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A delicate sandwich cookie with a delicious filling and a crisp outer shell, you will love these french style macarons.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Naturally Gluten Free. Because macarons use almond flour they are gluten free!
One of the items on my food bucket list is to eat macarons in Paris from Laudree Bakery. I have actually had a Laudree macaroon when my next door neighbor carried a box home with him from a trip to Paris and kindly shared with me. But I want to eat one in Paris. I am so excited to tell you that I am going to be able to cross that item off my bucket list next week. Yes, I am going to Paris. I’ll share details with you later but let’s just say I couldn’t be more excited. I fell in love with the city of Paris a few years ago when I visited for the first time but fell in love with the whole idea of Paris years ago when I first studied French in the sixth grade and continued that study into college. It’s been 30 years since I studied French but several months ago I enrolled in a Community College French course and I am reacquainting myself with that lovely language!
Now, French macarons are not to be confused with the more common coconut macaron. French macarons are different – very different!
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Ingredients Needed:
- Almond Flour. Is easy to find in the baking aisle of the grocery store. You can make your own almond flour by grinding almonds but buying the flour was so much easier and I think you get a smoother product.
- Egg Whites
- Sugar, granulated sugar and powdered sugar
- Cream of Tartar
Tips from leigh Anne
- Sift your almond flour and powdered sugar. You don’t want any clumps! Don’t skip this step like you may in other baking recipes.
- Make sure your eggs are at room temperature. Submerge them in a bowl of warm water for 5 minutes if you forget to take them out of the refrigerator.
- Don’t over mix (more info below on that)
- The macarons must sit and dry out a bit before baking. You want them slightly tacky to the touch but not sticking to your finger. Doing this prevents them from spreading out as they bake and forcing them to rise up which will create those cute little feet you want!
- Only put one cookie sheet in the oven at a time. I tried to rush it and did two and it didn’t work – had to throw a whole sheet of this little babies away!
How To Make Macarons
- Sift almond flour and powdered sugar into a bowl together.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, beat egg whites, granulated sugar and cream of tartar until stiff – about 5 minutes.
Tip # 1 If you are using food coloring you can add it in at this point. I use the gel type of food coloring. Gel or powdered food coloring are recommended.
- Add the dry ingredients into the whipped egg whites. This is where the technique comes in – stirring it just the right amount. If you under mix your macaroons will be lumpy and cracked and no feet or “pied” will form. If you over mix them they will be flat and also won’t have feet. Having feet or “pied” is the mark of a well made macaron. When your batter reaches the right consistency, it will slightly run off your spatula (see photo above) I think it looks like lava,
- Fill a large pastry bag with a large decorating tip. with your batter. My tip was round and about 1/2 inch across. I like to place my bag into a large glass or pitcher to hold it upright while I fill it. I closed off the end of the bag with a chip clip to prevent batter from coming out the top.
- Holding the bag upright, squeeze batter onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet. I just eyed the size of the macaron. You do want them to be as close to the same size as possible.
- Before putting them in the oven take the cookie sheet and whack it on the table or counter several times. This will help flatten and smooth out the top of the macaron.
- Let them sit on the counter for 30-40 minutes, before placing them in the oven. This will allow them time to dry out a bit before hitting the hot oven. They should be “tacky” to the touch, but not stick to your fingertips. This is another important step to assuring your macaroons develop feet! When they dry out they can’t spread out in the oven, and are forced to rise up. That’s what creates the feet!
- Bake for 20 mins in a 300 degree F oven. DO NOT UNDER BAKE, even if they look done! Otherwise they will stick to your tray.
- Allow them to cool on the baking sheet and mix up your filling. We used a butter cream.
How to Make Macaron Filling
Raspberry Buttercream Filling:
- For the raspberry macarons we smashed some fresh raspberries through a sieve and used the juice to flavor the butter cream.
- Whip butter with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy. Slowly add sugar.
- Add enough of the juice to buttercream to get a nice piping consistency, Transfer to a pastry bag, fitted with a small tip (about ¼ ” in diameter)
- Turn cookie shells onto their backs, and pipe a small mound of filling on one of them. Top with the other shell et Voila!
Lemon Curd Buttercream Filling: For the lemon version we used milk instead of the raspberry juice. Pipe the buttercream around the outside of the macaron and add a small spoonful of lemon curd into the middle. You can make your own lemon curd or buy store bought.
I think the lemon may have been my favorite!
We even did a few lemon raspberry combinations! I think we almost had as much fun making them and photographing them as we did eating them. But I must say eating them was pretty darn fun! I pleased to say that they are fairly easy to make. Don’t know why I was so intimidated by them for so long. Can’t wait to do it again and try some different flavor combinations.
Frequently Asked Questions
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How to Make French Macarons
Ingredients
- 3 Egg Whites
- ¼ C white sugar 50 g
- 2 C confectioners sugar 200 g
- 1 C almond flour 120 g (SEE NOTE BELOW)
- pinch of salt
- ¼ tsp cream of tartar 2 ml
Raspberry Filling
- ½ C salted butter 120 g
- 1 C powdered sugar 75 g
- 1 C 150 g fresh raspberries, worked through a sieve to extract 3 tbsp of juice
Lemon Filling
- Use Raspberry Filling but omit raspberries just and use cream or milk instead
- Lemon Curd
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300 degrees
- Beat egg whites, cream of tartar and sugar for 8-10 mins.
- Whip until they form a peak that stands upright.
- Then add the food coloring. Color does fade as it cooks, so do a shade or two darker than you want them to be.
- Sift almond flour, and powdered sugar. What remains will be the larger lumps of almond pieces. Just discard those, or use them to snack on You want a really fine powder mixture to create a smooth and pretty on top to your cookie.
- Fold flour/sugar mixture into the egg white mixture.
- This is where all your hard work can really go wrong. Approximately 65-75 turns of your spatula when folding is about the right amount of time. But again, it can be tricky,
- Transfer batter to a pastry bag.
- Pipe out 1 inch rounds on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Tap the pan hard at least 2-3 times to release the air bubbles. This will prevent the tops of your macaroons from cracking.
- Let them sit out for 30-40 minutes, or up to an hour if you want. This will allow them time to dry out a bit before hitting the hot oven. They should be “tacky” to the touch, but not stick to your fingertips. This is another important step to assuring your macaroons develop feet! When they dry out they can’t spread out in the oven, and are forced to rise up. That’s what creates the feet!
- Bake for 20 mins. DO NOT UNDER BAKE, even if they look done! Otherwise they will stick to your tray.
- Meanwhile mix the buttercream.
- Whip butter with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy. Slowly add sugar.
- Add juice to buttercream, and whip until combined. Transfer to a pastry bag, fitted with a small tip (about ¼ ” in diameter)
- Reverse cookie shells on their backs, and pipe a small mound of filling on one of them. Top with the other shell et Voila!
Nutrition Facts:
Gretchen says
These have been on my to-do list since you first posted them. Finally made them today and was so excited when I saw they had feet! I can always trust your recipes, thank you for that.
Princess Tatters says
French macaroons are so pretty! I’ve always wanted to try making them for my little Princesses tea parties but it was the kind of thought that never went as far as the oven. Your instructions made things seem simpler so maybe I’ll give it a try this time.
Leigh Anne says
I hope you’ll give them a try! They are fun to make and even more fun to eat!!
Jane says
hi, i was wondering, does this recipe work for high altitude? i live in colorado
Emily Jacobs says
Your cookies look beautiful! I actually had a chance to visit Ladurée this summer. Recently I have been craving macarons! I was wondering if your measurement for the almond flour was before or after it was sifted? Thanks! 🙂
Leigh Anne says
Thanks Emily. Isn’t Laudree so fun!! I measure the flour first and then sift it.
Jana says
I always loved French macarons, I gave this recipe a shot while baking them for the first time and they turned out perfectly!! Thank you for the tips and tricks! I can’t wait to make them again 🙂
Leigh Anne says
So glad to know they worked well for you! They are so fun to make.