If you love all things pastry and macarons, you may have heard of the legendary pastry chef Pierre Hermé. Ispahan is undoubtedly one of my favorite flavor combinations, and Pierre Hermé’s Ispahan signature combination uses rose, lychee, and raspberries.
This recipe was inspired by Pierre Hermé’s Ispahan macaron cake. It’s not actually a cake in the traditional sense, but rather one large macaron. I watched this video to help with the technique. If you’ve already mastered normal-sized macarons, try making one big macaron! For the most part, the macaron cake uses the same tips and tricks as a regular macaron. But keep in mind that handling one big macaron shell is more prone to breaking, so handle with care!
This is definitely a crowd-pleaser, especially those who like all things sweet. Be warned, this cake is essentially made of many many standard-sized macarons, so a slice may give a huge sugar rush. Eat at your own risk!
Tips & Tricks:
- Make sure you are comfortable with making regular-sized macarons before attempting this recipe!
- Large macaron shells will take a much longer time to dry than regular macarons due to the surface area. Be patient, and don’t bake it until the shell has formed a “skin”, and is not sticky to the touch.
- Monitor the oven very closely to make sure the shells do not bake too quickly and burn. Everyone’s oven specifications are different, so this will rely on a fair bit of intuition and practice with macarons as well.
Ispahan Macaron Cake
Ingredients
Macaron Shells
- 125 g powdered sugar
- 125 g almond flour
- 3 egg whites room temp
- 30 ml water
- 125 g superfine sugar
- gel food coloring pink or red
Rose Petal Cream
- 1/2 cup softened butter
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1/2 cup heavy cream or 1/4 cup whole milk
- 1/4 tsp rosewater essence
- lychees dried and chopped
- fresh raspberries
- rose petals optional
Instructions
Macaron Shells
- Sift confectioners sugar with ground almonds. Mix a few drops of food coloring with 1 egg white. Pour into sugar/almond mixture and mix.
- Boil sugar and water to 245°F / 118°C. When syrup reaches 230°F /110°C, begin to whisk the other 2 egg whites with a stand mixer. Drizzle syrup slowly onto egg whites to form soft peaks, before folding it into the sugar/almond mixture.
- Pour mixture into pastry bag with about 1cm diameter opening. Pipe spirals to make 8in (20cm) diameter circles on baking tray with Silpat mat or parchment paper. Rest circles for 30min at room temperature until the shells form a skin that doesn’t stick to your finger when lightly touched.
- Preheat oven to 325°F / 162°C – this will vary, so watch your macarons closely during this step!
- Bake for around 15 minutes. During baking, quickly open and close the oven door twice.
Rosewater buttercream
- Combine all ingredients in stand mixer and mix until it becomes fluffy able to hold its shape (eg not too watery). If it is too watery, add more powdered sugar. If it’s too thick, add more cream/milk.
Assembly
- Choose the shell you want on the bottom of the cake, and carefully flip it over. In a spiral motion from the center, pipe the buttercream until there is about 1cm distance to the edge.
- Add raspberries to the entire diameter of the shell. Don’t leave huge gaps to prevent the buttercream from leaking out. With any leftover raspberries, add to the center of the shell onto the buttercream. This should provide a base for the top shell
- Add lychees evenly over the buttercream
- Pipe more buttercream over the layer of lychees and raspberries to form a glue for the top shell
- Carefully place the top shell over and add raspberry and rose petal garnishes to the top.
- Cover and store in the fridge for 24 hours until consumption