If you like macarons, you should try this lemon macaron cake, that is simply one giant macaron that will make all the people who taste it say WOW.
Two yellow macaron bases filled with lemon cream and white chocolate, coconut and vanilla cream – altogether makes a unique and beautiful cake. Lemon and coconut lovers – this is for you!
Lemon Macaron Cake with Coconut and Vanilla
For yellow macaron shell base:
- 200 grams sugar powder
- 130 grams almond meal
- 100 grams egg whites
- Pinch of salt
- 40 grams sugar
- Yellow food coloring (gel or powder)
For lemon cream:
- 3 grams gelatin powder
- 15 ml. water
- 1 large egg
- 2 egg yolks
- 70 grams sugar
- Pinch of salt
- 85 ml. lemon juice
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 75 grams soft butter
White chocolate, coconut and vanilla Chantilly cream:
- 100 grams white chocolate
- 250 ml. heavy cream
- grains from 1/2 vanilla bean
- Pinch of salt
- 1 tsp. coconut extract
- 2 tsp. cream stabilizer of instant vanilla pudding mix
Decoration:
- White chocolate discs
- Grated lemon rind
- Shredded coconut
- Little gold powder (optional)
Macarons base:
- Grind icing sugar and almond meal together.
- Sift the mixture into a large bowl. It is important to sift carefully and not to leave large blocks of the mixture. If little chunks of almonds remain – do not put them into the mix.
- Put egg whites and salt in the bowl of a mixer with a whipping-hook and blend at high speed until the mixture foams and white meringue begins to form.
- Add sugar and continue beating until a glossy and thick meringue forms. Towards the end of whipping, add the food coloring.
- Add ground powders to the bowl of meringue and begin to “knock down” the mixture by folding in with a spatula. In the first moments stir slightly aggressively, and then go into a gentle fold until the mixture is uniform and stable, but not liquefied.
- Transfer the mixture to a piping bag with a round piping tip and pipe out two 24 cm diameter circles on a baking sheet or silicon mat. The circles should be more or less identical in size.
- Leave the macarons for an hour at room temperature (before baking) in order to dry a little and create a thin layer.
- Preheat oven to 150c degrees.
- Bake macarons for 18-20 minutes, until golden and risen.
- Cool completely before touching the macarons. It can be separated from the sheet once completely cooled.
Lemon Cream:
- In a small bowl put gelatin and water and set aside for 15 minutes at room temperature, until the gelatin absorbs all the liquid.
- In a medium saucepan put egg, egg yolks, sugar, salt, lemon juice and grated zest and beat well.
- Place the pot over medium heat and cook while whisking all the time, until you get a thick cream.
- Remove from heat and add the gelatin. Beat the mixture until it melts.
- Strain and add butter. Beat the mixture until dissolved and creamy smooth.
- Transfer the cream in a closed container and refrigerate for two hours or until it is completely cold and set.
- Transfer the cream into a bowl and stir vigorously until pliable texture form.
- Transfer to a piping bag with a round 2 cm piping tip. Refrigerate.
White chocolate, coconut and vanilla Chantilly cream:
- Chop the chocolate and put in a bowl.
- Heat a pot of cream, vanilla and salt to a simmer.
- Pour the hot cream over the chocolate, wait a minute, and beat well to a uniform and thin ganache.
- Add coconut extract and mix well.
- Cool the ganache for 3-4 hours at least until it is completely cold.
- Transfer the ganache into a bowl of a mixer with whipping attachment, add stabilizer and whip at high speed, until you get a stable cream.
- Transfer the cream into a piping bag fitted with jagged 2 cm piping tip.
Assemble the lemon macaron cake:
- Flip one of the macarons over so that its bottom is facing upwards. Pipe mounds of Chantilly on the outline of the macaron.
- Pipe crowded mounds of lemon cream in the center.
- Close off with the top macaron base.
- Decorate with remaining creams, white chocolate discs, grated coconut and grated lemon peel. If you wish, you can sprinkle a little gold dust.
- Keep the cake in a sealed container for up to 3 days.
- Decorations should be added when serving.
- Coconut extract can achieve in baking specialty stores for products and materials.