Singles, where do you mingle?/-/ Beer nut macarons with light ale butter cream.

With all the talk of Valentine ’s Day and the glory of being in relationship, the single sout there can often feel left out. So this is my post aimed at you singletons, yep the souls who will not have someone to spend the 14th with. I am one of you millions, I do not have a valentine and I am quite content to remain single for a while yet. This valentine’s day I am spending it watching big bang theory, over some good sweets and in comfortable daggy clothes. I am loving up the person closest to me, which is me!



Though not everyone is like me and is happy single, I would like to ask where do you go to meet other singles?

Parties, pubs, clubs, libraries, Gyms?

I have recently read an article on the best and worst places to meet people. I took this article with a grain of salt because it came from one of those women aimed magazines but it got me thinking do like personalities converse in the same places?






For example, the first rule is do not go to meet people in club setting because you will not meet someone stable or “relationship material”. Wow really? *sarcasm*

If I am going to club, I am not looking for my future husband; I am looking for good time.

“Be wary of the gym goers as they can self centred”. This really got me, because the reason they are self-centred is that the gym is me improvement time not meeting others time. I actually find it annoying if someone talks to me at the gym.





While this article did give some generalised knowledge about where to meet people; I believe it forced people into categories of good and bad. Now we all know people are not that simple and relationships do not just magically work base on where you meet them. Many people seem to forget that persistence and communication make relationships work, this coming from someone who has seen her older sister’s trails in their relationships (both married now by the way, and both very very happy)

Now for these macarons. I know, I know another one but like a good relationship you need to pay some attention to it or else you lose the skill.

I took some inspiration from the article, apparently the pub is 5th best place to meet someone. Higher than I expected but maybe it is because of the laid back nature of the place. So when you go to a pub what do you have? Beer snacks of course! My favourite would have to be the salted or honey peanut and cashews in the little foil packages. I matched these up with the most common brew served here in Australia, which is light ale. The creamy smoothness of beer butter cream, contrast with the crunch of the honey and salted cashew mix with surrounds the outside. In the shells is not the typical almond mixer but I have replaced some of the mixture with ground cashews (ground it a dust and dried) in order to match the same texture of almond meal.

All these produce a wonderful bite sized treat and makes the pub snack look elegant (I can use all the help I can get frankly).

Singletons do not be caught up in the places to mingle. If you are not up for meet someone on 14th, show some self-love with a sweet treat and good drinks. You know you are worth it




Beer nut macarons with light ale butter cream.
Adpted from tartlette's recipes for macarons.

95 gr egg whites (use eggs whites that have been preferably left 3-5 days in the fridge)
25 gr granulated sugar
200 gr powdered sugar
60 gr almonds (slivered, blanched, sliced, whatever you like)

60g ground cashews

Prepare the macarons:
In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the egg whites to a foam, (think bubble bath foam) gradually add the sugar until you obtain a glossy meringue (think shaving cream). Do not overbeat your meringue or it will be too dry. Place the powdered sugar, cashews and almonds in a food processor and give them a good pulse until the nuts are finely ground. Add them to the meringue, give it a quick fold to break some of the air and then fold the mass carefully until you obtain a batter that falls back on itself after counting to 10. Give quick strokes at first to break the mass and slow down. The whole process should not take more than 50 strokes. Test a small amount on a plate: if the tops flattens on its own you are good to go. If there is a small beak, give the batter a couple of turns.
Fill a pastry bag fitted with a plain tip (Ateco #807 or #809) with the batter and pipe small rounds (1.5 inches in diameter) onto parchment paper or silicone mats lined baking sheets. Let the macarons sit out for 30 minutes to an hour to harden their shells a bit. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 280F. When ready, bake for 15 to 20 minutes, depending on their size. Let cool. If you have trouble removing the shells, pour a couple of drops of water under the parchment paper while the sheet is still a bit warm and the macarons will lift up more easily do to the moisture. Don't let them sit there in it too long or they will become soggy. Once baked and if you are not using them right away, store them in an airtight container out of the fridge for a couple of days or in the freezer.



Ale butter cream

70g egg whites

70g raw caster sugar

1/2tsp salt

100g icing suagr

1 vanilla bean

150ml of ale reductions (take 300ml of ale and reduce it over low heat until thick and syrupy

310g butter



Place sugar and eggwhite in a bowl over simmering water. Stir constantly until it comes to 50c or the sugar is dissolved.

In stand mixer with the whick attackment. Pur egg white mixture in bowl and beat until firm peaks.

Add salt and vanilla. Beat again.

Change the attachment to the paddle. Slowly add butter in cubes of about 2cm.

Once it becomes a fluffy mass, add the ale reduction in a thin stream. Beat until fluffy again. Place aside until ready to use



Assembly 

Sandwich one shell with a 1.5 teaspoon of butter cream. After coat cream crushed salted beer cashews and honey cashews.