Recipe from Macaron - ingredienti, tecniche, ricette by José Maréchal Photography: Frédéric Lucano                     Preparation time : 15 minutes Croûtage: 30 minutes Cooking time: 15 minutes Oven temperature: 180° C   Yield: approx 45 macarons Ingredients: 250 g ground almonds 320 g powdered sugar 4 egg whites 3 drops vanilla extract 1. Pulse the ground almonds with the powdered sugar to blend thoroughly and add the vanilla extract. Incorporate the beaten egg whites (they should be firm, but not stiff): the batter should be dense and homogenous. 2. Line baking sheets with parchment. Transfer the batter to a pastry bag fitted with an 8 mm smooth tip. Pipe 2 cm discs at least 5 cm apart on to the baking sheets. Tap the base of each sheet lightly with the heel of your hand then allow the extruded batter to rest at room temperature for 30 minutes. 3. Preheat the oven to 180° C. 4. Transfer the baking sheets to the oven and immediately lower the temperature to 150° C. Bake for 15 minutes. The macarons should have a light golden color. 5. Carefully transfer the sheets of parchment containing the macarons to a damp work surface in order to interrupt the cooking process. With a metal spatula, carefully remove the macarons and transfer to a cooling rack. NOTE Nancy macarons may be stored for a few days in a hermetically sealed container.