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French Macarons

This basic French Macaron recipe makes the best cookies every batch. The Macaron should have a foot at the bottom and a hard crust without any cracks. The inside should be chewy and not hollow. You'll love this fool-proof recipe.
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 13 minutes
Resting time 1 hour
Total Time 43 minutes
Servings 35 cookies
Author Happy Happy Nester

Ingredients

Almond Paste

  • 72 grams egg whites room temperature
  • 205 grams powdered sugar
  • 190 grams fine almond flour
  • 1-5 drops food coloring this varies depending on the color you desire

Italian Meringue

  • 72 grams egg whites room temperature
  • 190 grams Baker's sugar or castor sugar
  • 60 ml water

French Sabayon (Macaron Filling)

  • 3 egg yolks whisk lightly
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 cup unsalted butter cubed and room temperature

Instructions

Almond Paste

  • Place all your dry ingredients into a food processor and pulse 16 times
  • Sift dry ingredients. This step will isolate the big pieces of almond which you will discard. If you use fine almond flour this step is not necessary.
  • Add egg whites to the almond and powdered sugar mix. Combine thoroughly and add your food coloring in at this time. Your dough will have a paste-like consistency. 
  • Cover with plastic wrap and let sit while you prepare the meringue.

Egg White Meringue

  • Place your egg whites into a mixing bowl. Attach the whisk paddle to the unit.
  • Meanwhile, mix the Baker’s Sugar and water in a small saucepan.
  • Heat the sugar over a low to medium flame.
  • Place a candy thermometer into the hot sugar sauce, stir until the temperature reaches 110 degrees Celcius.
  • Once it hits this temp, whip egg whites at medium speed.
  • Continue to heat the sugar to 116 degrees Celcius.
  • When your sugar reaches 116 degrees, your egg whites should form soft peaks.
  • Remove sugar from the stove and slowly add it to the egg whites. Continue to whip the mixture.
  • Whisk the sugar and egg meringue at a higher speed.
  • Whip for about 5 minutes and check to see if you have soft to hard peaks. Here is how you tell if you have soft peaks, you can place your whisk paddle into the batter and when you turn it upright the top tip of meringue with flop over on itself.
  • When you reach soft to hard peaks on your meringue, add about a third of it to the almond paste.
  • Mix the meringue and almond paste thoroughly together making sure the paste loosens up a bit.
  • Mix the rest of the egg whites into the almond paste.
  • Fold the dough with the spatula moving it along the outer part of the walls of the bowl. Now and then fold mixture into the middle. This will ensure that you don’t collapse the egg whites.
  • The dough should come off the spatula with a ribbon-like texture, and it should puddle in the bottom of your bowl.
  • Once you get the ribbon status, your dough is ready to pipe.
  • Place your piping bag in a tall glass and fold the top over the outside of the glass. This little trick keeps the dough from getting on the outside of the bag. Btw, I don't use a pastry tip, and I use my bag that has an opening about 1/2 inch in diameter.
  • Insert the dough into your bag.
  • Pipe a circle on your parchment lined cookie sheet. If you want to make a template of circles, trace a half dollar circle on the parchment paper and flip it over when piping. Also, make sure to leave about an inch in between circles since the dough will spread while drying.
  • When piping your macarons make sure to hold your piping bag perpendicular to the macaroon.
  • Once you pipe a cookie sheet of macarons, lift the sheet about 6 inches from the counter and drop back down on the surface. This procedure helps bring the air bubbles to the top of the surface so you can pop them with a toothpick. Eliminating the air bubbles prevents cracking on the top surface of the macarons.
  • Allow your piped macarons to dry and form a surface. You’ll know when it has this surface by touching it, and the dough does not stick to your finger.
  • Once the macaron shell is ready, place in a preheated 329-degree oven — Bake for 13 minutes.
  • Take cookies out of the oven and transfer the parchment paper and macarons to either the cooling rack or countertop. Let cookies cool before transferring to rack. If you take them off the paper while warm the bottom of the macaron will stick.

Sabayon Filling

  • Whisk the egg yolks in a medium-size saucepan. 
  • Add sugar and milk to the yolks.
  • Place your saucepan over medium to low heat.
  • Stir frequently with a rubber spatula. To test if the filling is done, there is a little trick. Take your finger and run it on the spatula, and the mixture should not run into the line.
  • Take off the stove and let filling cool. It should settle into two layers.
  • Transfer the filling to a mixing bowl and white it is cooling mix the two layers. Then add in small chunks of the room temperature butter.
  • The filling should thicken like buttercream. If it is runny, keep mixing for 8-10 minutes. As the butter cools, it thickens. 
  • Place in pastry bag and pipe on the bottom of a macaron. Then place the second macaron on top with the two feet sandwiching the filling.