Blueberry Mascarpone Pistachio Macarons

I had a tub of mascarpone and no idea what to do with it...until a certain genius, the same person who introduced me to macarons, chef 陈彦强，suggested that I make these. Evidently he overestimated me because they look nothing like the inspiration. ;) But...

...I learned several indispensable life lessons from these little guys (which, I should mention, are rather dangerous - I dare you to hover over them for more than 9 seconds without salivating/devouring one).

1. Don't trust Martha Stewart. I thought I trusted this woman...but alas. Her macaron recipe said to start the oven at 375, pop the suckers in, and turn it down to 325 and bake for 10 minutes. I think this is what caused those pesky cracks! Oh Martha, I thought you were the one...

2. Too much food coloring makes a wet batter. Gel colorings are better! I used 5 drops of blue and 8 drops of red...this might be why they took over 1 hour to dry, and falling victim to my impatience, my poor babies didn't develop their pieds.

3. Blueberry coulis, mascarpone, and butter = shut up.

4. It's what's on the inside that counts. These are ugly but yummy. Just like people - a warm, loving heart wins over dashing looks any day. But it doesn't hurt to be gorgeous.

I'm very good at keeping the kitchen clean. This is the tub of mascarpone that was responsible for this madness. Seriously, I think I will blame Costco for selling such big tubs of mascarpone. If it weren't for them, none of this would've happened.

The near empty tub of mascarpone pictured above was left in the wake of the Deadly Duo: the Rubber Spatula and Cream Craver.

The mascarpone filling is deadly. Think nutty, buttery mascarpone, kicked up with a combo of organic salted and unsalted butter, and mixed with a very intensely concentrated blueberry coulis spiked with the tang of a lemon and sweetened with a touch sugar. Ah, this description does not do it justice.

Blueberry Mascarpone Pistachio Macrons

1 batch of macarons, colored purple, sprinkled with pistachios (Huh? You don't have it memorized?)

more ground pistachios

2 cups frozen organic blueberries

1/3 cup sugar

juice of a lemon

Mascarpone, whatever is left in the tub (Based on the fullness of my stomach...exactly 4.235 oz)

7 Tbsp softened butter (3 Tbsp unsalted, 4 Tbsp salted)

1. Put blueberries, sugar, and lemon juice in a sauce pan over high heat. Bring to a boil, lower heat to medium, and simmer for 15 minutes until very thick and syrupy, stirring occasionally.

2. With a rubber spatula, force the berry mixture through a fine sieve and set aside until it is room temp. Taste it if you dare. It should be tart and sweet and intoxicatingly perfect.

3. Mix the mascarpone with the butter until smooth and lump-free. Add the blueberry mixture and mix well with a whisk until very smooth. Refrigerate until slightly cool and firm.

4. Pipe a dollop onto 1/2 of the shells, top with the other shells, and sprinkle with pistachios. If they fall off, that's your problem.