| Level: | Advanced |
| Total: | 2 hr 30 min |
| Active: | 2 hr 10 min |
| Yield: | 36 macarons |
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cups confectioners’ sugar
- 1 cup almond flour
- 3 large egg whites, at room temperature
- 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
- Pinch of salt
- 1/4 cup superfine sugar
- 2 to 3 drops gel food coloring (see options below)
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla, almond or mint extract
- Assorted fillings (see options below)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 320 degrees F. Line 3 baking sheets with silicone mats or parchment. Measure the confectioners’ sugar and almond flour by spooning them into measuring cups and leveling with a knife. Transfer to a bowl; whisk to combine.
- Sift the sugar-almond flour mixture, a little at a time, through a fine-mesh sieve into a large bowl, pressing with a rubber spatula to pass through as much as possible. It will take a while, and up to 2 tablespoons of coarse almond flour may be left; save for another use.
- Beat the egg whites, cream of tartar and salt with a mixer on medium speed until frothy. Increase the speed to medium high; gradually add the superfine sugar and beat until stiff and shiny, about 5 more minutes.
- Transfer the beaten egg whites to the bowl with the almond flour mixture. Fold in the egg whites by drawing a rubber spatula halfway through the mixture and folding until incorporated, giving the bowl a quarter turn with each fold.
- Add the desired food coloring and extract (see below). Continue folding and turning, scraping down the bowl, until the batter is smooth and falls off the spatula in a thin flat ribbon, 2 to 3 minutes.
- Transfer the batter to a pastry bag fitted with a 1/4-inch round tip. Holding the bag vertically and close to the baking sheet, pipe 1 1/4-inch circles (24 per sheet). Firmly tap the baking sheets twice against the counter to release any air bubbles.
- Let the cookies sit at room temperature until the tops are no longer sticky to the touch, 15 minutes to 1 hour, depending on the humidity. Slip another baking sheet under the first batch (a double baking sheet protects the cookies from the heat).
- Bake the first batch until the cookies are shiny and rise 1/8 inch to form a “foot,” 12 to 14 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool completely. Repeat, using a double sheet for each batch. Peel the cookies off the mats and sandwich with a thin layer of filling (see below).
- Almond-Raspberry:
- Tint the batter with 2 drops neon pink gel food coloring; flavor with almond extract. Fill with seedless raspberry jam (you’ll need about 3/4 cup).
- Mint-White Chocolate:
- Tint the batter with 2 drops mint green gel food coloring; flavor with mint extract. For the filling, microwave 3 ounces chopped white chocolate, 2 tablespoons heavy cream and 1 tablespoon butter in 30-second intervals, stirring, until smooth. Stir in 1/4 teaspoon mint extract and 1 drop mint green gel food coloring.
- Blueberry Cheesecake:
- Tint the batter with 3 drops royal blue gel food coloring; flavor with vanilla extract. For the filling, mix 4 ounces softened cream cheese and 3 tablespoons blueberry jam.
- Lavender-Honey:
- Tint the batter with 2 drops violet gel food coloring; flavor with almond or vanilla extract. For the filling, mix 3/4 cup mascarpone cheese, 2 tablespoons honey and 1 teaspoon ground dried lavender.
- Pineapple:
- Tint the batter with 2 drops lemon yellow gel food coloring; flavor with vanilla extract. For the filling, press 3/4 cup pineapple jam through a sieve, discarding any large pieces.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 65 calorie |
| Total Fat | 2 grams |
| Saturated Fat | 0 grams |
| Cholesterol | 0 milligrams |
| Sodium | 14 milligrams |
| Carbohydrates | 12 grams |
| Protein | 1 grams |
| Sugar | 11 grams |
Reviews
It would be nice if you would give the weights of the ingredients.
First time ever trying macarons…..recipe was perfect, follow exactly, don’t guess, measure exact and they will come out great. Pastry bag and a Wilton 1A tip along with the silicone mat are a must. I used convection bake @ 325 for 12 mins. Filled with a butter cream cheese icing using the same pastry bag and tip – perfect!
Come out well when you follow the RECIPE, and not the video! Please note he does NOT mention that you have to REST the piped cookie to form the skin- “fifteen mins to an HOUR” (emphasis mine!). I literally had to wait almost an hour for the humidity where I am. Better to wait for a cooler day. Anyway, the fillings are so varied, you can please everyone with this recipe.
Lovely recipe!! I also sifted the flour/sugar into the bowl with the whipped egg whites, but I opted to fold them in by hand. I used rounded teaspoon of vanilla bean paste for vanilla bean macarons; I almost forgot it, and so I added it at the same time I added the flour to the eggs. The vanilla flecks showed up very well and the cookie didn’t take on much color for the exceptions to the ones closest to the edge of the pan got a teensy bit brown. We immediately tried these cookies with vanilla mock-mascarpone cream left over from a tiramisu recipe and WOW. Strawberry jam, hazelnut chocolate spread, Lemon curd.. everything tasted great with the plain vanilla. I will try Turmeric for yellow, and Spirulina for green… Anyone have any suggestions for blue and pink/red? thx
I made these into lemon macarons, and they were fantastic! The recipe works really well. When I gave them to friends, they were all well pleased with the macarons! I only added a quarter of a teaspoon at most of turmeric to the batter in place of food coloring to make them yellow. Then, I added a little bit of lemon curd between the layers. I will make them forever! Thank you!
Awesome recipe!
I sift the flour/ confection sugar while the egg whites are beating in the stand mixer. I also put the color in after the egg whites are ready and give it an extra mix. They turned out great! We like them without the filling. I like to let them sit overnight and before adding the filling. Has anyone put these in the freezer? I wanted to use these in about 10 days. What is the shelf-life after baking?
I sift the flour/ confection sugar while the egg whites are beating in the stand mixer. I also put the color in after the egg whites are ready and give it an extra mix. They turned out great! We like them without the filling. I like to let them sit overnight and before adding the filling. Has anyone put these in the freezer? I wanted to use these in about 10 days. What is the shelf-life after baking?
Always ends up perfect!!! But you can’t cut corners. Follow the recipe exactly and you’ll end up with great results. My first sheet sometimes is underdone. It’s my test sheet. I only do 10-12 cookies the first bake then adjust time from there. I prefer parchment over silpat. Also, if your cookies stick to the paper or silicone just stick them in the freezer for a bit and they’ll peel off easily. I leave in airtight container for 1-2 days off then freeze cookies for 4-5 days before filling. You want them to rest for a few days to get the right crunch – at least in my opinion.
Somehow the shells were flat when applying batter to the cookie sheet. I followed the directions exactly so not sure why mine turned out horrible before they even reached the oven.
This is my go-to recipe for macs! One note: add color/flavor extract once the egg whites start to stiffen. Adding them once the almond flour mixture is in is much more work. But aside from that, they turn out great every time!
I love this recipe! I’ve made 3 batches so far—all turned out beautifully. This will be my “always go to” for French Macaron cookies. I especially love a Pistachio Buttercream Filling which everyone says is the best, I made a Chocolate Raspberry and Vanilla Coconut Buttercream (using Canned Coconut Milk instead of cow’s milk).