What is the secret to good macarons?

The key to a good macaron is a good meringue, with smooth, shiny, stiff peaks . You can tell it's done when you can flip the bowl upside down and nothing comes out. The peak will be stiff yet still droop slightly. Start with aged or fresh egg whites and whip them on medium for a few minutes until bubbles form.

What is the difficulty level of making macarons?

It's important to follow the recipe closely and not overbeat the egg whites. Are macarons difficult to make? Macarons can be tricky to make, as they require precise measurements and techniques . However, with practice and patience, anyone can learn to make them successfully.

How do you make super smooth macarons?

Fine Mesh Sieve: To obtain a shiny and smooth macaron shell, you must run the almond flour and confectioners' sugar through a fine mesh sieve . You can use a hand crank sifter if you have one, but I prefer using a mesh one.

Should macarons be chewy or crunchy?

Although a macaron's shell should protect the rise and filling beneath its surface, you don't want your delectables to be crunchy or hard. Macarons should have a slight crunch with an overall chewy texture as one bites through the dessert. That texture is what truly makes a macaron marvelous.

What causes macarons to fail?

Cracked shells were the first issue I ran into when I started baking macarons. A few different things can cause cracked shells, including too short of a rest, trapped air bubbles, too hot of an oven, or under-mixed batter.

What is the best flour for macarons?

Ingredients. Almond flour . A must in this (and any) French macaron recipe (and a key ingredient in my Linzer cookies), I recommend a “super fine”, blanched almond flour. As the name suggests, it's very fine and yields smooth, bump-free macaron tops.

What are the perfect macaron feet?

Well-formed feet are a sign of an expertly-baked macaron. Ideally, feet should rise straight up in an even, delicately textured ring. They should be high but not too high, shouldn't spread too far out, and shouldn't be too rough or ruffly.

How long can macaron batter sit before piping?

Generally, a folded macaron batter can comfortably sit for at least 30 min. to one hour while you go about preparing the other colors. There are 2 issues which will cause the batter to degrade at this point: deflation and drying out.

Can you overmix macaron batter?

Also, be careful not to overmix the batter ! When getting close to what you feel is the right texture, start to check the batter after every turn by either holding up the spatula to watch how the batter falls from it, or checking the movement in the bowl. My batter is grainy and the resulting cookies are grainy too!

What makes macarons chewy?

Once you've filled the macarons, the moisture from the filling seeps into the shells . This is what gives macarons that deliciously chewy texture.

How do you keep macarons crispy?

Keep them in an airtight container and put the container in the pantry and not under direct sunlight. If you want the macarons to last longer, put them in the refrigerator and you can make them last up to three days.

Why are my macarons not fluffy?

Hot oven may also cause flat and crispy shells to happen, as the hot oven will explode the macarons, causing them to lose all air and deflate . Always have an oven thermometer, and experiment with your temperatures and baking time in order to find out what works best for you.

Macaron recipe - Preppy Kitchen (2024)

Macaron recipe

These elegant, delicate, and delicious french macarons are the perfect treat for your next get together!

Course Dessert

Cuisine American, French

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Ingredients

For the Cookie

100 g egg whites room temperature 3 large eggs
140 g almond flour 1 1/2 cups
90 g granulated sugar just under 1/2 cup
130 g powdered sugar 1 cup
1 tsp vanilla 5mL
1/4 tsp cream of tartar 800mg

For the Buttercream

1 cup unsalted butter softened 226g
5 egg yolks
1/2 cup granulated sugar 100g
1 tsp vanilla
3 tbsp water 30mL
1 pinch salt

Instructions

For the Macarons:

Sift the confectioners sugar and almond flour into a bowl.
Add the room temperature egg whites into a very clean bowl.
Using an electric mixer, whisk egg whites. Once they begin to foam add the cream of tartar and then SLOWLY add the granulated sugar.
Add the food coloring (if desired) and vanilla then mix in. Continue to beat until stiff peaks form.
Begin folding in the 1/3 of the dry ingredients.
Be careful to add the remaining dry ingredients and fold gently.
The final mixture should look like flowing lava, and be able to fall into a figure eight without breaking. Spoon into a piping bag with a medium round piping tip and you’re ready to start piping.
Pipe one inch dollops onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper (this should be glued down with dabs of batter). Tap on counter several times to release air bubbles. Allow to sit for about 40 minutes before placing in oven.
Bake at 300F for 12-15 minutes, rotate tray after 7 minutes. Allow to cool completely before removing from baking sheet.

For the French Buttercream Filling:

Combine sugar and water in medium saucepan. Heat over low heat while stirring until sugar dissolves. Increase heat to medium- high and bring to a boil
Put egg yolks in a stand-mixer fitted with a whisk attachment and beat until thick and foamy.
Cook the sugar and water syrup until it reaches 240 degrees F. Immediately remove from heat. With mixer running, SLOWLY drizzle hot syrup into bowl with yolks.
Continue mixing until the bottom of the bowl is cool to the touch and the yolk mixture has cooled to room temperature.
Add in butter one cube at a time allowing each piece to incorporate before adding the next. Add vanilla and salt. Continue mixing until buttercream is smooth and creamy. (About 5-6 minutes.) Add food coloring if desired.

For Assembly

Pipe your filling onto the back of half the shells. Form a sandwich and repeat. Macarons should be aged in the fridge for 1-3 days for best results. This allows the filling to soften the shells inside.

Video

Notes

THE MERINGUE!!!! That meringue HAS TO BE STIFF! I had no idea French meringue could be whipped to such a thick marshmallowy consistency but all it takes is a bit of extra whisking. You'll notice the meringue start to fill the whisk when you're getting close to the right stage.
Sift, Sift, SIFT! Those larger pieces of almond flour will mar the surface of your macarons. Best practice is to sift then whiz in the food processor and repeat two more times. Discard the larger particles, don't try to press them through the sieve.
Use a scale if possible, accuracy helps with this recipe.
The mixing will take some practice, you will fold and fold the batter and then use the spatula to GENTLY press the batter against the bowl. You want to remove some of the bubbles but not to many... Continue this until it reaches a thick "lava" consistency. It should slowly fall off the spatula in ribbons and be able to form a figure eight without breaking.
Pipe the macarons perpendicular to the surface. If your tip is pointing a bit in any particular direction when you pipe the macarons might be oblong or malformed.
Add your coloring to the meringue after it reaches the soft peak stage.
When you are finishing the piping motion stop squeezing the bag and pull up with a circular motion.
The macarons will be best after 2-3 days resting in the fridge.
If you over-bake the shells and they're too crisp, brush the bottom with some milk before assembly to soften them up.

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