Banana Chai Macarons

Banana meets spiced chai flavors in these straightforward macarons

Inspired by a cocktail I've been experimenting with, these macarons combine the flavors of banana and chai to make macarons that end up tasting somewhere like a spiced banana bread!

Banana Chai Macarons

Banana Chai Macaron Shells

Ingredients:

1. 120g almond flour

2. 120g powdered sugar

3. 120g granulated sugar

4. 90g egg whites

5. 32g water

6. 1/8 tsp cream of tartar

7. 1/8 tsp Sugar Art Sunshine color

8. 1/8 tsp Sugar Art Autumn Gold color

Banana Chai Ganache

Ingredients:

1. 125g white chocolate

2. 86g heavy cream

3. ~2 tsp loose chai tea (or 2 teabags)

4. ~1/8 tsp banana extract

5. 1 thinly sliced banana

6. 1/4 tsp cinnamon

Directions:

Banana Chai Macaron Shells

Steps:

Step 1

I start off by measuring out all of my ingredients prior to proceeding with any further steps, once you start the process it's usually for the best to keep going and not stop intermittently.

Step 2

Mix the almond flour, powdered sugar, powdered egg whites, and color powder together in a bowl

Step 3

Combine the water with the granulated sugar in a saucepan

Step 4

Separate your egg whites into half (45g) portion sections

Step 5

Add one section of the egg whites into the sifted almond flour and powdered sugar and mix until it forms a thick paste, cover the bowl this mixture is in with a towel or plastic wrap while you work on the meringue

Step 6

Pour the other section of egg whites and cream of tartar into the bowl for your stand mixer and start whisking the egg white together on a medium-high speed (i.e. ~7-8 on a kitchenaid).

Step 7

Once the eggs start to get foamy, start heating your saucepan with the sugar and water mixture until your syrup reaches ~118C (240F)

Step 8

Once your syrup reaches 118C (240F) and your egg whites have been whisked to soft peaks, bump up the kitchen aid to 9 and slowly pour the syrup into the egg whites.

Step 9

Continue whisking the egg whites until the merengue your mixing bowl becomes cool to the touch (~85C, ~5-7 minutes), doesn't need to be stiff peaks

Step 10

Take a spoon or spatula of your merengue and add it to your almond paste mixture, then mix until well combined

Step 11

Add the rest of your merengue and start the macaronage process, I'd recommend looking at some videos for this step. Basically you want to mix the batter by scooping the batter along the walls of the bowl and bring it in to the batter at the center of the bowl in a sweeping motion. You will be done with this step once your batter is roughly the consistency of running lava.

Step 12

Once your batter is the correct consistency, transfer into a piping bag fitted with Wilton 2A piping tip (or a different one depending on what you prefer)

Step 13

Place your parchment paper/teflon sheet/silicon mat on a metal baking sheet, and then start to pipe out your macarons by piping the batter while holding the piping bag such that it's perpendicular to your sheet.

Step 14

Once you've finished piping the macarons, tap the baking sheet on the edges of a table or floor to induce air bubbles trapped in the piped macarons to rise to the surface. Pop those with a toothpick if necessary

Step 15

Preheat your oven to 310-315 F* and wait for your macarons to become dry to the touch (i.e. the batter should not stick to your finger if you touch them, usually takes around 30 min-1 hour depending on the environment).

Step 16

Put your macarons in the oven and give them ~15-30 minutes to bake, it's dependent upon both your oven and also a check to see if they're done is to try and jiggle the top of one of the macarons to the sides gently, if it doesn't move then you should be good to go.

Step 17

Take your macarons out of the oven and let them cool before removing them from your mat.

Banana Chai Ganache

Steps:

Step 1

The night prior to making the ganache, place chai tea and heavy crema into container and leave overnight.

Step 2

Finely chop white chocolate and put in a large (ideally glass) container or bowl

Step 3

Place heavy cream and chai tea mixture into saucepan and heat until 82C. The mixture should be brown in coloration.

Step 4

Pour heated cream through strainer over chopped chocolate, then let sit 7-10 minutes.

Step 5

Immersion blend chocolate and cream until completely incorporated.

Step 6

Put cinnamon, a 2-3 thin slices of banana, and banana extract into the ganache and immersion blend until smooth.

Step 8

Taste ganache and continue to add small amounts of banana extract and cinnamon until desired flavor is met.

Step 7

Cover ganache and place in fridge for 3+ hours or until it has set.

Assembly

Steps:

Step 1

Take ganache out of fridge and let warm at room temperature for 30 minutes

Step 2

Place ganache into piping bag fitted with 2A tip

Step 3

To assemble macarons, pipe dollop of ganache onto bottom macaron shell, then press the two shells together to form completed macaron

Step 4

Place completed macarons into fridge and leave overnight to mature