One scoop at a time, fold Ener-g meringue mixture into almond flour mixture along with chocolate extract. Fold carefully to ensure you don’t deflate the meringue.

Transfer batter to a piping bag fitted with a medium round tip. Pipe fairly 1-inch circles of batter on a parchment-lined baking sheet, about 1 inch apart each. Use a finger dipped in water to tap down any peaks on the batter.

Let these shells sit at room temperature for about 1 ½ hours. They will develop a “skin” which will help the macarons not burst into a big mess of sadness in the oven. Hopefully.

Finally—preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Bake macarons for about 9 to 11 minutes, or until the tops are dry and they have begun to form the so-called “feet” characteristic of macarons. Let cool completely on baking sheets before transferring to a wire rack.

To make filling, start by placing margarine in the bowl of an electric stand mixer and beating until smooth. Spoon in powdered sugar and matcha powder on low speed and mix until incorporated. Add remaining ingredients and beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy. Fold in chocolate chips.

Scoop filling onto the flat sides of half the macaron shells with a small cookie dough scoop or a teaspoon. Carefully sandwich another shell on top. Congratulations, you made macarons. If you have the patience, feel free to freeze the cookies for two days to achieve maximum flavor, as claimed by Thomas Keller. But who am I kidding.

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I was really sad when I picked up one of the macarons and found the frosting was stuck to the paper.

Now we know it is possible to build an egg-free meringue using a relatively common replacer. What to do with this power?

Everything. We can make vegan genoise, vegan marshmallows, vegan fluff, vegan Swiss buttercream...the possibilities are endless. Expect to see more meringue-based desserts in the near future.

Until then, check out Azealia Banks’ new album, Broke with Expensive Taste. Because it's awesome.