This wonderfully decadent recipe comes from the National Chocolate Contest held at the House of Switzerland during the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics. One of the top three mentions was Julie Blanchard St-Jacques’ recipe for “L’Ephemeres Chocolate aux Poires”. It is essentially a chocolate macaron with a rich dark chocolate ganache and roasted pear filling.
Despite sounding quite intimidating, this recipe is actually quite simple to make and the results are amazing! I have included a number of extra steps and comments throughout as the original recipe was intended for a chef’s use.
Bon appetit!!
Summary
For the Chocolate Macaron Shells:
Preparation Time: 45 min
Wait Time: 30 min
Cook Time: 20 min
For the Dark Chocolate Ganache:
Preparation Time: 5 min
Wait Time: 5 min
Cook Time: 5 min
For the Roasted Pear Filling:
Preparation Time: 15 min
Cook Time: 10 min
Servings: 15 macarons
Meal type: Dessert
Recipe Rating: 
Ingredients for Chocolate Macaron Shells
- 100 g Egg Whites
- 40 g Granulated Sugar
- 120g Almond Flour
- 200 g Icing Sugar
- 20g Cocoa Powder, 90% Lindt
Since I did not have Lindt Cocoa Powder, I used Fry’s cocoa powder, which is always available in your local grocery store.
Ingredients for Dark Chocolate Ganache
- 200g Dark Couverture Chocolate or 70% Lindt Dark Chocolate
I used Dark Couverture Chocolate (Lindt) for my ganache - 100g Whipping Cream (35%)
- 3-4 drops of Vanilla Extract
Approximately 1 tbsp - 60 g Unsalted Butter
It is easiest when your butter is at room temperature
Ingredients for Roasted Pear Filling
- 200g Pears (peeled, cored, and cubed)
I used an almost ripe Bosc pear for this as I really like how the flavour develops as it ripens. I then cut the pear into very tiny pieces since this will need to be sandwiched between your macaron shells. My pear was originally about 250g, so it worked out perfectly that I only needed to use 1 pear after peeling and coring it. - 25g Unsalted Butter
- 50g Granulated Sugar
- 1tsp corn starch (optional)
Corn starch was not part of the original recipe. However, I found the pear mixture to be quite liquid after cooking it down, so I added some corn starch to allow it to thicken. This resulted in a consistency similar to a chutney, which was perfect for filling the macarons with.
Instructions for Chocolate Macaron Shells
1. With your whisk attachment, beat your egg whites with a little bit of granulated sugar.
2. Add the remaining sugar slowly as your egg whites are beating.
Your egg whites should triple in volume. Once it creates stiff peaks (but not too stiff), your egg whites are ready. This process takes about 5-6 minutes.
3. While your egg whites are beating, sift together the almond flour, icing sugar, and cocoa powder in a separate bowl.
4. Once your egg whites have reached the stiff peak stage, add the dry ingredients to the mixture. I like to sift the dry ingredients again at this point.
5. Using a rubber spatula, fold the egg whites and dry ingredients together until it is homogeneous.
6. Since the original recipe was meant for Valentine’s Day, it recommends shaping your macaron shells into heart shapes. I prefer the traditional look of a macaron, so I stuck with the round shape. In order to achieve uniform shells, I drew circles with a pencil on the back side of a sheet of parchment paper cut to the size of my baking sheet. Line your baking sheet with this sheet of parchment paper, pencil side down.
7. Using a large round pastry tip, fill a pastry bag with the macaron batter.
8. Pipe the batter onto the parchment, using your circles as a guide.
9. Allow your macaron circles to rest in the open air for 20 minutes (I left it out for 30 minutes). During this time, you can preheat your oven to 320F.
10. Before baking, place another baking sheet (of the same size) underneath so that it is double lined.
11. Bake for 20 minutes.
12. Once the macarons have cooled, carefully unstick them from the parchment paper.
Instructions for Dark Chocolate Ganache
1. Chop the chocolate and place into a heat safe bowl.
2. In a small saucepan, bring the cream and vanilla to a boil.
Stir occasionally, and keep a watchful eye on your cream so that it doesn’t boil over.
3. Pour the boiling cream over the chocolate. Ensure the chocolate is submersed in the cream. Allow to sit for approximately 5 minutes.
4. Mix the melted chocolate and cream together until it becomes homogeneous.
5. Soften the butter and add it to the ganache. Mix until fully combined.
The addition of butter adds a sheen to the ganache
6. Place your ganache (still in its bowl) into an ice bath. Once cooled, the ganache will be a nice consistency for spreading onto your macaron shells.
Instructions for Roasted Pear Filling
1. In a small saucepan, brown the butter and sugar on medium heat. The mixture will come together and resembles a roux.
2. Add the pears and cook until transparent.
3. At this point, I added the corn starch and brought the mixture to a boil. You will notice the mixture thickening.
4. Allow pear filling to cool. The cooled mixture looks like a thick chutney or jam.
Instructions for Final Assembly
1. For each macaron, you will require 2 macaron shells. On one half, spread a layer of ganache. I used an offset spatula for this.
2. One the other half, spoon some of the roasted pear filling evenly.
3. Put these two halves together, et voila!
Results
These macarons are classy and something different from your everyday dessert. They are beautiful to look at and absolutely divine when you have a taste! The couverture chocolate makes the entire dessert rich and decadent.
I will definitely be making these again!!
Notes on Chocolate
Although the cost of a higher quality chocolate is usually considerably more than the regular chocolate baking bars found in the grocery store, it makes a HUGE difference in the taste of your final product. Something I have learned over the years is that it is very important to bake with a chocolate that I would enjoy eating out of hand.
Couverture chocolate is defined to contain between 32% and 39% cocoa butter. For this particular recipe, the couverture chocolate produces a thicker, firmer ganache.
I also love making hot chocolate with couverture chocolate. It results in a VERY creamy, smooth, and semi-sweet drink.
A Tribute to Chocolate – In the words of the Chef
As a final note, I would like to include a few words from the Chef and creator of this recipe:
“ J’adore le chocolat tout d’abord pour son goût riche, onctueux et puissant. Non seulement le chocolat à lui seul possède un goût remarquable, mais la majorité des recettes agrémentées de cet ingrédient s’en retrouvent décuplées de saveur. En plus d’être d’une saveur exquise, le chocolat est une matière qui permet la créativité tant ses utilités et ses propriétés sont grandes. Que ce soit en pièces montées ou pour de simples éléments de décor, le chocolat doit se travailler avec patience et délicatesse pour donner des résultats surprenants. À mon avis, c’est la noblesse et la complexité de cet ingrédient qui lui donnent tout son charme”
This could not have been more elegantly put, so I will just leave you with that. I hope you all have a chance to try this and to explore the exotic world of chocolate.
