Here’s our easy-enough-for-beginners Macaron recipe for creating these pastel wonders at home.
Macarons
Makes about 36
Ingredients
- 1⅓ cups (160 grams) confectioners’ sugar
- 1¼ cups (120 grams) almond flour
- ½ cup aged egg whites, divided (see note)
- Gel food coloring*
- ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons plus ½ teaspoon (126 grams) granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoons water
- ½ teaspoon (2 grams) meringue powder
- Desired filling (recipes follow)
Instructions
- Line the back side of baking sheets with Silpat nonstick baking mats.
- In a medium bowl, sift together confectioners’ sugar and almond flour. Add ¼ cup egg whites and desired food coloring. Set aside.
- In a small saucepan, bring granulated sugar and 3 tablespoons water to a boil over medium-high heat. Let simmer until a candy thermometer registers 248°F/118°C, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat meringue powder and remaining ¼ cup egg whites at low speed until frothy.
- When sugar mixture reaches 248°F/118°C, remove from heat. Increase mixer speed to high, and add sugar mixture in a slow, steady stream, being careful not to let sugar mixture hit sides of bowl. Mix at high speed until mixture is glossy with smooth peaks, 10 to 15 minutes. Gently fold almond flour mixture into whipped egg white mixture in thirds, being careful not to deflate egg whites.
- Spoon mixture into a piping bag fitted with a #10 or #12 round tip, and pipe 1½-inch circles 2 inches apart on Silpat on back side of prepared pans. Lift pan to a height of 6 inches above counter, and drop to release air bubbles. Repeat 3 or 4 times. Let stand at room temperature until macarons form a skin, 20 to 30 minutes. (Macarons should feel dry to the touch and not stick to the finger.)
- Preheat oven to 280°F. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, rotating pans halfway through baking. Remove Silpats from baking sheets immediately after removing from oven. Let cool completely before filling. (Shells may be placed in airtight containers and frozen for up to 1 month before filling and serving.)
- Spoon or pipe about ½ teaspoon desired filling over flat side of half of cookies. Place remaining cookies, flat side down, on top of filling. Store in airtight containers in refrigerator for up to 1 week, or freeze for up to 1 month.
Notes
*We used Wilton Icing Colors in Leaf Green, Lemon Yellow, and Rose.
Aged Egg Whites
Instructions
- To age egg whites, place 8 to 12 egg whites in a medium bowl. Cover with plastic wrap, and let stand at room temperature for 3 to 6 hours. Alternatively, egg whites may be collected over the course of a week or a month and kept in an airtight container in refrigerator. Let egg whites come to room temperature before using.
so do you add the 1/4 of not-whipped egg whites to the sifted almond flour and confectioner sugar and not mix at all?
Hi Mariana, correct, you do not mix. If you mixed at this stage, it would turn into a paste that would not incorporate into the beaten egg white mixture later. You whisk together the confectioner’s sugar and flour, but only add the egg whites and food coloring to the bowl (no stirring). In Step 4, the contents of this bowl are then carefully folded into the beaten egg white mixture in thirds. Does that make sense?
The shells cracked in the oven no matter how long I left them to dry before baking. Some that didn’t crack developed uneven feet during baking. Any tips on what might have wrong here? Thanks!
Hey JC,
Thanks for reaching out! After speaking with our test kitchen, they mentioned the issue might lay in over-mixing your egg whites. Incorporating too much air into the egg whites will make the batter more susceptible to cracks. Another issue comes about when folding in your almond meal in with the egg whites. This delicate process, called macaronage, must be done so that the batter is still creamy but not too of full of air— a proper folded mixture will have the consistency of soft serve ice cream.
As for the uneven feet, this often occurs when transferring piped macarons from kitchen to oven. Any jostling or sudden movement can cause the macarons to slide slightly and become un-level.
We hope this has been helpful and that you give these macarons another shot. Happy baking!
Would you recommend baking these one pan at a time? Also, what should you do with the mixture remaining in the bowl or piping bag while the first batch is in the oven?
Abbie,
Thanks for reaching out! We recommend baking these all at once, to insure that the mixture remains fresh and at the proper temperature. If you feel more comfortable baking one pan at a time, that’s fine too! You can just leave the piping bag on the counter at room temperature.
Let us know if you have any other questions.
happy baking!
I have a copy of the magazine. The amounts in grams are 150g for the confectioners sugar, 150g for the almond flour and 150g for the granulated sugar. The recipe above gives different gram measurements. I have baked these twice and the flaws I have seen appear to be related to technique as opposed to amounts-maybe? My main error may be too much air in my final batter. I have also had the issue of batter dripping from my piping tip. I have to work quickly not to have a mess. I think I may stir at the end a little too long or didn’t get enough of a stiff peak when whipping the egg whites.
Hi Ellen,
Thanks for reaching out! Stirring at the end is a tricky rope to walk. There is a fine line between stirring too little and over-stirring. Can I recommend the Bob’s Red Mill Better Baking Academy lesson on Macarons? There is also an IGTV video to follow along. https://bakefromscratch.com/march-vanilla-bean-macarons-strawberry-buttercream/