Over the years, I have developed a strong love for macarons. The first time I tried one was at Ladurée in Paris and the second time was at Pierre Hermé, also in Paris. I was so blown away by the taste and texture, I was determined to make them at home. I knew that my initial attempts would come nowhere near to the ones in Paris, but regardless, I returned to Seattle to take a shot at making my own. Disappointingly, after many failed attempts, I gave up my quest to perfect the macaron. The cookies require a precision and accuracy that at the time, I was just not prepared to give.
Fast forward 7 years and my two kids both share my love for macarons. Genetics! At one sitting, I’m sure they could each polish off 4 or 5 cookies. One macaron costs that same as a box of Chips Ahoy cookies. So instead of spending a fortune on store-bought macarons that my kids will devour in one sitting, I finally decided to learn how to make them myself.
For my birthday, Brent gifted me with a macaron baking class. The class was so helpful and informative, it gave me just the right amount of confidence to try and make them on my own. Since the class, I have made dozens and dozens of macarons. I’m somewhat tempted to open up a macaron shop here in Seattle because I just find them so much fun to make.
I’ve been experimenting with many flavors and colors, and recently came up with this dark chocolate variety. I can’t even explain how amazing they are. My family polished them off in two days - they are animals. If you are thinking about attempting to make macarons, there is some fiddly work involved, but it is definitely possible to perfect them at home. Below, I have outlined everything I have learned from my class and trial and error. I hope you find it helpful and encouraging to try and make some macarons on your own!
DETAILS
Make sure your equipment is clean. If there is any grease in your mixing bowl, your egg whites will not whip up correctly.
You will need a digital scale to perfect the macaron. There is too much variance when you are not using a scale.
You want to use blanched skinless almond flour. I have listed my two favorites in the Tools Needed section below. When combining the almond flour and confectioners sugar, I find that pulsing them in a food processor then sifting a few times gets the smoothest macaron exterior.
When making macarons, the egg whites must be at room temperature. Having them at room temperature will ensure that you will have a stiff and stable meringue. If you don’t have time to bring your egg whites to room temperature, I find that placing the bowl of egg whites over a warm water bath should do the trick.
When dying the macaron, a gel food coloring works best. A gel food coloring will achieve the most intense color without adding the extra moisture you would get from a liquid food coloring.
In my opinion, the most crucial step when making macarons is the consistency of the batter once everything is combined. If the batter is too thick, the macarons won’t have a smooth top, if the batter is too thin, the batter will spread, and the cookies won’t have height. A few useful tests are: drape the batter in a figure-eight pattern. You don’t want the batter to break. Another helpful test is to drizzle the batter into the bowl from a spoon. Wait 30 seconds to see if the batter has sunken into itself. Alternatively, you can also place some of the batter into the piping bag and try to pipe a macaron. Once piped, the macaron should hold its shape but settle into a smooth top with no bumps.
Before lining the baking sheets, I like to trace small 2-inch circles on the bottom of the parchment paper so that I have a stencil to follow to ensure my cookies are perfectly round and consistent in size. You can also purchase parchment paper with the circles already traced. I have linked them below in the Tools Needed section.
SUGGESTED TOOLS
MORE DELICIOUS COOKIE RECIPES
Dark Chocolate Macarons
makes 18 macarons
prep time - 2 hours
cooking time - 11 minutes
INGREDIENTS
4 oz of superfine almond flour from blanched almonds
4 oz of confectioners sugar
3 oz of superfine sugar, sifted
3.5 oz of eggs whites (3-4 eggs), room temperature
1 tsp of brown gel food coloring
CHOCOLATE GANACHE INGREDIENTS
6 oz of dark chocolate (60 - 80%), chopped
1/2 cup of heavy cream
pinch of kosher salt
2 tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature
DIRECTIONS
Place the almond flour and confectioners sugar in a food processor. Pulse until finely ground and combined, approximately 1-2 minutes. Next, sift the almond flour and confectioners sugar into a bowl, to make sure that they have become very fine and that no lumps are present. It will help ensure you get a very smooth cookie. Depending on how much time I have and how diligent I am feeling, I will sift the almond flour and icing sugar roughly 3 - 4 times.
Next, add the superfine sugar to a small bowl. Set to the side.
Measure the room temperature egg whites into the bowl of a stand mixer. Attach bowl to the stand mixer. Using the whisk attachment, whisk the egg whites on low speed until they are foamy. Similar to the foam, you would get when you pour a beer into a glass.
Add the superfine sugar to the egg whites and whisk on high speed until you have reached the soft peak stage. Add the gel food coloring to your desired color, and continue to whisk on high speed until you’ve reached the stiff peak stage. To check for stiff peaks, remove the whisk from the stand mixer. Plop it into the egg whites and pull up. Turn the whisk attachment right side up. The Egg white should stand straight up with no droop.
Remove the bowl from the stand mixer and add 1/3 of the almond flour mixture to the meringue. Using a spatula, fold the batter until just combined. Do not over-mix. Continue to add 1/3 of the almond flour and fold, and then the final 1/3 of the almond flour and fold. At this point, the ingredients are combined, and you should have a thick and fluffy batter. Continue to fold the batter until it’s shiny, and you can successfully drape the batter and make a figure eight without the batter breaking.
Fill two small or one large piping bag with a round Wilton 1A piping tip. Make sure to tape the end of the piping tip so the batter won’t come pouring out once you fill it.
Line your baking sheets with parchment paper. Add four small beads of batter on the four corners of a baking sheet to get the parchment paper to stick to the baking sheet.
Remove the tape from the piping bag tip. Place the tip directly in the center of the circle, where you want your cookie piped. Squeeze the piping bag, holding the tip submerged in the batter while piping. Release your grip, and swirl the tip to break the batter and finish piping the cookie — pipe the cookies 1 1/2 inches apart. Depending on how thick or thin your batter is, it will spread slightly once piped.
Preheat the oven to 350F.
Once you have piped all of your cookies, give the pan a few whacks on the counter to remove any air bubbles. Using a toothpick, gently pop any remaining bubbles that are still present. Let the cookies sit on the counter, uncovered for roughly 20-30 minutes develop a skin. To test if the cookies are ready to be baked, gently touch the side of one of the cookies. It should not be wet or indent. It should have a solid film.
Place the baking sheet into the oven and bake for 11 - 12 minutes. Once cooked, you should be able to lift a macaron off the baking sheet easily. If they are sticking, they probably need a bit more time in the oven. Remove from the oven and let them cool completely on the baking sheet.
TO MAKE THE CHOCOLATE GANACHE. Add 4 oz of chopped chocolate to a medium bowl - reserve the other 2 oz of chocolate for later. In a small saucepan, heat the cream until it has warmed and started to boil. Remove from the heat and add it to the chopped chocolate. Whisk until combined. Add a pinch of salt and stir in butter. Place the bowl in the fridge for 20 minutes to firm up.
Add the chocolate ganache to a piping bag fitted with a round tip. Once the macarons are cooled, pipe one cookie with the ganache, and then sandwich another cookie on top.
In a double boiler, add 2 oz of chopped chocolate. Heat until thin and melted. Place the macarons onto a piece of parchment paper. Dip a spoon into the melted chocolate and drizzle it on top of the macarons. Let dry on the counter before you store them.
Store the macarons in the fridge for a week or in the freezer for a month.
