Peppermint Mocha Macarons

In a medium bowl, sift together the almond flour, powdered sugar, and cocoa powder then set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the egg whites on medium speed until foamy. Continue to beat until your whisk begins leaving visible trails in the foamy egg whites.

Once you can see trails, gradually add the granulated sugar, increase the mixer speed, and whip on high until the meringue forms stiff peaks. (Be sure not to over-whip your egg whites otherwise you risk drying them out.)

Remove the bowl from the stand mixer, add the dry ingredients to the meringue, and fold with a rubber spatula from the bottom of the bowl upward then press the flat side of your spatula through the middle against the side of the bowl. (The batter will look very thick at first, but it will get thinner as you fold.) Continue folding until the batter gets to a lava-like consistency.

Transfer the batter into a large pastry bag with a medium-sized round tip.

Holding the piping bag at a 90-degree angle to the surface, pipe out the batter into 1.5-inch rounds about an inch apart on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. (Feel free to print out a macaron template if you’re worried about size/uniformity).

Holding the baking sheet with both hands, carefully bang the sheet firmly on the counter a few times to get rid of any air bubbles. (If you don’t release the air bubbles, they will expand during baking and crack your macaron shells.) Repeat the piping and banging process until you have used up all the batter (usually about three sheet pans’ worth.)

Let the macarons rest and dry for 30 minutes or until a skin has developed; on a humid day, it might take an hour or more. To see if they're ready to be baked, lightly touch one. If the batter doesn’t stick to your finger, then it’s ready. (Don’t forget to remove the macaron templates before baking!)

While the macarons are resting, preheat the oven to 300 degrees F and position the oven rack in the center of the oven with an empty sheet pan preheating inside.

Bake the macarons on top of the preheated sheet pan one tray at a time for 18-20 minutes, rotating the pan once halfway through the cooking process.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the sheet pan for 10 minutes before peeling off the parchment paper and cooling completely on a wire rack. (If the bottoms are a tiny bit sticky, keep them on the tray to cool off for an additional 10-15 minutes. If, however, the bottoms are already brown, they peel off cleanly, or they appear over-baked, then carefully take them off the tray immediately to cool down.) Repeat the baking process with the remaining sheet pans.

Add the dark chocolate and espresso powder to a heatproof bowl. Heat the LACTAID® Lactose-Free Whole Milkand butter up just until the mixture starts to simmer, then pour it over the chocolate and espresso powder. Let the milk and chocolate mixture sit for 3 minutes.

Add the peppermint extract, then whisk the mixture together in one direction until combined and smooth.

Cover the bowl with a piece of plastic wrap pressed on the top of the ganache and place in the refrigerator to let it cool until it firms up, about 1 hour.

In the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, whip the ganache until it’s a light & fluffy frosting consistency.

Transfer the peppermint mocha filling into a pastry bag. Pair each macaron shell with another of a similar size and then fill the macarons, gently sandwiching together.

Drizzle the filled macarons with the melted chocolate and then immediately sprinkle with crushed peppermints, if using. Store the filled macarons in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days and bring back to room temperature before enjoying.