Delicate, dainty French macarons with crisp shells, pretty feet, and a soft chewy interior, sandwiched with silky French buttercream and raspberry jam. This recipe includes all the tips and troubleshooting you need to nail macarons on your first try.
gel food coloring (pink)a few drops, to desired color~1/8 tspest.
granulated sugarabout 100g, for the buttercream syrup½ cup
waterfor the sugar syrup
3 tbsp
egg yolks5
unsalted butterabout 226g, room temperature1 cup
salta pinch~¼ tspest.
vanilla extractfor the buttercream1 tsp
gel food coloring (pink and violet)used to tint the buttercream~0.06 tspest.
raspberry jamfor filling~3 tbspest.
Steps
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1
Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Sift the almond flour and powdered sugar together into a medium bowl, breaking up larger clumps with your fingers and discarding any coarse bits that won't pass through the sieve.
2
Transfer the sifted mixture to a food processor and pulse in short bursts (about 30, 20, then 10 seconds), scraping down the sides between pulses to get a very fine texture without turning it into almond butter. Sift again into a clean bowl.
3
Carefully separate the eggs, weighing out 100g of egg whites from three eggs into a very clean mixer bowl. Reserve the yolks for the buttercream.
4
Beat the egg whites on medium speed for about 30 seconds until foamy, then add the cream of tartar to help stabilize the meringue.
5
Continue mixing on medium speed while slowly adding the granulated sugar one tablespoon at a time, letting it fully incorporate, scraping down the bowl as needed.
6
Add the vanilla extract, and if coloring the batter, add the gel food coloring now rather than later. Continue mixing on medium speed for about 6 minutes until you get a glossy, stiff-peak meringue that holds its shape.
7
Sift the almond-sugar mixture into the meringue in three additions, folding gently with a spatula from the bottom up while rotating the bowl to avoid deflating the batter.
8
Perform the macaronage step: continue pressing and folding the batter with a spatula from the bottom up to release excess air bubbles, until the batter flows in a ribbon and a figure-eight drizzled from the spatula holds its shape for about 10 seconds.
9
Fill a piping bag fitted with a round tip (1A) and pipe 1-inch dollops onto the lined baking sheets, holding the bag straight up and down and finishing with a small twist to avoid tails. Leave about 2 inches between cookies.
10
Tap the baking sheets firmly on the counter a few times to release any large trapped air bubbles and flatten the tops.
11
Let the piped macarons rest at room temperature for about 40 minutes until a dry skin forms and the surface no longer sticks when touched. Toward the end of resting, preheat the oven to 270°F (about 132°C).
12
Bake the macarons for 16 to 18 minutes, rotating the pan 180 degrees halfway through (around the 8-minute mark) to help develop even feet.
13
For the French buttercream, combine granulated sugar and water in a saucepan, heat on low while stirring until the sugar dissolves, then increase to medium-high and cook to 240°F (soft-ball stage).
14
Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks on medium speed until thick and foamy. Once the syrup reaches temperature, slowly drizzle it into the yolks on medium-low speed and continue mixing until the bowl is no longer warm to the touch.
15
On medium-low speed, add the room-temperature butter a tablespoon at a time, then mix in a pinch of salt and vanilla extract. Continue mixing for 5 to 6 minutes until smooth and creamy, then tint with gel food coloring if desired.
16
Match cooled macaron shells into pairs of similar size. Pipe a ring of buttercream onto one shell, add a dollop of raspberry jam in the center, and sandwich with the matching shell.
17
For best results, let the assembled macarons rest in the refrigerator for a day or two so the filling softens the shells. They keep 4 to 7 days refrigerated or up to 2 months frozen.
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