MACARON-POM GELÉE SPRITZERS

INGREDIENTS

FOR MACARONS 

3 egg whites

1/4 cup white sugar

1 2/3 cups confectioners' sugar

1 cup finely ground almonds

DIRECTIONS

Line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat.

Beat egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment until whites are foamy; beat in white sugar and continue beating until egg whites are glossy, fluffy, and hold soft peaks.

Sift confectioners' sugar and ground almonds in a separate bowl and quickly fold the almond mixture into the egg whites, about 30 strokes.

Spoon a small amount of batter into a plastic bag with a small corner cut off and pipe a test disk of batter, about 1 1/2 inches in diameter, onto prepared baking sheet.

If the disk of batter holds a peak instead of flattening immediately, gently fold the batter a few more times and retest.

When batter is mixed enough to flatten immediately into an even disk, spoon into a pastry bag fitted with a plain round tip.

Pipe the batter onto the baking sheet in rounds, leaving space between the disks. Let the piped cookies stand out at room temperature until they form a hard skin on top, about 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 285 degrees F (140 degrees C).

Bake cookies until set but not browned, about 10 minutes; let cookies cool completely before filling.

INGREDIENTS
3 packages (.25 oz. each) powdered gelatin

1 1/2 cups/375 ml pomegranate juice

1 1/2 cups/355 ml sparkling white wine (or sparkling grape juice)

1/3 cup/ 67g granulated sugar

2 dozen vanilla macarons

2 cups/500ml heavy cream, whipped to soft peaks

Pomegranate arils for garnish.

DIRECTIONS

For the pomegranate jelly, place the powdered gelatin and 1/2 cup pomegranate juice in a small bowl; mix well.

Let stand until the gelatin is completely absorbed.

Place the remaining pomegranate juice and wine in a saucepan over medium-high  heat.

Add the granulated sugar and stir until dissolved. Bring the mixture to a boil  and cook for 1 minute.

Remove the pan from the heat source and add the gelatin mixture.

Stir well until dissolved.

Pour liquid jelly into stemware glasses until halfway full.

Place glasses on a tray and transfer to the refrigerator for 2 hours or until liquid is well jelled.

When jelly is set, arrange the macarons on top of the jelly in the glasses; 1-3 cookies per glass depending on its capacity.

Fill each glass with the soft-peak whipped cream.

Garnish with pomegranate arils and additional macarons.