French Macarons are a fun, colorful, and sweet treat, especially when they are egg-shaped. Download your free template here.
“Ooh La La”. “Très Magnifique”, and Très bien” are just a few French phrases that perfectly describe how wonderful these French Macarons are.
Delicate in nature, the cookies themselves are made from egg whites, almond flour, and sugar. Macarons bake up sweet and are crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside – delicious perfection.
The details of a French macaron matter. It’s the small things. See that little uneven, bumpy ridge around the perimeter? The French call that the “foot”. The foot is what makes all the difference in a macaron. In fact, without the foot, a French Macaron is considered a complete failure.
Is the flavor of a French Macaron what matters to you? It matters to us and the flavor variations are all about the filling. Is it chocolate you like? White chocolate? How about raspberry? All these flavors work perfectly but don’t stop there, use your imagination.
History of the French Macaron:
Similar to quiche, the French macaron may not have gotten its start in France at all. There are multiple rumors of its history and it seems like it’s a France vs. Italy situation. In the spirit of full transparency, we are egg experts, not historians so we took to Wikipedia.
According to the online encyclopedia and going all the way back to the 8th century A.D. Macarons were being made in Venetian monasteries. Around the year 1533, during Renaissance times, Frances Queen Cather de Medici’s Italian chef introduced them to her. Now, at that time they were a single cookie, not a sandwich cookie and there were no fillings.
Fast forward to 1792, two Carmelite nuns made macarons popular while trying to seek asylum in Nancy, France. During the French Revolution, the nuns needed a place to stay on their journey. The nuns would bake up batches of macarons and sell them to raise funds to pay for their housing. In fact, they became nicknamed, “Macaron Sisters”.
Fast forward to us one more time because the filling is as important as the cookie. 1930 is when the macarons became a sandwich-style cookie with filling. If you have ever searched French macarons on the internet, then you’ve probably been led to the famous Laduree Ladurees’ Pierre Desfontaines has been credited with the filled version but not without rebuttal from Claude Gerbet who also takes claim to its creation.
It’s All About the Eggs
Since eggs are the star ingredient of these French macarons it’s very important that you start with high-quality eggs like those from Utopihen.
This may sound silly but the greatest partner Utopihen has is our hens. We believe they are part of our family which is why our hens live in small family flocks. Just like nourishing your family is important to you, nourishing our hens is just as important to us.
By letting our hens roam and eat plants, insects, and a well-balanced feed we produce a happy environment which produces happy hens. Which in turn provides happy and healthy eggs. And since we don’t believe in the use of hormones or antibotics you can rest easy knowing you’re getting nothing but high-quality nutrients every time you crack open one of our eggs.
Your family and our hen families all need a healthy earth to live on. We know that eating is so much more than healthy ingredients, it’s also about your desire to care for the earth and every being on it. That is why we’re so committed to sustainable farming, the humane treatment of animals, small family farms and bringing you Pasture Raised eggs. We care about this journey toward a better planet and look forward to you joining us on it.
Tips for Making Perfect Macarons
- Make sure your egg whites are at room temperature. Cold egg whites will cause uneven baking.
- Make sure to tap the cookie sheet on the counter after piping, this will release any air trapped in the batter.
- Don’t omit letting the piped macarons sit for 30 minutes or until no longer tacky on the surface. This is crucial to getting that perfect “foot” around each cookie.
- The sky’s the limit when it comes to filling flavors, our favorites are chocolate ganache, white chocolate ganache, and raspberry puree. We provided recipes, and they are all two-ingredient options.
About the Raspberry Puree:
We chose to go with a homemade version that’s a little tart to balance the sweet of the macaron shells. But if you are short on time, you can use the raspberry jam from a jar. Just put a little in a jar and give it a good stir to make it more spreadable.
Now it’s your turn to bring a little bit of the Italian and French history of the macaron into your own home. We know you and your family will enjoy each and every bite.
French Macaron with Raspberry & Chocolate Fillings
Ingredients
Macaron:
- 1 Cup Confectioners Sugar
- 3/4 Cup + 1 Tbsp Almond Flour
- 2 Large Egg Whites, Room Temperature
- 1/8 Tsp Cream of Tartar
- 1/4 Cup Granulated Sugar
- 1 Tsp Vanilla Extract
Chocolate Ganache:
- 1/2 Cup Semisweet Chocolate Finely Chopped
- 2 Tbsp Heavy Whipping Cream
White Chocolate Ganache
- 1/2 Cup White Chocolate Finely Chopped
- 1 Tbsp Heavy Whipping Cream
Raspberry Puree
- 1 Cup Frozen Raspberries
- 1/3 Cup Granulated Sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- Line cookie sheet with parchment paper.
- Mix your confectioner sugar and almond flour, sift mixture over a bowl twice to remove any large clumps. Toss the large clumps after each sifting.
- In a bowl fitted for a mixer add the eggs and cream of tartar. Whisk until soft peaks forms.
- Reduce mixer down to low and slowly pour in the granulated sugar. Turn mixer up to high speed. Whisk until you see stiff peaks.*
- Add in the vanilla extract and whisk until well combined.
- Once stiff peaks are reached sift almond flour mixture over the meringue mixture. Fold the almond mixture into the meringue mixture. You will fold for quite a few folds, about 30-40 times. The end result should smooth, shiny and drip like ribbons from the spatula.
- Color as desired. **
- Pour into a piping bag fitted with a smooth round tip. If using the egg template, place it under your parchment paper. We suggest printing and using two of the templates. Remove templates before baking.
- While piping, keep in mind that batter will spread slightly, so stay on the inside of the template lines, about 1/8 of an inch from the edge.
- Bang cookie sheet on the counter to release any trapped air bubbles. Let stand for 30 minutes or until the surface is no longer tacky. This is the step that will give you the "foot" of the macaron.
- Place in the oven to bake. Reduce temperature to 325°F. Bake 10-11 minutes or until crisp and surface is smooth and firm. Let cool completely. Do not keep macarons in a high humidity environment.
- If using more than one cookie sheet, repeat the process of bringing the oven up to 375°F and then reducing it again to 325°F.
Fillings:
Semi-sweet and white chocolate ganache:
- Heat the heavy cream and pour over chocolate, let sit for a few minutes.
- Stir in small circular motions, stir until completely combined and smooth.
- Cool until ganache is soft and spreadable but not stiff.
Raspberry Puree:
- Place raspberries and sugar into saucepan.
- Heat at medium heat, stir to break down the raspberries, bring to a simmer. Simmer for about 20-25 minutes.
- Let cool completely.
- Place your fillings in piping bags. There is no need for a tip, so keep the opening small.
Assembly:
- Match up your macaron cookie pairs, flip one of the halves over.
- Pipe filling onto cookie, keep filling 1/8 of an inch from the edge.
- Sandwich together with the second cookie half. Filling will spread once you put the second half of the cookie together and press very gently.
- Store in an airtight container.
NOTES:
