Spiced pumpkin macaron by Ruth Hinks

News

Ruth Hinks, one of the best British pastry chefs, the lady who was the best positioned British chef ever at WCM, created these beauties for Halloween, but they are, without these scary faces, perfect macarons for any autumnal day.

Macaron

300g ground almonds
300g icing sugar
110g egg whites (1)
110g egg whites
300g sugar
80g water
5g mixed spice
2g orange macaron colour powder

Mix the ground almonds, mixed spice, colouring, icing sugar and egg white (1) in a bowl until a paste is formed.
Make an Italian meringue by boiling the sugar and water to 120℃ before pouring slowing over whipping egg whites
Continue to whip for 3 minutes before folding into the ground almond paste
Pipe circles on greaseproof paper before baking in the oven at 150℃ for 8-10 minutes
 

Pumpkin pate de fruit

100g apple juice
340g pumpkin puree
44g caster sugar (1)
8g yellow pectin
60g caster sugar
80g glucose
10g acid
1 vanilla pod

Warm the apple juice, pumpkin puree and scraped seeds from the vanilla pod.
Mix the caster sugar (1) and pectin well before adding into the warm puree.
Add in the glucose and reaming sugar and cook to 107℃
When temperature is reached add acid and pour into a bowl and allow to set
When cool blend with a hand blender until smooth


Zéphyr Caramel spiced Ganache

100g pumpkin puree
10g cocoa butter
20g brown sugar
270g Cacao Barry Zéphyr Caramel chocolate
30g butter
5g mixed spice

Bring the puree, brown sugar and spices to the boil
Pour over the chocolate, butter and cocoa butter
Blend until smooth with the hand blender
Leave to set over night

Construction

Pipe a ring of ganache around the edge of a macaron
Fill the centre with pumpkin pate de fruit
Place another macaron on top
Pipe with dark chocolate a face to look like a carved pumpkin