Attention macaron lovers! I have been excited about this post for a while. I took a macaron making class about a year ago and I am finally getting around to sharing what I've learned in the most informative 3 hours of my life. Even though I bake pretty often, I was intimidated by the thought of making them for years. My sister and I decided to give the class a whirl and boy was it inspiring! It not only provided me with the proper ingredient ratios of a macaron, but visually showed all of the steps that must take place during the process to achieve the perfect cookie. Although this may be one of the most difficult desserts to master, I am here to tell you it is totally possible! After about 4 attempts, I feel pretty confident in my recipe and technique (which is going to sound a bit challenging at first read) but trust me when I say you will be so happy you took the plunge. This recipe makes about 30 macarons, so just think of all the money you will be saving when your sweet tooth kicks in! I have come to realize that a baking scale is pretty important when measuring the ingredients. Macarons are extremely delicate and can crack or sink while baking if not properly measured. In addition to an ingredient list I have included an equipment list (all can be purchased on amazon if needed). Stay tuned for lots more macaron posts in the near future. My brain is exploding with all the delicious flavor combinations I have planned for us. READY, SET, MACARON!
"If you give a woman a macaron, you feed her for a day. If you teach a woman to macaron, you feed her for a lifetime" Ha! Had to.
Equipment list -
electric mixer with whisk attachment and paddle attachment
food processor for cookie crumbs
baking scale (in grams/oz/lbs)
flour sifter (I prefer to use a fine mesh strainer)
rubber spatula
stainless steel measuring bowls (grease residue can hide in the plastic bowls)
large aluminum cookie sheet
parchment paper
2 piping bags
Wilton tip 12 (for cookies) & 1A (for filling)
Ingredient list for cookies -
110 grams egg whites
1/4 teaspoon cream of tarter
100 grams castor sugar (Amazon)
120 grams almond flour (cheapest on Amazon)
140 grams powdered sugar
20 grams double stuffed Oreo cookie crumbs with the filling removed
For Oreo buttercream -
4 TB unsalted butter (room temp)
12 double stuffed Oreo fillings (scrape off with the back of a knife)
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1/8 cup (2 TB) Oreo cookie crumbs with fillings removed
1. A few hours before making your macarons, measure egg whites and store at room temperature in an air tight container.
2. Before beginning, measure EVERYTHING in advance to starting your macaroons. I use a bunch of small measuring bowls and I have them all ready to go on the counter. Make sure to crush your Oreos well in a food processor (not by hand). The crumbs need to be extremely fine or they will be too heavy for the cookie to bake properly. Make sure to remove filling beforehand and save for making the frosting.
3. Stir together the almond flour, powdered sugar, and Oreo crumbs. Sift this mixture well into another bowl and discard any large crumbs left behind. This will help to achieve a very thin (not lumpy) batter.
4. Time to begin! If you are using a KitchenAid electric mixer then you are in luck! I have the perfect times and speeds for you to follow to achieve the perfect consistency of your egg whites. It is crucial that you do not under-mix or over-mix in this step. Make sure you are using the whisk (and not the paddle) attachment. Add egg whites and cream of tarter to your mixing bowl and follow the steps below -
Set a timer for 1 minute and beat on speed 4
Add half of your sugar
Set the timer for 1 minute and beat on speed 4 again
Add the rest of your sugar
Set the timer for 2 minutes and beat on speed 6
Scrape the bowl (especially the bottom)
Set the timer for 2 minutes and beat on speed 8
5. The egg whites should now resemble shaving cream and are ready for the next step. Using your rubber spatula, slowly fold in a third of your dry ingredient mixture. Continue folding until moist. Never stir or mix vigorously, only gentle continuous folding or you can disrupt the batter. Add the next third of the dry ingredients and continue folding and pushing the mixture down against the bowl. Dump in the remainder of the flour mixture into the bowl and finish folding. This will be the most important step in the process to know when you have achieved the right consistency. You want to stop when the batter starts to resemble flowing lava. Do the drip test with your spatula to make sure. Drop a ribbon of batter over the bowl. Once dripped, it should hold its shape for a few seconds and then fall back into itself making a smooth surface.
6. Place parchment paper on your baking sheets. Pour the batter into your piping bag fitted with the Wilton 12 tip. Pipe circles onto the parchment paper leaving a space on each side. I like to print macaron templates online to put under the parchment paper so they are all uniform in shape. If you do this, just make sure to remove before baking.
7. Firmly tap the tray on the counter a few times to get rid of any air bubbles. I actually prefer using a toothpick to pop any air bubbles as it seemed to work better to get them all. Let the macarons rest on the counter for 45 minutes to 1 hour. This will allow them to form a "skin" which helps prevent them from spreading out while baking. You know a skin has successfully formed when the macaron batter no longer sticks to your finger when touched.
8. While the macarons are drying out, prepare your frosting. Using the paddle attachment on your electric mixer, beat butter and cream filling. Scrape the sides of the bowl and add powdered sugar. Beat for about 1 minute until smooth. Scrape the bowl once again and beat in Oreo crumbs. Add frosting to the piping bag fitted with the Wilton 1A tip and set aside.
9. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Make sure your oven rack is set in the middle or lower half of the oven. If the macarons are too close to the heat they could crack while baking.
10. Each oven is a little different when heating, so this is the tricky part. The sweet spot for baking these guys is between 13-15 minutes depending on the size of them. For me, 14 minutes is usually just right. If your oven cooks a bit faster and they start to brown, you should cut down your cooking time by a minute in the future. Any browning on the macaron will cause them to be crunchy. It took me a few batches to really get comfortable and figure out what worked best in my kitchen.
11. Let the macarons cool on the cookie sheet for at least 15 minutes. If you try to remove them too early (while they are still hot) the bottoms will stick to the paper.
12. Remove cookies from the parchment paper two at a time and fill with buttercream. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week. They are best if left to mature for 24-48 hours (this is when they start to become chewy). So yes you should WAIT if you can! Before eating, remove from refrigerator and let sit for 5 minutes. This will prevent breaking when biting.
YOU DID IT! (Applause) I think this calls for an Instagram post, tag me!