Have you tried the viral Dubai chocolate yet? I was surprised and obsessed about the taste and texture of it when I first tried the chocolate. The pistachio kataifi filling is so addictive! These macarons are chocolate macaron shells, filled with dark chocolate ganache and kataifi filling. They are super delicious!

Chocolate Macaron Shells

Adopted from Pies & Tacos Blog – Swiss method.

Note: You do not have to get exactly 95g of egg whites. You can calculate the ratio as 1:05. For example: if you only get 100g of egg whites out of 3 eggs, multiple it by 1.05 to get to 105g on dry ingredients (almond flour and powdered sugar). Remember to use a scale to weight all the ingredients.

Yield about 40-44 shells

• 100g egg whites (from 3 fresh eggs)
• 100g white granulated sugar
• 3g egg white powder (optional) from Judee’s from Scratch
• 105g almond flour
• 105g chocolate flavored powdered sugar from Whipzi (Use code “ck20″to get 20% off on your order)
• Brown food coloring is optional.
• Note: You can do it in the traditional way. 96 almond flour, 75g powdered sugar, 7g cocoa powder, 7g black cocoa powder. If you don’t have black cocoa powder, use total of 14g cocoa powder.

Steps

1. Before you start, wipe all the tools and bowls with white vinegar or lemon juice to make sure there is no oil on them and get all of the ingredients ready. Prepare a large piping bag, fitted with a large round tip. I use piping tip round 12. 1A can be used to. It depends on what your preference. Set aside.
2. Line two baking sheets with silicone mat or parchment paper. If you are using a template, you can put them underneath the mat or parchment paper now.
3. Measure out all of the ingredients using a scale.
4. Sift the dry ingredients together. Whisk them until combine. Set it aside.
5. In another bowl, whisk the sugar and the egg white powder (if using). Using a double boiler method, place the bowl over a pot with water. Make sure the bottom of the bowl does not touch the water. Add the egg whites to the sugar and whisk the mixture until frothy. Use your finger to touch the mixture and you should not be feeling any sugar in it, which means the sugar is completely melted and ready for next step.
6. Transfer the sugar mixture to the bowl of a stand mixer. With the whisk attachment, start whisking mixture on low for about 30 seconds, then gradually start increasing speed to medium-low (KitchenAid speed 4). Whisk on medium for one to two minutes, until the mixture is white and starting to become fluffy. Raise the speed medium-high (KitchenAid speed 6) and whisk for a few minutes (could be up to 10 to 12 minutes) until stiff peaks are formed. Once they get glossy and you start seeing streaks formed by the whisk, it might be time to stop.
7. Stiff peaks is the meringue shooting straight up. Then it is ready.
8. Pour the sifted powdered sugar, almond flour, and matcha powder into the stiff meringue
9. Use a spatula and start folding gently. What you are trying to do here is to deflate the air in the meringue and also incorporate it with the dry ingredients until it reaches a lava stage. I do not normally reach to figure 8 stage (if you have heard of this), because at this point, I feel like the batter is already overmixed and too runny. If the batter is flowing down from the spatula effortlessly and slowly, then it should be ready for the next step. If the batter is breaking up from the spatula, it means it is undermixed and you need to keep folding.
10. When ready, transfer the batter to the piping bag.
11. Place the piping bag directly 90 degrees over the center of each macaron template.
12. When piping is done, I would recommend tapping the bottom of the tray instead of banging the tray against the counter. Banging the tray against the counter is too loud and it really is scaring my kids. It still works but I no longer do the banging. This step is to get rid of air bubbles in the batter.
13. Use a toothpick to pop any air bubbles in the surface of the shells.
14. Pre-heat the oven to 310 degrees. You would need oven thermometer to know how hot your oven is. This is very important when baking macarons. What I have found out is the display of the oven is not accurate and it could be few degrees off, either hotter or under. Therefore, you would need to adjust the temperature and/or baking time. My oven is without a fan.
15. If you are using a template, do not forget to remove it, which you can take it out in this step.
16. Rest the shells about 20-40 minutes, depending on how humid where you live. It could take up to an hour for the top of the shell to dry. When you gently touch the surface of a macaron and the batter does not stick to your finger, it is ready to bake.
17. You could only bake one tray at a time and put the tray in the middle rack. I rotate the tray half way and I use airbake tray. The advantage of using airbake tray is if there is hot spot in your oven, the macaron shells are baked evenly and the airbake tray also can keep them from burning.
18. Bake for 15-18 minutes if using regular baking sheets. Bake for 16-19 minutes on airbake tray.
19. To make sure the macarons are done baking, when you try to move a macaron, it should not feel jiggly. If the macaron is still jiggly, bake for additional 2 minutes and test again. When done, remove from the oven and bake the second tray.
20. Move them to cooling rack. Let the macarons cool down completely before peeling off from the mat or parchment paper.

Dark Chocolate Ganache

• 113g dark chocolate
• 1/3 cup heavy cream

Steps

1. Heat heavy cream in a small pan over medium heat, or in the microwave. No matter what method you choose, be very careful not to boil the heavy cream
2. Pour hot cream over chopped chocolate. Let it stand for a minute
3. Start stirring with a spatula until completely melted
4. Refrigerate for a bit before using. To be pipeable, the ganache should be thick, but easy to spread

Kataifi with Pistachio Cream Filling

• 200g Kataifi (I have found them in my local Middle East market/store. They are in the freeze section).
• 200g pistachio cream
• 2-3 tablespoon unsalted butter
• A little bit of tahini

Steps

1. Bring the kataifi to room temperature. Cut the phyllo dough into smaller pieces
2. Melt the butter on the cooking pan
3. Add phyllo dough in
4. Cook it until golden brown. Stir constantly
5. Once done, put it in a bowl and let it cool to room temperature
6. Add in pistachio cream and mix until combined.
7. If it is dry, add in tahini. Done

Assemble

1. Place the dark chocolate ganache in a piping bag. Pipe a ring of ganache on top of the bottom shell. Then fill the middle with kataifi filling. Top with another macaron shell.
2. Mature the macarons in the fridge for 24-48 hours before serving. When ready to serve, take the macarons out from the fridge and let them come to room temperature for 15 to 20 minutes. Enjoy!

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