Big Batch Macarons

Macaron shells resting before baking.

I took a big risk, but it worked! I made 400 macarons for an event in record time because of a few recipe and baking changes.

I made Oregon Raspberry Macarons, Lime Coconut Macarons, Mocha Macarons and they were all enjoyed at yesterday's reception, celebrating Nathan LeRud as the new Dean of Trinity Episcopal Cathedral.

As you know, macarons are delicious but finicky, so I was hesitant to implement my spur of the moment ideas, especially without testing them first. But the thought of cutting hours out of my work time was just way too attractive.

So here are the changes I made:

1. I increased my recipe by half to make more macarons.

With the new recipe, I can get a few more than 100 instead of 70 small macarons out of a single batch. I was tempted to double the recipe, but knew that if I made too much batter, it would be difficult to get the macaronage (the process of incorporating the dry ingredients into the egg whites) right.

Big Batch Macaron Recipe Quanities
225 grams egg whites, aged 2 to 4 days in the fridge and then brought to room temperature
270g ground almonds, sifted
405g powdered sugar, sifted
140g granulated sugar

Proceed as usual but lay out six sheetpans lined with parchment paper and set aside three pastry bags for the piping of the macarons.

Many Mocha Macarons!

2. I baked two pans of macarons at a time. 

The baking is what really eats up time. Usually I bake one pan at a time, in the middle rack of a convection oven. Each pan takes an average of 11 minutes, so you are looking at a full hour to bake a batch. The reason for baking one pan at a time is to ensure that the shells get even heat in the oven and end up with a nice rise and feet.  My solution was to put two pans in the 325 degree oven and then rotate them midway through the baking. Phew! It worked just fine.

The shells after baking.

For the Oregon Raspberry Macarons, I added a swipe of red to the tops of all the shells. I mixed red gel coloring with a bit of vodka to make a paint.

3. I asked my daughter to help me.

Another time consuming, but not hard job, is sorting the macarons into pairs. I asked my daughter Eleanor to take over the sorting while I prepared the buttercream fillings. Besides speeding up the process, it was nice to have company in the kitchen.

Eleanor sorting Lime Coconut Macarons into pairs.

Filling the macarons.

Filled and ready to eat Oregon Raspberry Macarons.

Embellishing Macarons

When it comes to getting creative with French macarons, bakers have moved well beyond just tinting the shells a variety of colors.

Macaron makers are getting wildly creative and the current trend is to embellish the tops with everything from melted chocolate and crushed Oreos to colorful toppings like sprinkles and Fruity Pebbles. Bakers are even painting the tops with streaks of color and edible gold.

Really there is no end to the creativity and I couldn't help but jump on the bandwagon with the macarons I made for Valentine's Day. I added a pop of violet color to the shells some black currant macarons, lines of dark chocolate to some mocha macarons and gold luster dust to some black raspberry ones.

I added all of these embellishments to already baked macaron shells. If you want to add toppings like crushed Oreos or shredded coconut, you add them to just piped macarons and bake them with the toppings attached. This way your additions will be sure to stay in place.

Macaron making is really getting fun!

For the black raspberry macarons, I tinted the batter light pink. Here are the macarons before baking.

After baking, I mixed some gold luster dust with vodka and painted the tops of all of the macarons.

I let the gold dry completely before filling them.

For the mocha macarons, I sorted the macarons into pairs and set them all out on parchment. Then I put some tempered melted dark chocolate in a disposable pastry bag and clipped a very small bit off of the tip. Then I simply piped lines off chocolate across all of the shells. I let the chocolate set before filling them. 

Filled mocha macarons.

Here's a closeup of the black currant macarons. Decorating these shells was really easy. I made a paint using a few teaspoons of vodka and a small amount of violet gel coloring. Then I added some of the paint to the tops of the shells and let them dry completely before assembling.

Pomegranate Raspberry Macarons

A bottle of Pomegranate Raspberry preserves from St. Dalfour, the company that makes my favorite Black Currant preserves, is what inspired me to create these colorful and flavorful macarons.

I noticed the preserves at my neighborhood grocery store and couldn't resist buying them. What I love best about preserves from St. Dalfour is that they are not too sweet. There's no cane sugar used in making them and instead the preserves are sweetened with fruit juice concentrate.

To make the buttercream filling, all I did was whip the preserves into unsalted butter and add a pinch of sea salt. It really couldn't be any easier and the tartness of the pomegranate really comes through and helps contrast the sweetness of the almond shells.

For interest, I painted the inside of my pastry bags with stripes of red gel coloring for a marbling effect. I like this technique a lot but it also kind of stresses me because I'm not in complete control over how the design will turn out. There's no way to know what's going to come out of the pastry bag until you start piping. The color of these luckily turned out to be a pleasant surprise.

Here's how I made them:
Pomegranate Raspberry Macarons
180g ground almonds, sifted
270g powdered sugar, sifted
150g egg whites, aged 2 to 4 days in the fridge and then brought to room temperature
100g granulated sugar
Red gel coloring

Line four heavy baking sheets with good quality parchment paper and set aside. Also, set aside two pastry bags for the piping of the macarons.

Sift together your ground almonds with the powdered sugar and set aside.

Whisk the egg whites (at room temperature) to glossy firm peaks adding the granulated sugar gradually in four parts.

Incorporate the dry ingredients into the beaten egg whites using a large rubber scraper.  Mix well. 

Fold the mixture with the rubber scraper by pulling down the sides and flipping the mixture over. Do this until you have a smooth mixture that falls like a “ribbon” off the scraper.

Using a small brush, paint some stripes of red gel coloring on the inside of the piping bags. Get the color all the way down to the tip but don't go crazy and use too much or you will have a mess. A little goes a long way.

Transfer the mixture into the two piping bags. Use rubber bands to close the piping bags.

One of my filled piping bags, now I just have to clip the tip and start piping macarons.

Clip the tip of the bags, one at a time, and pipe small quarter sized rounds, leaving 1-inch of space between each because they spread as they set.

The macarons resting before baking.

Leave to set for about 30 minutes or until the top has formed a crust and is not sticky to the touch.

While they are setting, preheat the oven to 325 degrees. A convection oven is preferable.  Bake one sheet at a time in the center of the oven for about 10 to 12 minutes or until the cookie is firm, matte and doesn't wobble when touched.

The macarons after baking.

Leave on the baking tray until cool then lift them all off the parchment carefully. You may need to use a thin knife or spatula to help lift them off.

Sort into pairs and fill with Pomegranate Raspberry Buttercream.

Sorted macarons ready to be filled.

Pomegranate Raspberry Buttercream
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
2/3 cup Pomegranate Raspberry preserves (I used St. Dalfour brand)
1/8 teaspoon sea salt
Red gel coloring (optional)

Whip the butter until it is light and smooth. Add the preserves and sea salt.

Whip this together until the filling is light and creamy. When you first start whipping the ingredients together, it will look like a curdled mess, but don't panic. The filling will eventually come together and be beautiful. Just whip it and whip it good! Tint the buttercream with red gel coloring if desired.

Filling the macarons.

I'm really pleased with how these turned out but am already planning my next macaron creation. There just are so many flavor/color combinations that I want to try. Stay tuned.....

Bat Macarons

A batch of macarons and a black edible ink marker are all you need to create these Halloweeny (is that a word?) bat macarons.

You might think you also need some artistic ability, but that's wrong because trust me, if I can draw a bat, you can draw a bat. To prove it, here's how in four easy steps:

All you need is a batch of macarons, sorted into pairs and a black edible ink marker. Add the bats before you fill the macarons.

Step 1:

Draw a wide "U" shape across the center of the macaron and curve the ends down a bit. Think of making a valley between two hills.

 Step 2:

Draw a circle or a "boulder in the valley" and add two small triangles for ears.

Step 3:

Don't let this next step trip you up because it doesn't have to be perfect. From each end of the wide "U" swoop downward and draw three upside down "U" shapes and connect them by drawing a seventh upside down "U" centered under the circle.

 Step 4:

Use your marker to fill everything in and voila, you have a bat!

An assortment of Halloween party appropriate macarons.

Candy Corn Macarons

These Candy Corn inspired french macarons are both festive and delicious, making them the perfect sweet treat for Autumn celebrations and my personal favorite, Halloween parties. 

I even think they taste better than real Candy Corn which is pretty much just straight up sugar and corn syrup mixed with artificial colors and flavors. Instead, I decided to cut the sweetness and fill these with vanilla buttercream.

I was able to make the white and yellow macaron shells from a single recipe by splitting the batter just after incorporating the dry ingredients into the meringue but before starting the macaronage or folding process.

Here's how:
Candy Corn Macarons 

180g ground almonds, sifted
270g powdered sugar, sifted
150g egg whites, aged 2 to 4 days in the fridge and then brought to room temperature
100g granulated sugar
Yellow food coloring

Line four heavy baking sheets with good quality parchment paper and set aside. Also, set aside two pastry bags for the piping of the macarons.

Sift together your ground almonds with the powdered sugar and set aside.

Whisk the egg whites (at room temperature) on medium high speed to glossy firm peaks adding the granulated sugar gradually in four parts. You don't want to whip the egg whites too quickly, this should take a good 5 to 7 minutes.

Incorporate the dry ingredients into the beaten egg whites using a large rubber scraper and mix just until everything is combined then stop and divide the batter in half. Tint one half of the batter with yellow coloring.

The half of the batter that I'm going to tint yellow.

I added quite a bit of gel coloring since macarons always lighten after baking.

Fold each of the mixtures with a rubber scraper by pulling down the sides and flipping the mixture over. Do this until you have a smooth mixture that falls like a “ribbon” off the scraper.

How the batter looks after folding.

Transfer the mixtures into separate piping bags. Use rubber bands to close the piping bags. Clip the tip of the bags, one at a time, and pipe small quarter sized rounds, leaving 1-inch of space between each because they spread as they set.

Leave to set for about 30 minutes or until the top has formed a crust and is not sticky to the touch.

While they are setting, preheat the oven to 325 degrees. A convection oven is preferable. 

Bake one sheet at a time in the center of the oven for about 12 minutes or until the cookie is firm, matte and doesn't wobble when touched.

Leave on the baking tray until cool then lift them all off the parchment carefully. You may need to use a thin knife to help lift them off.

Sort into pairs and fill with Vanilla Buttercream.

The baked macarons, sorted and ready for filling.

Vanilla Buttercream
3/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1/3 cup powdered sugar
pinch of sea salt
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
Orange food coloring

In a stand mixer combine the butter, sugar, sea salt and vanilla. Whip until smooth and light, this takes about 5 minutes. Tint with orange food coloring.

All done! Store the macarons in a sealed container in the refrigerator until you are ready to serve.

Cinnamon Dark Chocolate Macarons

A generous dose of cinnamon makes these macarons warm, comforting, spicy, fragrant and the perfect partner for a filling of dark chocolate buttercream.

Fall and my affinity for Moonstruck's Mexican Hot Chocolate were my inspirations for making these.

Baking them made my house smell heavenly and I really like the look of the cinnamon flecked throughout the macaron shells. These are natural beauties and now one of my favorite flavors. The cinnamon shells would also be great with fillings of pumpkin and apple so please stay tuned for those. I'm feeling inspired!

Here's the recipe:

Cinnamon Dark Chocolate Macarons
180g ground almonds, sifted
270g powdered sugar, sifted

2 tablespoon ground cinnamon

150g egg whites, aged 2 to 4 days in the fridge and then brought to room temperature
100g granulated sugar

Line four heavy baking sheets with good quality parchment paper and set aside. Also, set aside two pastry bags for the piping of the macarons.

Sift together your ground almonds with the powdered sugar and cinnamon and set aside.

The almond meal, powdered sugar and cinnamon before sifting.

Whisk the egg whites (at room temperature) to glossy firm peaks adding the granulated sugar gradually in four parts.

Incorporate the dry ingredients into the beaten egg whites using a large rubber scraper.  Mix well. 

Fold the mixture with the rubber scraper by pulling down the sides and flipping the mixture over. Do this until you have a smooth mixture that falls like a “ribbon” off the scraper.

Transfer the mixture into the two piping bags. Use rubber bands to close the piping bags. Clip the tip of the bags, one at a time, and pipe small quarter sized rounds, leaving 1-inch of space between each because they spread as they set.

Closeup of the piped macarons.

The macarons need to set for about 30 minutes before baking.

Leave to set for about 30 minutes or until the top has formed a crust and is not sticky to the touch.

Incorporate the dry ingredients into the beaten egg whites using a large rubber scraper.  Mix well. 

While they are setting, preheat the oven to 325 degrees. A convection oven is preferable. 

Bake one sheet at a time in the center of the oven for about 11 minutes or until the cookie is firm, matte and doesn't wobble when touched.

The baked cinnamon macarons.

Leave on the baking tray until cool then lift them all off the parchment carefully. You may need to use a thin knife to help lift them off. Sort them into pairs and fill with dark chocolate buttercream.

Dark Chocolate Buttercream
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/3 cup dark cocoa powder
1/3 cup powdered sugar

Whip together all of the ingredients until they are smooth and light. Transfer the buttercream to a piping bag for the filling of the macarons. Keep the macarons stored in the refrigerator until you are ready to serve.

Sorted macarons that are ready to be filling.

Filling the macarons.

All done!

Fig Macarons

I love these fig macarons and have no idea why it took me so long to make them. The rich honey flavor of the fig buttercream is so satisfying between the soft and chewy almond shells.

Trust me, these are fig newtons to the nth degree! The filling was also quick and easy to make because I utilized good quality fig preserves.

The fig preserves that I used for the filling.

I tinted the buttercream with a bit of coloring to mimic the gorgeousness of the flesh of a fresh fig and also added a brushstroke of green to the top of the macarons using a paint made by mixing gel coloring with a bit of vodka.

Making paint with a bit of gel coloring mixed with vodka. I used Wilton brand moss green coloring.

I hope you like these as much as I do, here's the recipe:

Fig Macarons
180g ground almonds, sifted
270g powdered sugar, sifted
150g egg whites, aged 2 to 4 days in the fridge and then brought to room temperature
100g granulated sugar

Line four heavy baking sheets with good quality parchment paper and set aside. Also, set aside two pastry bags for the piping of the macarons.

Sift together your ground almonds with the powdered sugar and set aside.

Whisk the egg whites (at room temperature) to glossy firm peaks adding the granulated sugar gradually in four parts.

Incorporate the dry ingredients into the beaten egg whites using a large rubber scraper.  Mix well. 

Fold the mixture with the rubber scraper by pulling down the sides and flipping the mixture over. Do this until you have a smooth mixture that falls like a “ribbon” off the scraper.

Transfer the mixture into the two piping bags. Use rubber bands to close the piping bags. Clip the tip of the bags, one at a time, and pipe small quarter sized rounds, leaving 1-inch of space between each because they spread as they set.

Leave to set for about 30 minutes or until the top has formed a crust and is not sticky to the touch.

The macarons setting before baking.

While they are setting, preheat the oven to 325 degrees. A convection oven is preferable. 

Bake one sheet at a time in the center of the oven for about 11 minutes or until the cookie is firm, matte and doesn't wobble when touched.

Leave on the baking tray until cool then lift them all off the parchment carefully. You may need to use a thin knife to help lift them off. Sort them into pairs, add a brushstroke of green to the tops if desired and fill with fig buttercream.

I love it when the macaron shells lift right off the parchment but sometimes I have to use a think spatula to help ease them off.

After sorting the macarons into pairs, I added a brushstroke of green to the top of one in each set.

Fig Buttercream
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
2/3 cup fig preserves
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
red coloring, optional
brown coloring, optional

Whip together the butter, fig preserves and salt until the mixture is light and creamy. Tint if desired with a bit of red and brown coloring to mimic the flesh of a fresh fig.

Filling the macarons.

All done! Keep the macarons in the refrigerator until you are ready to serve them.