I’ve been wanting to make some more vegan macarons lately. Every time I open a can of chickpeas to make hummus, I get excited to use that leftover bean juice!
Since Halloween’s around the corner, candy has been on my mind. And who doesn’t like a good Snickers candy bar?! This recipe has a fugdy chocolate ganache filling, caramel sauce, and crushed peanuts — even my husband, who stays away from sweets, couldn’t keep his paws off of these cookies. (As a side note, he says that they pair well with a stout or porter. Macarons and beer sound like a great combination!)
While I was making this round of French macarons, I thought of a few more tips that popped into my mind. First, the type of canned beans does seem to make a difference. For a while, I used Wegmans organic chickpeas, but now I switched to Publix brand, after the move. Both of the work well. I once bought an organic brand and the liquid inside was too gelatinous to work with — you want your bean juice to be very liquidy!
Next, humidity does play a factor. On days that it rains or the humidity is high, my macarons don’t grow feet as well. You can see that these macarons don’t have the cute little feet, like some of my others do. Welp, as soon as I started the process, the weather transitioned from sunshine to rain showers. Womp womp. It happens, so don’t be disheartened. They still taste amazing!
I’ll admit that this recipe isn’t quite like a Snickers Bar…but it’s still delicious. You can try a few different things - Create a chocolate macaron cookie, scatter peanuts on top, add a little peanut butter to the ganache, and so on. The sky’s the limit! Be sure to share your photos with me; I love to see them!
I don’t plan on going into as much detail as I did in my first vegan macaron post; please read this one first before executing this recipe.
I will say this again: macarons are challenging cookies to make, if you make them traditionally or with vegan ingredients. If at first you don’t succeed, try again!
Vegan French Macarons: Snickers Flavor with Caramel & Peanuts
Course: Uncategorized4
servings30
minutes40
minutes300
kcalRecipe adapted from my original Chocolate & Amaretto Macarons
Ingredients
liquid from one 15 oz can of chickpeas; chickpeas saved for another use
Half a cup of organic cane sugar
One cup of almond flour, like Bob’s Red Mill
Half a cup of vegan powdered sugar
One teaspoon of vanilla (infused bourbon), plus more as needed
- For the chocolate ganache:
Two tablespoons of organic non-hydrogenated shortening, like Spectrum
One teaspoon of vanilla
One-third a cup of unsweetened cocoa powder, like Guittard
Two cups of vegan powdered sugar
A few tablespoons of almond milk, add as needed
caramel sauce, store bought or home made (Recipe here)
Some crushed peanuts
- Nederlandse Bookmakers
Directions
- Bring the chickpea liquid to a boil in a small saucepan. When it heats, reduce the heat to low and let it simmer/reduce for 10 minutes - set a timer! This boiling liquid may have an odd odour, just so you know. It should be reduced to around 1/3 cup.
- Meanwhile, in a food processor, mix the almond flour and powdered sugar. Pulse a few times to mix, then run the processor for a minute or two.
- Sift the powdery mixture into the sifter. For several macaron recipes I’ve tried I need to sift three times. This recipe only needed one sift. Some big chunks that don’t get into the sifter can be discarded.
- Take cane sugar, measure it out and keep it aside.
- Pour your chickpea liquid into your stand mixer tank and clip your whisk once it has decreased. Set a timer for 2 minutes and whisk on a medium-high setting (about a 5-6 setting) in the mixer. The mixture should foam up and get frothy.
- Toss in the cane sugar. Set a timer for 5 minutes to beat the mixture on high. This is where the real magic takes place. It’s awe-inspiring to watch! The final product should resemble a meringue, with stiff, shiny peaks. After that, apply your teaspoon of vanilla and beat for another minute on high.
- Fold in the sifted mixture in thirds once the meringue is ready. (Pour in one-third of the liquid and fold.) (Do it again.) I discovered that my batter was a little dry at this stage. In the batter, I placed another teaspoon or two of vanilla extract. You want a dense, firm batter that is still a little shiny. Someone compared it to lava pouring down a cliff, but I’m not sure how accurate that comparison is. This is the point where you simply have to get a feel for it. Which is why making macarons is difficult!
- Using a spatula, transfer the batter to your piping bag. Snip a hole in the bag about a half-inch from the top. The batter can trickle out steadily, most definitely in tiny blobs, if you keep the bag upright at a 90 degree angle. You have a problem if it’s runny. If it’s stiff and won’t move without assistance, you’ve got a separate issue! This requires dexterity.
- On your Silpat mats, pipe cookies the size of a quarter or half dollar. I would suggest that you double the baking sheets. This has been stated in a number of macaron-making blogs. It prevents the bottoms from being charred. Pipe the batter before you run out of batter – or space to pipe it.
- Smack the cookie sheets on the counter a couple times until you’re finished piping. You want to smooth out the macarons to get rid of the air bubbles inside. Whack them in the face – don’t be scared to injure them. My macarons started off with small peaks, but after a few smacks, the tops smoothed out. That’s how you can tell whether the batter is decent or not.
- Allow 45 minutes to 1 hour for the macarons to dry on the counter. They should be fully dry to the touch – don’t poke them!
- Preheat the oven to 205° F as the drying period passes.
- Bake the macarons for 30 minutes. Turn the oven off after 30 minutes and leave the cookies in the closed oven for another 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, open the oven door and let the cookies cool for another 15 minutes before removing them from the oven.
- Earl Grey with Lemon Buttercream, Raspberry & Elderflower Macarons, and Biscoff & Bourbon Macarons are some of my other flavours to try.
- To make the chocolate ganache:
- In a medium-sized mixing cup, add the first four ingredients with a spatula. If you need a bit extra liquid to get the icing to come together, add a tablespoon of almond milk at a time. It will have the appearance (and taste) of fudgy, chocolaty goodness.
- Gently pipe icing onto one side of a macaron using another piping bag, leaving a well in the centre with the caramel. Take a similar-sized macaron and put it next to the piped one. If you have some remaining ganache, save it in the freezer for later usage!
- You can make this caramel sauce, which is fast and simple, or you can buy some cocomels and melt them — the option is yours! Drizzle the caramel into each ganache’s hollow. Crushed peanuts can be sprinkled over each drizzle (and roll the macarons in the peanuts as well).
- You’re going to enjoy this flavour! No doubt about it.
- These can be stored in the fridge for 3-5 days in an airtight bag. Before consuming them, I like to leave them out for 10-15 minutes. Have fun 🙂
Cheers!
-Aileen
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