Elegant French Macarons

These Elegant French Macarons are simply magnifique! A sweet treat that will give you a little taste of Parisian living, this easy macaron recipe is best enjoyed with a nice cup of cappuccino or cafe au lait.

Amount36 to 48 macarons

Ingredients & Tools
Instructions

Instructions

Download the Macaron Template

Click to mark complete

For the macarons: Preheat oven to 275°F. Prepare 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Fit a 16 inch decorating bag with decorating tip 10.
Sift powdered sugar and almond flour together, discarding any bits of almond flour that are too large to pass through the fine mesh sieve.
In a large bowl, beat egg whites, cream of tartar and salt on high speed until foamy. With the mixer running, gradually add in small amounts of granulated sugar at a time. Make sure your egg whites have been separated a day in advance to help avoid over-whipping. When the mixture reaches soft peaks, add vanilla. Continue whipping just until the mixture forms stiff peaks. You’ve reached stiff peaks if you pull your beaters out of the bowl and the peaks remain upright.
Gently and gradually pour the almond mixture over the whipped egg whites so they don’t deflate. Using a rubber spatula, fold the dry ingredients into wet ingredients in batches to avoid deflating the egg whites. Gently fold the almond flour mixture into the egg whites until the mixture holds a 10 count.
- How to measure a 10 count: When the batter falls from the spatula to the bowl it should take about 10 seconds until it fully blends back into the rest of the batter. This method helps ensure that the almond mixture is fully hydrated, while allowing egg whites to still retain some air.
- The mixture should be thick enough to pipe without running everywhere, but thin enough for the peak of each piped cookie to fall on its own. The batter should appear to have a honey-like consistency. This takes about 45 turns, but depending on how aggressively you fold, it can be more or less.
Transfer the macaron batter to the prepared decorating bag.
Pipe 1 inch rounds of batter onto the parchment lined pans, spacing at least 1 inch apart. Use the macaron template under the parchment paper to help you create perfectly round macarons.
- If your macarons spread quickly once piped, your batter is likely too thin, caused by overmixing or under-whipped egg whites.
Tap the baking sheet hard on the countertop 4-5 times to release air bubbles, avoiding cracked tops. Let the unbaked macarons sit at room temperature for 20 to 30 minutes or until the unbaked macarons form a skin. The skin should not stick to your finger when carefully touched. The skin creates the signature 'feet', which are the rings that arise at the base of each cookie during baking.
Bake for 18-22 minutes on a shelf in the center of the oven. If baking 2 pans at a time on different oven racks, rotate the pans from bottom to top midway through baking. Let cool completely before filling with ganache.
For the ganache filling: Empty the package of Candy Melts Candy and chop into tiny pieces, either by chopping or using a food processor. Place chopped pieces in a bowl and set it aside.
Heat 1/2 cup whipping cream in a saucepan until the cream just begins to steam and the edges start to bubble. Do not boil. Remove from heat and add the chopped candy. Stir until the mixture is smooth and glossy.
Pour the mixture onto a baking sheet and then refrigerate until firm. Prepare decorating bag with tip 1A and ganache filling.
Decorate macarons: Using ganache filling, make macaron cookie sandwiches. Using black FoodWriter markers, draw Eiffel Towers and write messages on tops of cookie sandwiches.

Notes

- Wait one day before eating.
  Let cookies sit in an airtight container for 24 hours to allow the flavors to bloom. This also allows the cookie to absorb some moisture from the filling, which helps it stay intact when bitten into.
- Use room temperature ingredients.
  Make sure to use room temperature egg whites in your batter. Store-bought liquid egg whites or meringue powder will not create a meringue batter that is strong enough for macarons.
- Use aged egg whites.
  "Aged" egg whites are necessary to help prevent over-whipping and create stiff peaks. Make sure to separate your egg whites a day prior, refrigerated in an air-tight container. Bring your egg whites back to room temperature when ready to use. Having the egg whites at room temperature helps them whip up better. Never use cartoned egg whites or meringue powder for making macarons.
- Test for proper batter consistency.
  Use the figure 8 method. Lift a small amount of batter with a spatula and drop it back into the bowl in a figure 8 motion. The batter is ready to pipe when the 8 is absorbed back into the batter within 10 seconds.
- Trace outlines on parchment paper.
  Trace circles on the back of your parchment paper in pencil using the macaron template. You can also use a 1-inch cookie cutter or another round object to trace circles.
- Use grease-free utensils and bowls.
- Use gel food or ultra-concentrated coloring.
  Liquid food coloring can negatively affect macaron batter.
Macaron Troubleshooting
- Hollow shells: Hollow shells occur when egg whites are over-whipped or under-whipped. To prevent this, make sure your egg whites reach stiff peaks.
- Cracked tops: Cracked tops typically occur when there's too much air in the batter. After piping macarons, make sure to rap the baking tray against your counter to remove any air bubbles.
- No feet: The most common reason feet don't develop is because macarons didn't develop a skin before going into the oven. Always allow piped macaron batter to sit at room temperature for 20-30 minutes to develop skin. Another reason may be that the batter is too wet, which may be caused by coloring or flavoring.