french macarons
Hey, y’all! After 3 successful consecutive batches of macarons in one weekend, I can (somewhat) confidently say that I have found my recipe sweet spot! My first successful batch ever was several months ago. It took 5 hours and 3 ruined batches to come out with only a dozen that looked pretty good. They’ll drive you crazy. You’ll think – oh, just a few ingredients! Easy! What can go wrong?! Y’all. Y’ALL. A lot can go wrong.
In case you haven’t heard, macarons are one of the toughest things to master in baking because they are so dang temperamental. Every little thing affects them – sifting flour well enough, oven temperature variations, over-mixing, under-mixing, not letting them rest long enough before going into the oven, heck – even the humidity in the air can affect whether or not they turn out well. My science background and stubbornness led me to test several hypotheses and come up with some tips that worked for me each time. Maybe after baking these you’ll realize why they cost $3 a pop at your local bakery.
Here’s to hoping they work for you – and if they don’t, I’d like to be the first to welcome you into the “I thought this would be easy, but macarons are the worst and why don’t they have feet and smooth tops and where in my life did I go wrong” club. It’s a joy to have you as a member. And if you get macarons right on your first try, go buy lottery tickets.
MACARON TIPS
It’s all about egg temperature. This is the single most important piece of the puzzle that I’ve found. When I say that the eggs need to be room temperature, don’t be like me and set the eggs on the counter for a total of 4 minutes and then get impatient and cross your fingers hoping the recipe will still work. It likely won’t. Let them sit for several hours to really become room temperature.
Use whole eggs and not egg whites from a carton – separating the egg whites to use in the recipe isn’t hard. Here’s a demo if you’re unsure how to do it. But yes, whole eggs. The carton of egg whites has never worked for me.
If you’re in a time-crunch, a risky hack I found is to put the 3 eggs that the recipe calls for in a bowl and microwave for 15 seconds. Check them after 15 seconds to see if they are close to room temperature and if not, only microwave them for about 8-10 more seconds at a time to get them there. You don’t want hot eggs. Again, this approach is risky, so I’ll stand by my primary suggestion to just leave them on a counter and go about your day. They’ll be ready to use in a few hours.
Let the egg mixture whip on high speed for around 8 minutes. If you’re unsure when you’re done mixing, stop the mixer and see if stiff peaks form. Think alfalfa’s hair – it should be able to stick straight up without falling back down.
Mixing in the dry ingredients – this is the second most important puzzle piece. Once the egg whites have formed stiff peaks and you’ve sifted the almond flour and powdered sugar into a bowl and stirred, it’s time to combine the wet and dry ingredients. Over-mixing and under-mixing are both problematic here. I’ve found stirring exactly 65 times to be my sweet spot. Literally only 65 times. At that point, it looks sort of like the consistency of thick lava and that’s my cue to stop mixing and pour into a piping bag.
Piping bags – put a piping bag into a large, empty glass and wrap the edges around the lip of the glass. This keeps the piping bag sturdy while you pour in the mixture. It holds it perfectly without flopping around and spilling the mixture you’ve worked so hard to make.
Let the macaron shells sit for 40 minutes before baking – this is the third and final most important puzzle piece. The feet of the macaron are kind of the crowning achievement. When you peek into the oven and you see that they’re there, your heart should skip a beat. Letting the piped macarons sit on the baking sheet for 40 minutes allows them to form these feet. Don’t rush the process!
6. Be stubborn. It’s likely your first batch won’t be magazine worthy and THAT’S OKAY! The good part is that they’ll probably still taste great, so close your eyes and eat them. And then try again. It’s us versus them. You’re doing great.
INGREDIENTS
Things you’ll need:
Piping bags
Parchment paper
Sifter/Strainer
Baking sheets
Electric mixer
For the shells:
3 egg whites (room temperature – see Tip #1!)
¼ tsp cream of tartar
¼ tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
Gel food coloring
¼ cup granulated sugar
2 cups powdered sugar
1 cup almond flour (I use Bob’s Red Mill Super-fine Almond Flour)
For the filling:
½ stick of butter (room temperature)
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
INSTRUCTIONS
Separate the room temperature egg whites from the yolks. Remember – roooooom temmmmmperature eggggs (see Tip #1!). Discard the yolks and beat the egg whites using an electric mixer. After about 1-2 minutes, the egg whites should look foamy. At this point, add in the cream of tartar, salt, vanilla, and granulated sugar. Turn the mixer on high and let it do its thing for about 6 more minutes (see Tip #2!)
While the egg whites are beating, sift the powdered sugar and almond flour into a medium sized mixing bowl. I use this handheld strainer that has small holes and it seems to keep out the larger clumps of flour and sugar perfectly. Not saying this is the best tool to use, but it gets the job done for me. Stir the sifted powdered sugar and almond flour together until combined.
At this point, your egg white mixture should be forming stiff peaks (see Tip #2 – think alfalfa’s hair). Add food coloring – a little at a time until you reach the desired color. Note that when it bakes, the color will fade a bit, so I’d add slightly more than I thought necessary. Mix on high until uniform.
Ok – now’s the time to fold in the dry ingredients (see Tip #3!). Pour the flour/sugar mixture into the beautifully colored egg white mixture and using a rubber spatula, stir about 65 times. It’s important not to over-mix or under-mix. Both negatively affect the outcome of these things. The final consistency should be like a thick lava.
Pour this mixture into a piping bag (see Tip #4!). Pipe small circles onto a baking sheet that has been lined with parchment paper. I usually space them about 2 inches apart. I usually end up with 2 baking sheets full. Once the baking sheets are full, tap them on a hard countertop to get rid of any air bubbles that may have formed during the mixing/piping process. Then leave the dang things alone for 40 minutes (see Tip #5!).
Use this time to preheat the oven to 300 degrees and remind yourself that you are worthy and beautiful even if your macarons act stupid in the oven. It’s not your fault. Maybe it’s the humidity. Maybe your kids were too loud and scared the macarons. Maybe it’s just the current political climate. There are a million things that can go wrong. You’re doing great.
After 40 minutes, say a small prayer and place one baking sheet into the oven (middle rack). Bake for 18 minutes. Honestly, I’d set your oven timer at about 16 minutes just to keep a close eye on them. Mine are consistently ready at 18 minutes, but I know oven temperatures vary, so your sweet spot could be slightly more or less. After around 18 minutes, take them out and repeat the process for any additional baking sheets you’ve filled. Don’t touch the baked macarons until they’ve cooled a bit or else they will stick to the parchment paper.
Make the filling. While you’re waiting for the macaron shells to bake, put the room temperature butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract into a stand mixer and beat on medium with a paddle attachment until it’s reached the texture of frosting – about 3-4 minutes. If you’d like to add food coloring to the filling, you can stop the mixing halfway through, add in the gel food coloring, and mix until uniform. I usually like to leave mine white, though.
Once the shells are baked, put the filling into a piping bag, pipe onto a macaron shell, and place another on top. Like a sandwich. Why am I explaining this. You know what they’re supposed to look like.
Eat them. Share them. Love them. And be proud of them. May none of us ever be as high maintenance as a macaron. And all God’s people said Amen.
