Do you have a Valentine this year? If you do, do you have something (safe) and fun planned? Maybe a fun treat? If not, I’ve got you covered. Heck, you could make these strawberries & champagne macarons for yourself if you don’t have a valentine. Treat yourself!
It doesn’t matter if you’re celebrating Valentine’s Day or Galentine’s day (sorry, boys!), these sweet treats will please whoever you give them to! I mean, what combination could be better than strawberries and champagne on a day all about love? I actually used cava for these instead of champagne because I prefer it, but the point remains. Strawberries & bubbles!
Cava is the Spanish equivalent of French champagne (you can only call it champagne if it comes from the Champagne region of France). I like cava because it isn’t as sweet as a traditional champagne. It’s crisp and dry, but you still get all of the fun bubbles and the enjoyment you get from champagne. It’s my thing and I’ll gladly accept any bottles you want to send my way!
These strawberries & champagne macarons are just fun. They’re pretty in pink and have fun messages on them, just like the “sweethearts” candies you can find in stores this time of year. But they taste better because they have a strawberry champagne (cava) jam and a champagne (cava) buttercream, and if you make them for your special someone, there’s a whole lotta love in them too!
The alcoholic bubbles mixed with the strawberries for the jam complement each other so well. It’s jam on a whole new level; you might want to just eat it with a spoon instead of filling the macarons. Try and resist, there will be jam leftover! (Confession: I did eat the leftover jam with a spoon).
The buttercream is nice and simple with some reduced champagne (cava) and a little straight from the bottle. You’ll probably also want to dip your finger in that a few times 😉
Head to the kitchen and make these for your loved ones. Or your best friends. Or both. Even yourself. Self love is important too! If champagne isn’t your thing, leave it out or try these caramelia macarons.
Strawberries & Champagne Macarons
Ingredients
- Shells:
- 275g almond flour
- 250g powdered
- 210g sugar
- 210g egg white
- Pink food colouring
- Strawberry Champagne Jam:
- 1 pound strawberries
- 1/2 cup champagne (or cava)
- 5 tbsp. sugar
- Champagne Buttercream:
- 1 cup + 1 tbsp. champagne or cava
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
- 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
Directions
- Step 1 Shells:
- Step 2 To start, put the almond flour and powdered sugar in a food processor and blend thoroughly. Sift into a bowl to ensure there are no lumps.
- Step 3 In the bowl of a stand mixer (make sure it’s clean and dry), beat the egg whites until foamy. Slowly add the sugar, about 2 tbsp at a time, beating on a medium speed. Once the sugar has dissolved, increase speed to medium high and beat until a thick glossy meringue forms. Add pink food colouring and beat to combine. The mixture should form stiff peaks and you should be able to tip the bowl over your head with none of the mixture coming out.
- Step 4 With a large, flat rubber spatula, gently fold 1/3 of almond flour/powdered sugar mixture into egg whites until combined. Repeat until all of the almond mixture has been added. Fold to combine until you see no streaks of almond flour in the batter. The batter should be pretty fluid, a lot of people describe as a lava-like consistency. It should run smoothly off the spatula when you pull it out. This part comes with practice. Once you know the consistency, you’ll just be able to feel when it’s ready.
- Step 5 Pipe the batter into circles onto parchment or silicone lined baking sheets. Bang the tray a few times on a table to remove air bubbles and allow to sit for about 30 minutes before baking. To see if they’re ready for baking, touch your finger to them. If you get batter on your finger, they need to rest longer.
- Step 6 While resting, preheat your oven to 300°F with a rack placed in the lower third of the oven. Bake, one sheet at a time, for 15-18 minutes (this depends on your oven, my old one was fine at 15 minutes, this one needs 17-18). The shells should cool completely before you remove them from the parchment/silicone.
- Step 7 Strawberry Champagne Jam:
- Step 8 Place ingredients in a pot and cook on low heat until thick and pasty, stirring to prevent burning.
- Step 9 Once cooked, transfer to a jar to cool.
- Step 10 Champagne Buttercream:
- Step 11 Place 1 cup of champagne/cava in a small saucepan. Simmer until reduced to about 2 tablespoons. Transfer to a small bowl to cool.
- Step 12 In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle, cream together the butter and powdered sugar until light, thick and fluffy. Pour in the reduced 2 tbsp. of champagne/cava and add one tbsp. directly from the bottle. Mix well to combine.
- Step 13 Assembly:
- Step 14 Pair up shells. If you want to write messages on your shells use food-safe markers to do so now. On one half of each pair, pipe a ring of buttercream along the outer edge of the shell. Fill buttercream ring with a dollop of the strawberry champagne jam and sandwich together. Refrigerate in an airtight container overnight to let the flavours develop.
