Macarons

Chocolate

Dry

  • 50g almond flour
  • 100g powdered sugar
  • 25g unsweetened cocoa powder

Wet

  • 60g (2 large) room temp egg whites
  • 60g granulated sugar

Filling

Vanilla

Dry

  • 75g almond flour
  • 115g powdered sugar

Wet

  • 2 large (?? g) room temp egg whites
  • 50g granulated sugar
  • pinch salt
  • 1⁄2 tsp vanilla extract
  • food coloring

Filling

French Meringue Method

Prep

  • Sift dry ingredients into a mixing bowl
    • Whisk together
  • Line sheets with silicon baking mats or parchment paper
    • Place templates under if using

Make the batter

  • Using a stand mixer with the whisk attachment
    • Whip egg whites until frothy
    • Sprinkle in sugar a few tbsp at a time
    • Beat until thick and glossy with stiff-ish peaks
    • Whisk in vanilla and food coloring if using
  • Add the dry ingredients to the meringue
  • Macaronage: Fold and smash with a spatula or bowl scraper until you can form a ribbon or figure 8 with the batter. It should flow like lava

Pipe the cookies

  • Transfer batter to a piping bag with an 3⁄8″ round tip (Ateco #804)
  • Pipe out cookies onto a sheet, pointing straight down and pulling away, trying to avoid piping big air bubbles
  • Tap the sheet to bring up any big air bubbles
  • Fix any visible bubbles by poking and swirling with a toothpick
  • Leave out until a dry shell forms on top (1–2 hours)

Bake

  • Bake at 350°F for 12–13 minutes
  • Place a baking sheet above the macarons to shield them from browning
  • Let cool completely on the sheet

Final Assembly

  • Match up 2 cookies of close size (use ugly ones for the bottoms)
  • Add filling to one side and squish together
  • Refrigerate (these are better the next day)

Freeze for long term storage

  • Let the macarons mature in the fridge for 12–24 hours
  • Transfer into a freezer bag in a single layer

Notes

If I remember correctly, 12 minutes was fine for parchment paper, but it’s too little time in my oven when using a silicon mat. The cookies end up slightly underbaked and some of the centers will stick to the liner instead of themselves.

References