Skip To Content
JEWISH. INDEPENDENT. NONPROFIT.
News

Yid.Dish: Sarah Bernhardts

Sarah Bernhardts

(About 24 cookies)

These elegant macaroons were named after the French actress.

Macaroons:

8 ounces (3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons) almond paste

1 cup sugar

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon almond extract

1/3 cup (about 3) egg whites, lightly beaten

36 whole almonds (optional)

Ganache:

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

12 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped or grated

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Glaze:

6 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons water

1 tablespoon light corn syrup

1/2 tablespoon butter or margarine

2 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped

2 tablespoons sliced almonds or chopped pistachio nuts

1) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or lightly grease the baking sheet.

2) To make the macaroons: Using your hands, work together the almond paste, sugar, and salt until well blended. Add the almond extract. Gradually beat in the egg whites to make a soft, dropable dough with the consistency of cooked oatmeal.

3) Place the almond paste mixture into a pastry bag fitted with a 3/8-inch or 5/8-inch plain tip and pipe onto the prepared baking sheet into 1 1/4-inch rounds about 1/2-inch high.

4) Bake until the macaroons begin to color, about 13 minutes. Let stand until the parchment can easily be pulled off cookies, about 2 minutes, then transfer to a rack and let cool completely.

5) To make the ganache: In a small heavy saucepan over medium heat, bring the cream to a low boil (no more than 118 degrees at which point the cocoa butter will separate from the chocolate), stirring occasionally. Place the chocolate in a medium bowl, pour the cream over top, and let stand for 30 seconds. Stir until melted and smooth. Stir in the vanilla.

6) Pour into a medium bowl and refrigerate, stirring occasionally, until of spreading consistency, about 2 hours. (Ganache may be refrigerated for up to 1 week. Let stand at room temperature to soften until of spreading consistency, 30 to 45 minutes).

7) Beat the ganache until light and fluffy. Using a pastry bag fitted with a 5/8-inch plain or star tip, pipe about 2 tablespoons of the ganache on top of each cookie. Refrigerate until firm, at least 30 minutes.

8) To make the glaze: Stir the sugar, water, corn syrup, and butter or margarine over a medium-low heat until the sugar dissolves. Increase the heat to medium-high and bring to a boil. Stop stirring and boil for 1 minute. Remove from the heat, add the chocolate, and stir until smooth. Let stand until the glaze begins to firm.

9) Place the cookies on a rack set in a baking sheet and spoon the chocolate glaze over the tops, allowing the excess to drip off (the excess can be melted and reused). Arrange several almond slices or pistachios over top. Store in the refrigerator.

A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.

If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

With your support, we’ll be ready for whatever 2025 brings.

Republish This Story

Please read before republishing

We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free, unless it originated with JTA, Haaretz or another publication (as indicated on the article) and as long as you follow our guidelines. You must credit the Forward, retain our pixel and preserve our canonical link in Google search.  See our full guidelines for more information, and this guide for detail about canonical URLs.

To republish, copy the HTML by clicking on the yellow button to the right; it includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to the Forward. It does not include images; to avoid copyright violations, you must add them manually, following our guidelines. Please email us at [email protected], subject line “republish,” with any questions or to let us know what stories you’re picking up.

We don't support Internet Explorer

Please use Chrome, Safari, Firefox, or Edge to view this site.