Confession: I am… not a big travel person. I mean, this whole blog is literally called Gemma at Home because of the sheer amount of time I spend not travelling. However, I do think witnessing, experiencing and making an attempt to understand cultures other than your own is incredibly important. While travelling to different countries and immersing yourself in their respective cultures is the most obvious way of doing this, it’s not the only way. I think, sometimes, people look down on the idea of learning about other cultures via less ‘real life’ methods- things like reading books and articles, watching videos or even engaging in certain activities. I know these techniques can’t provide as comprehensive an understanding of a culture as firsthand experience, but that doesn’t mean they are not effective sources in their own right- especially for those who aren’t in a position get that firsthand experience for themselves.

The point of this whole spiel, ultimately, is to introduce a new series on the blog: Baking Around the World. Food is such an intrinsic part of so many cultures- I love hearing about the stories and traditions surrounding food across the globe. In Baking Around the World, I want to explore some new recipes, try some new tasty bakes and learn about the history of each one as I go. I may not be much good at travelling, but I do love to bake. This is my own, more accessible version of experiencing new cultures (and testing out some tasty snacks that I have never tried before!).

Before we begin, let me just throw out a few disclaimers: obviously, I will not be any sort of expert on any of these recipes- I’m just giving them a try. As part of the process, I will be doing lots of research on the recipes- I’ll list the sources I have referenced for the bakes at the end of each post, as well as sharing some of what I have found in my research throughout. While I will be providing the final recipe I end up using in the posts, I am (obviously) not going to be claiming the recipes as my own- just sharing the ingredients/methods I used to make my version of them. Finally, my bakes are unlikely to be super authentic- recipes vary based on region, my research may go awry, I might be limited by the ingredients available to me here in the UK. Please, go easy on me! I’m just a girl who loves sweet snacks.

Right then, let’s get into our first bake, shall we? We’re heading to Sicily for this one…

Table of Contents

• Pizzicotti: Explained
• Pizzicotti Ingredients
• Making Pizzicotti
• Final Thoughts
• Recipe
• Sources Used

Pizzicotti: Explained

In my research, I was surprised to discover that pizzicotti are not actually a flavour of cookie, but a shape. Pizzicotti means ‘little pinches’ in Italian and these cookies are shaped by, quite literally, pinching the dough- hence the name. The cookies themselves are almond cookies, known, in their unshaped form, as pasticcini di mandorla (or mandorle – I’m fairly certain that mandorla is the singular form of ‘almond’, while mandorle is the plural. Which one is grammatically accurate in this context- I am unsure).

I actually stumbled upon some cookies with the same scalloped shape as pizzicotti in a (quite fancy) farm shop recently- you can see them in the photo above. These cookies are labelled as amaretti, though they look more like the pizzicotti/pasticcini di mandorla than the amaretti I have seen. Upon further research, I think pasticcini di mandorla are a Sicilian variation of amaretti– made using sweet (as opposed to bitter) almonds and no apricot kernels. If you have had the amaretti that they sell in stores here in the UK before, these pizzicotti are very different- they are much paler in colour and have a much softer texture.

Pizzicotti Ingredients

To make pizzicotti, you will need the following ingredients:

• Clementine

Pizzicotti are often ‘scented’ with citrus (though you can also use alcohol, vanilla or something else along those lines), so I decided to use clementine zest, like in Giuseppe Dell’Anno (of Bake Off fame)’s recipe (see the end of this post for source references). Honestly, I’m still not sure what makes a clementine different from a satsuma or a tangerine, but I’m pretty sure any of them will work in this recipe. You could even use orange zest, just make sure to only use the zest of about half an orange (clementines/satsumas/tangerines are much smaller!)- otherwise the flavour might overwhelm the almond taste.

• Ground almonds

There is no flour in these cookies, just ground almonds. This means that the cookies have a lovely almond-y flavour and, as a bonus, they’re also gluten-free!

• Caster sugar

Some recipes use icing sugar for their pizzicotti, but the majority seem to use caster sugar. I’ve gone with caster sugar here.

• Egg whites

This recipe doesn’t use the yolks, so you can save them for a different recipe.

• Almond extract

This is just to amp up the almond flavour a little- I’ve actually decreased it slightly from the original recipe because I felt it was fighting a little too much with the clementine flavour, but you can use the original amount (1 teaspoon) if you prefer.

• Honey

I’m not entirely sure what the purpose of the honey is in the recipe, but it seems to be a fairly standard edition across the pizzicotti recipes I’ve found. I’d love to know whether it helps to bind the mixture or adds sweetness/flavour- or maybe even both?

• Icing sugar

This is what gives the pizzicotti their iconic snowball-esque appearance- the balls of dough are rolled in icing sugar before baking, making them all snowy (and extra tasty).

Making Pizzicotti

The traditional method of making pizzicotti involves a bowl, a spoon and good old-fashioned elbow grease. When I first tried these out, I followed Giuseppe Dell’Anno’s recipe, where he uses a food processor instead. I’ve tried both methods now, and I actually prefer the food processor method for a couple of reasons:

• While pizzicotti are by no means taxing to make by hand, energy is not something that I have a lot of. I love recipes that I can make in a stand mixer/food processor, because I can still enjoy making them when I’m feeling particularly tired.
• Processing the sugar and almonds helps to break them down a little, making your pizzicotti a little smoother. I found that the pizzicotti I made by hand were a little grainier, which wasn’t unpleasant, but was noticeable.

Basically, you can make these either way. I do prefer the texture of the pizzicotti made in the food processor, but I also wonder if the grainier texture of the handmade cookies is more authentic? Nevertheless, it’s up to you which method you choose.

Start by preheating your oven to 180°C and lining a baking tray with greaseproof paper. Then, make the dough…

To make the pizzicotti in the food processor, place the clementine zest, ground almonds and caster sugar into the bowl of a food processor. Blitz for a few seconds until well combined.

Add the egg whites, almond extract and honey, then pulse until the dough comes together.

Tip the dough out onto a clean work surface, lightly dusted with icing sugar to help prevent it from sticking, then knead into a smooth ball. The dough will be very sticky- that’s how it should be! The dough is now ready to divide and shape.

If you would like to make the pizzicotti by hand, just put all of the ingredients (bar the icing sugar) into a large bowl.

Mix with a wooden spoon until it starts to come together, then use your hands to knead the dough into a smooth ball. The dough is now ready to divide and shape.

To form the pizzicotti, split the dough into 26 pieces (each piece will be about 25g). Roll each piece of dough between your hands to form a ball.

Sift the icing sugar into a small bowl, then drop the ball in and roll it around until it is completely coated in the sugar. I like to shape all of the balls first, then roll each one in the icing sugar, but you can do them one at a time if you prefer.

Once you have all of your icing sugar-covered balls, you need to pinch them to make them into pizzicotti!

Using your thumb, index finger and third finger, gently pinch each ball- you’re aiming for a kind of rounded triangle shape with a scalloped pattern on top, as in the photos. Don’t worry about it too much though- they’ll taste delicious no matter what!

Once you have shaped all of your pizzicotti, bake them in the preheated oven for about 12 minutes, until they have turned slightly golden and a few cracks have appeared. Let them cool completely on the tray, then serve at room temperature.

The pizzicotti will keep for up to 2 weeks at room temperature, if stored in an airtight container.

Final Thoughts

I am a BIG fan of these cookies. They taste exactly like you would imagine softly baked marzipan tastes, but with an extra hit of clementine flavour, which makes them feel extra Christmassy. I love their snowy-white and powdery coating, as well as their scalloped shape. They’re also incredibly easy to make, which is perfect for this busy time of year! I think these might just be a new favourite cookie recipe for me- I just know I’ll be making them again and again and again.

I hope you’ve enjoyed the first post in my Baking Around The World series and Day 7 of Blogmas At Home! I have a few more recipes lined up, so keep an eye out for those. I’ll see you tomorrow for Day 8!

Gemma

xxx

Recipe

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Pizzicotti

These Sicilian almond cookies, called Pizzicotti ('little pinches') for their indented shape, are flavoured with clementine zest and rolled in icing sugar before baking.

Course Snack

Cuisine Italian

Keyword almond, clementine, Cookie, pizzicotti

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 12 minutes minutes

Total Time 32 minutes minutes

Servings 26 cookies

Ingredients

• zest of 1 unwaxed clementine (see Note 1).
• 250 g ground almonds
• 200 g caster sugar
• 2 egg whites
• 1/2 tsp almond extract
• 2 tsp honey
• 40 g icing sugar, sifted, plus extra for dusting.

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 180°C. Line a baking tray with greaseproof paper, then place the sifted icing sugar into a small bowl, ready for coating the pizzicotti. Set both aside for later.
• Place the clementine zest, ground almonds and caster sugar into the bowl of a food processor. Pulse a few times to combine the ingredients and break down the sugar and almonds a little.
• Add the egg whites, almond extract and honey to the food processor, then pulse until the mixture starts to come together into a sticky dough. Remove the dough from the food processor and transfer to a clean work surface, lightly dusted with icing sugar, then knead gently with your hands until it forms a smooth ball. You can shape and bake the pizzicotti immediately, or you can wrap the dough in cling film at this stage and store in the fridge for up to 2 days.
• To shape the pizzicotti, take a small amount of the dough (about 25g) and roll it between your hands to make a ball. Drop the ball into the bowl of icing sugar, then roll it around until it is completely coated. Place the pizzicotti onto the baking tray, then use your thumb, index and middle fingers to gently pinch the ball and give the cookie its characteristic shape. Repeat this process with the remaining dough, spacing them out slightly on the tray (they don't spread hugely, but do give them a little room to grow- if in doubt, use a second tray).
• Bake the pizzicotti in the preheated oven for 12-14 minutes, until the cookies (underneath all of the icing sugar!) have turned golden and are slightly cracked. Let them cool completely before removing them from the tray and serving. Stored in an airtight container at room temperature, the pizzicotti will keep for up to two weeks.

Notes

1. I used clementine zest to make these pizzicotti extra Christmassy, but you could use lemon or orange zest to flavour your pizzicotti, or even omit the extra flavouring, if you prefer.

Recipe adapted from ‘Clementine and almond cookies’ by Giuseppe Dell’Anno, from Olive Magazine (Christmas 2023, p.42).

Sources Used

Giuseppe Dell’Anno‘s ‘Clementine and almond cookies’ for Olive Magazine, ‘Christmas 2023’, p.42.

Cooking with Manuela: Italian Almond Cookies

Italian Recipe Book: Italian Almond Cookies

Italy Magazine: Pasticcini di Mandorla

Marisa’s Italian Kitchen: Pasticcini di Mandorle

Rachel Eats: Pasticcini di Mandorle

Quatro Fromaggio and Other Disgraces on the Menu: Amaretti and Amaretto

Let’s start by talking about what macarons are, because there is often a lot of confusion on the topic! This post is all about macarons, not macaroons. The extra ‘o’ makes a big difference- a macaron is an almond sandwich cookie, that is, 2 macaron ‘shells’ sandwiched together with some sort of filling (ganache, buttercream, cream etc.), while a macaroon is a single cookie flavoured with coconut. Macarons have smooth tops and little raised ‘feet’, while macaroons are much more uneven in texture because of the added coconut and don’t have feet at all.

Just to further complicate matters, there are multiple different types of macaron. The most common are French macarons and Italian macarons. I swear by Italian macarons- they require a few more steps, but I find that I am able to achieve successful shells much more easily (in fact, I am yet to make a successful batch of French macarons…). There are 2 main differences to the two types. Firstly, French macarons are made with French meringue, that is, dry sugar is added to egg whites and whipped to stiff peaks, while Italian macarons are made, shockingly enough, with Italian meringue, which uses a sugar syrup instead of dry sugar. Secondly, with French macarons, the almonds and icing sugar are added dry to the meringue, while, with Italian macarons, the almonds and icing sugar are mixed with half of the egg white to form a paste, which I think makes it easier to incorporate the almonds and sugar smoothly into the meringue. That’s about it! As I said, I am yet to have any success making French macarons (and, believe me, that is not for lack of trying), so this recipe is for Italian macarons.

Right, now that we’ve got the basics covered, we can look at how to achieve perfect macarons at home, every time. I learnt how to make macarons from this video, from the Cupcake Jemma YouTube channel (which is also, incidentally, why this recipe uses a fan oven- this is standard for all of the recipes on that channel). It’s a really helpful video, so definitely check it out if you’re new to macaron-making. I have scaled the original recipe down because I found the full-sized batch a little overwhelming- it was much more difficult for me to produce successful macarons when I made the full amount in one go. Using the half-batch that I give the measurements for here, I have more control over my macaronage and all of the batter fits into a standard piping bag, so I don’t have to refill part way through the piping process. The amounts given in this post will give 14-16 macarons, each about 4cm in diameter.

Tips and Tricks for Perfect Macarons:

• Use a stand mixer with a metal bowl to whip the egg whites. A metal bowl will help your whites whip up to their full potential, but it will also conduct heat, unlike a glass or ceramic bowl. Because you’ll be using the temperature of the bowl to identify when the meringue is ready, a metal bowl is preferable.
• Make sure both your bowl and the whisk attachment for your mixer are completely clean. Any traces of fat/residue will prevent your egg whites from whipping up. Wipe out both the whisk attachment and the bowl with some white wine vinegar to ensure there are no traces of grease.
• Use a digital scale. Macarons require very specific measurements of ingredients- mechanical scales are not accurate enough for them!
• Weigh your egg whites. All baking is sensitive to ratios, but macarons are especially so. This recipe calls for 72g of egg whites, separated into two equal portions of 36g each. I find that this is about 2 eggs’ worth- if you measure the white as you separate the egg, using a bowl set on a digital scale, you can measure it exactly. If you get a bit too much, I find it easiest to use a fork to remove a little white at a time.
• Sieve, blitz, sieve, blitz, sieve. I know this feels very extra- it is, but macarons are a very extra cookie. The finer you can get your dry ingredients (i.e. the ground almonds and icing sugar), the smoother the tops of your macaron shells and the more professional they will look! Large pieces of almond/icing sugar will also interfere with your macaronage process, which will affect the success of your shells. However, don’t be tempted to process the dry ingredients too much- the almonds will start to release their oils if processed for too long, which will ruin your macarons. I find 2 sets of 10 pulses is the perfect amount.
• Use a metal utensil to mix the dry ingredients with the egg white. This paste gets thick– a rubber spatula won’t have enough strength! The sharp edge of a metal spoon will also help you to ensure the mixture is fully combined.
• If you plan to colour your macarons, add more food colouring than you think you need. For the most even colour, it’s best to add the food colouring to the almond/sugar/egg white paste. Make this a much deeper colour than you are aiming for, because it will become severely lighter once you have incorporated the pale meringue mixture, and lighter still (on the exterior of the shells, at least) as the macarons bake in the oven.
• Use an accurate (digital) sugar thermometer. You need to bring the sugar syrup up to 118°C, which is a very specific (but very necessary!) value- having to eyeball this will make your job so much harder and the success of your macarons so much less certain.
• Start whipping the remaining egg whites when the sugar syrup reaches about 114°C. This will give the whites just enough time to foam up before the sugar syrup reaches the correct temperature.
• Pour the sugar syrup into the egg whites down the side of the bowl, with the mixer on. If you pour too close to the whisk, you’ll end up with spun sugar all around your bowl! Pour in a single, steady stream in one spot- you’ll lose a little sugar as it sets on the side of the bowl, but there will be much less wastage than with the alternative.
• Whip the meringue on full speed until the bowl is no longer hot. The best way to tell if your meringue is ready is to check its temperature. Touch the outside of the bowl after about 5 minutes of whisking- when it is ready, it should be room temperature (just don’t touch it for a minute or two after putting in the sugar syrup- it will be very hot!).
• Vigorously mix 1/3 of the meringue into the almond/sugar/egg mixture. Don’t worry at this stage about folding, just get it well combined. The point here is to loosen the mixture, ready for the macaronage stage.
• Be firm, but gentle, during the macaronage stage. Macaronage is the term given to the final mixing stage of the macaron-making process, and it is notoriously finicky. You’ll find people who tell you to do a certain number of mixes- I don’t love this method because everyone has a different technique/level of force! Fold the meringue in firmly (you can switch to a spatula at this stage, because the mixture will be much less thick), using a figure of eight motion, to ensure the mixture is cohesive, but be mindful of the air in the egg whites at the same time. When the mixture is ready, you should be able to draw a ribbon with your spatula. Leave the mixture to stand for 30 seconds, and that ribbon should have levelled itself out into the rest of the mixture.
• Use a medium round piping nozzle to pipe the macarons. Too small, or too big, and it will be difficult to get neat macarons.
• Use a macaron template. Making identical macaron shells is one of the biggest challenges of making macarons at home- using a template as a guide can make the process much easier. To make a template, take a sheet of A3 paper, and draw circles at intervals across the whole sheet- I like my macarons to be about 4cm in diameter, but you can change this, just be aware that making smaller/larger shells will affect the number of macarons this recipe makes. Place this template under the baking paper on your baking tray and pipe into the circle guides. You can then carefully slide out the template before baking and reuse it later on.
• Hold the piping back vertically when piping the macarons. Apply gentle pressure, then stop applying that pressure and make a small circular ‘flick’ to finish off the macaron (don’t worry if you get a little peak though, they will usually flatten out themselves during the next stages, but you can also flatten them with your finger, sparingly dipped in water, if need be).
• Tap the tray firmly on the work surface a few times after piping. Air bubbles are a macaron’s worst enemy. Tapping the tray on the work surface after piping will bring those bubbles to the surface. You can then use a cocktail stick, skewer or sharp knife to pop the bubbles, allowing the macaron batter to fall back on itself as you do, giving you perfectly smooth shells.
• Don’t skimp on the resting time. Macarons need to rest at room temperature for about 30-40 minutes to form a skin. That skin is what ultimately leads to the macarons developing their iconic ‘feet’. Macarons will form a skin more quickly on hot, dry days, but will take much longer on humid, rainy or cold days. If you can, it’s best to make macarons on warm, dry days, but, obviously, that isn’t always possible. I have had success making macarons from this recipe on rainy days, but they did take a lot longer to form a skin. You’ll know the macarons are ready to bake when you can lightly touch the surface without any batter sticking to your finger.
• Bake one tray of macarons at a time. This recipe calls for a fan oven, which usually means you can bake more than one tray of tasty treats at a time. Alas, macarons are high-maintenance and, any time I have tried to do this, the lower tray always seems to bake unevenly, erupt into tiny almond-y volcanoes or crack along the top. Save yourself the inevitable distress and allow for an extra 11 minutes to bake that second tray.
• If you have time, make the ganache filling the day before the macarons. While you can keep the macarons unfilled in an airtight container for about a week, they are best on the day you make them. The ganache, however, will be at the perfect consistency for filling after a night in the fridge (though, if you don’t mind a slightly messier macaron-eating experience, you can absolutely go ahead and use the ganache after a few hours). Make the ganache the day before, and you’ll get to experience the macarons at their very best as soon as the shells have cooled!

Now that you know all of my hard-earned tips and tricks for perfect Italian macarons, let’s talk a bit more about these special coronation macarons. As I said, the macaron shells themselves are super basic- no colouring, no flavouring- just plain macarons. The filling is also very basic, it’s just a milk chocolate ganache made using a 1:1 ratio of cream to chocolate (I know macarons can have many different fillings, but I just can’t bring myself to deviate from my beloved chocolate ganache…). What makes these macarons different is the decoration on the shells- and it’s pretty easy to do! It’s just melted white chocolate, coloured and drizzled onto half of the shells using a couple of piping bags fitted with very fine nozzles. You don’t even have to temper the chocolate- it’s such a small amount that it will set up at room temperature just fine. Just be sure to use an oil-based food colouring to colour it- a liquid one will make the chocolate seize. Before the chocolate drizzles set, I added a few gold sprinkles on top, just for an extra bit of fun. And that was it! Once the chocolate sets, you can sandwich one decorated shell with one undecorated shell, and you’ll be left with fun and fancy-looking macarons.

These coronation macarons were made for my brother’s friend Phoebe, who took them to her local street party and sent me this photo- doesn’t it look so pretty?

I hope you like the macarons! Let me know in the comments if you give them a try, but I’d also love to hear where you stand on the French v Italian macaron debate! Have you managed to succeed with French macarons?

Gemma

xxx

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Coronation Macarons

Italian macarons filled with milk chocolate ganache & decorated with coloured white chocolate drizzles and gold sprinkles

Course Dessert, Snack

Cuisine Italian

Keyword almond, Chocolate, chocolate ganache, Italian macarons, macaron

Prep Time 1 hour hour

Cook Time 11 minutes minutes

Setting Time 4 hours hours 40 minutes minutes

Total Time 2 hours hours 51 minutes minutes

Servings 16 macarons

Equipment

• 4 piping bags
• 1 medium round piping nozzle
• 2 very fine round piping nozzles
• 1 open star piping nozzle
• 2 baking trays
• Food processor
• Stand mixer (with metal bowl and whisk attachment)

Ingredients

For the chocolate ganache:

• 180 g milk chocolate
• 180 ml double cream

For the macaron shells:

• 95 g ground almonds
• 103 g icing sugar
• 72 g egg whites (divided into 2 separate bowls of 36g each)
• 95 g caster sugar

To decorate

• 40 g white chocolate
• oil-based food colouring (red and blue)
• gold sprinkles

Instructions

For the chocolate ganache:

• Place the chocolate and cream into a microwave safe bowl. Melt on low for 1 minute at a time, stirring in between each burst, until chocolate has melted completely and ganache is smooth. Cover with clingfilm and place into the fridge to firm up for at least a few hours, preferably overnight.

For the macaron shells:

• Line 2 baking trays with baking paper and place a template underneath baking paper, if using. Fit a piping bag with a medium round nozzle and set aside.
• Place the ground almonds and icing sugar into a food processor. Pulse 10 times, then sift into a large bowl, discarding any large lumps that do not go through the sieve. Repeat this process once more.
• Add one of the 36g portions of egg white to the almond/sugar mixture. Mix well to make a paste, then set aside.
• Place the remaining 36g of egg white into the clean metal bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the whisk attachment. Set aside.
• Place the caster sugar into a small saucepan with 30ml of water. Place over a medium heat and start to bring to a boil. Do not stir- swirl gently if necessary.
• When the sugar syrup has reached 114°C, turn stand mixer to high speed and begin to whip egg whites to soft peaks.
• When the sugar syrup has reached 118°C and the egg whites have reached soft peaks, with mixer still on high, pour the sugar syrup down the side of the bowl in a slow, steady stream. Once all of the syrup has been added, turn the mixer up to full speed and beat for 5 minutes, until stiff peaks are reached. Meringue will be ready when the bowl comes to room temperature.
• When the meringue is ready, add 1/3 of it to the almond paste. Mix vigorously to combine fully and loosen the thick paste.
• Add the rest of the meringue and fold, using a figure of eight motion, until mixture is cohesive and comes off the spatula in ribbons- if you leave those ribbons for 30 seconds, they should level themselves out into the rest of the mixture.
• Place the macaron mixture into the piping bag. Holding the bag vertical to the baking tray, pipe macarons about 4cm in diameter, leaving plenty of space between each one.
• Once macarons are piped, lift the whole tray up, and drop down on the work surface a few times to raise any air bubbles to the surface. Use a sharp knife/cocktail stick to burst any bubbles, letting the mixture fall back onto itself.
• Set the macarons aside at room temperature to form a skin- on a relatively dry day, this should take about 30-40 minutes, but can take less time on drier, warmer days and more time on cold, humid days. Check on the macarons every 10-15 minutes or so, if unsure. The macarons will be ready when you can gently touch the surface without any batter coming off on your finger.
• When the macarons are almost ready, preheat the oven to 165°C fan. Bake the macarons in the centre of the oven, one tray at a time, for 11 minutes. To check if they are done, place a finger on top of the shells and wiggle gently. When done, the tops of the macarons should not wobble. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely on the tray.

To decorate:

• Melt the white chocolate (I do this in the microwave- see Note 1). Separate into two bowls. Colour one bowl blue and the other bowl red (see Note 2).
• Fill 2 piping bags, fitted with very fine round piping nozzles, with the two shades of chocolate. Pipe drizzles of each colour onto half of the macaron shells. Add a few gold sprinkles to each, before the chocolate sets, if desired.
• Set the macarons aside at room temperature to set until completely solid, about 1 hour.

To assemble:

• Place the firm ganache into a piping bag, fitted with an open star tip.
• Pipe small rosettes into the centre of the flat side of each undecorated macaron half (do not go too close to the edge- when you 'sandwich' the macarons, the filling will be pressed out towards the edges). Place a decorated macaron half on top and gently press the two halves together. Macarons can be eaten immediately, or, once filled, kept in the fridge for a few days. You can also wait to fill the macarons- just keep the shells at room temperature in an airtight container and keep the ganache in the fridge (just be aware that the longer the ganache is in the fridge, the firmer it will become, making it more difficult to pipe/spread).

Notes

1. For such a small quantity of white chocolate, I melt it in the microwave on the lowest setting in 30 second bursts, stirring well between each. 
2. Adding a lot of food colouring may affect the consistency of your white chocolate, making it thick and ‘paste-like’. This happened with my red chocolate, which required a lot of colouring, but not my blue, which required less colouring to get the desired shade. Don’t worry- the chocolate will still set solid, it will just take longer to do so.