Macarons are the signature bake for any budding patissier!
Not to be confused with macaroons (typically made from coconut), these macarons are made from a meringue and almond based biscuit, sandwiched with fillings such as jam, buttercream or ganache.
The wonderful array of colours and flavours are an attractive feature of these bitesize creations. You can let your imagination run wild! I chose to use a dark pink colour for these macarons. I highly recommend investing in some good quality powdered food colouring as this is the best way to colour macarons without upsetting the delicate composition of the batter.
I was slightly daunted about this bake – macarons have a reputation for looking perfectly circular and precise. But I had so much fun! They will definitely become a regular in the Pippatisserie repertoire and I’m really looking forward to experimenting with flavours.
I’ve included a section of useful tips for making macarons that I hope will help if you’re new to them!
I’ve also included a raspberry buttercream (with the optional addition of rosewater) and raspberry jam recipe for the filling. Don’t be put off by the lengthy method! Macarons require a bit of detail but they are so rewarding to make!
This recipe makes approximately 24 macarons. It will take about 20 mins to prepare the macaron mixture and then the macarons will need drying time before they are baked. This can take 30 mins – 2 hrs. Once dry, they are baked for approx. 15 mins.
Ingredients:
For the macarons:
- 70 g ground almonds, sieved until fine
- 70 g icing sugar
- 50 g eggs whites (approx. 2 egg whites) at room temperature, aged if possible (see tips)
- 45 g granulated sugar
- 1/8 tsp cream of tartar
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- food colouring, powder or gel is best
For the raspberry buttercream:
- 120 g raspberries
- 3 tbsp lemon juice
- 250 g unsalted butter, softened
- 500 g icing sugar
For the raspberry jam:
- 500 g raspberries
- 500 g preserving sugar
- half a lemon, juiced
Useful Equipment: 2 baking trays and 2 macaron mats placed on top (if you don’t have a macaron mat, place a sheet of baking paper on each tray and draw out circle templates with a diameter of 3 cm – you can use a cookie cutter to do this), hand/stand mixer with whisk attachments, stainless steel or glass mixing bowl, piping bag with a round nozzle, food processor (optional), sieve, spatula, cocktail sticks
Useful Tips:
- For best results, age your egg whites. This can be done by separating your eggs the day before and placing the egg whites uncovered in the fridge overnight.
- Bring your eggs to room temperature before whisking.
- You need your dry ingredients to be as fine as possible. Blend them together in a food processor or push them through a seive a couple of times before combining with the egg. This is how the macarons get their shiny shell.
- Pay attention not to over-whisk your egg whites. This can cause your shells to crack apart during baking (too much air!). You need to get them to the thick and glossy stage.
- Leaving your macarons to dry out before baking is crucial for getting the smooth shell. If they are not dry, they are likely to crack when baking. Once you can touch the top of the shells without it sticking, they have dried enough.
Please don’t hesitate to send me a message via the contact page or on social media (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter) if you need any advice or help troubleshooting your macarons!
Method:
Making the Macaron Shells:
- Sift together the almond flour and icing sugar. If you have one, I recommend blending them together in a food processor to get the mixture as fine as possible.
- In a clean stainless steel or glass bowl, whisk the egg whites on low until frothy. Gradually add the granulated sugar (one third at a time) and increase the speed of whisking to high.
- Whisk the egg whites until you can see lines forming as the whisk moves, then add the cream of tartar.
- Whisk until stiff peaks form. It should be thick and glossy. At this point, add your vanilla extract.
- Add in a third of your dry ingredients as well as your food colouring and fold until combined. Add the rest and continue to fold. As you do so, push your spatula down as you turn the bowl – the aim is to remove some of the air trapped in the mixture.
- Repeat this movement until the batter starts to fall like ribbons. This is a key step to get right as under-mixing can upset the texture of the shells. Pick up some batter with your spatula and let it fall off the end. If it is falling like a ribbon, try drawing a figure of 8. If the batter doesn’t break whilst doing this then it is ready. If it does, keeping folding until the ribbon stage is reached. It should fall quite slowly.
- Place the mixture into a piping bag with a round nozzle and pipe onto your macaron mat/template. Try piping straight down into the centre of the circle to acheive a circular shaped macaron.
- Lift the tray about 10 cm off the surface and drop it down onto the table. Do this a couple of times to bring any air bubbles to the surface. You can then smoothen the top with a cocktail stick.
- Let the macarons sit at room temperature until dry on top. This can take from 30 mins to 2 hrs depending on the room. You will know they are ready when you can touch the top and it isn’t sticky.
- Whilst the macarons are drying, preheat the oven to 150 °C fan/320 °F.
- Bake for 14-15 mins or until lightly browned on top (to get an even bake, rotate the tray every 7 mins). Cool completely on the tray.
Filling the Macarons:
- Now for the filling! To make the raspberry jam, place a small plate in the freezer – you’ll need this later to check when your jam is done. Place half the berries with the lemon juice in a medium sized saucepan on a low heat. Simmer for 5 mins until the berries are soft. Mash the fruit and push through a sieve – this will remove the seeds. Put the mashed fruit back into the pan with the remaining berries and add the preserving sugar. Boil rapidly for 5 mins and then drop a small amount of jam onto the cooled plate. If, once cooled, the jam wrinkles then it is done. If not, boil for another 2 mins and then check again. Repeat until you see the wrinkles. Pop the jam into sterilised jar and seal.
- For the raspberry buttercream, add the raspberries and lemon in a saucepan over a medium heat. After 2 mins, mash the fruit and then allow them to simmer for 10 mins. Afterwards, strain the mixture into a bowl and leave to cool completely. Whilst cooling, cream the butter and icing sugar together. Gradually add the raspberry reduction to the buttercream until you reach the desired colour and consistency (and flavour!).
- One of my favourite additions to this recipe is rosewater in the buttercream. Raspberry and rose is a classic combination! If you would like raspberry and rose buttercream, add rosewater 1 drop at a time until the desired flavour is reached.
- To sandwich the macarons, find a pair of shells that are of a similar size and pipe buttercream onto one of the shells (I used a Wilton 30 closed star tip). Pop half a tsp of jam in the middle and sandwich the second shell on top. Repeat until all of the macarons are paired up. I decorated my shells with a dusting of freeze-dried raspberry powder, buttercream and some gold leaf sprinkles.
- Finally, enjoy! All your hard work will have been worth it!
Macarons store really well so you can keep them up to a week in an airtight container. You can also freeze the shells if you want to make a big batch and save some for another day.
They also make great cake toppers! I used these rapberry macarons to decorate a three layer chocolate and raspberry cake – look out on Facebook and Instagram for the finished cake!
Like the recipe? Click the links below to share with your friends and followers!
I love to hear what you think about my recipes and about your own bakes too! Let me know your thoughts in the comments below! And don’t forget, you can subscribe to Pippatisserie to stay up to date on all new recipes and posts!
