Princess Carriage Macaron Carousel

I had a request for carriage themed macaron carousel for a wedding. Here's my attempt at making something more elegant and less cutesy :)

Loose pieces of unicorns and carriages were also requested.

I used the reduced sugar recipe for the macaron shells here. Both regular and reduced sugar recipes can be found here. You may refer to my Creative Baking: Macarons book for a systematic presentation of the basics and complex shaped macarons. You may refer to my video tutorials for macaron basics and piping of complex shapes on the blog too.

I decorated the macaron shells using royal icing.

Dark and white chocolate filling was requested so I filled the middle with dark chocolate ganache and the outer layer with white chocolate. In my earlier days of making macaron carousels, I was very concerned about structural stability in Singapore's hot weather so I didn't dare to use regular ganache for the filling, but instead use chocolate with vegetable shortening as the filling. Now that I have more experience, I use two types of fillings for carousels. A yummier, softer filling for the middle, and a more aesthetic looking and firmer filling for the outer ring. Not sure why it took me so long to figure it out from an engineering standpoint 😅. The white chocolate filling doesn't contain heavy cream but instead uses vegetable shortening as the base. I added a little lemon juice to make the white chocolate taste less sweet.

Here's the recipe for the white chocolate filling.

White chocolate filling
Ingredients:
100g white compound chocolate
25g vegetable shortening
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract/ bean paste
1 tsp lemon juice

Steps:
1. Place white chocolate and vegetable shortening in a microwave safe bowl. Heat for 10-20 sec at medium power. Stir to mix well. Repeat until melted and smooth.

2. Add salt and mix well. Add vanilla gradually and mix well. Add lemon juice gradually and mix well. Don't add the liquids all at once or the chocolate mixture may seize.

3. Let the mixture sit at room temperature to firm up a little until toothpaste consistency. Transfer to piping bag to fill the shells.

This is how I fill the central pillar of the macaron carousel. Center filled with dark chocolate ganache and outer ring with white chocolate 

I am finally investing in some pretty boxes for macaron carousels. Many thanks to a friend for helping me to order some!

With love,
Phay Shing