Parisian Macarons
We Also Love
- Rate178
- Comments()
- Yield Makes about 16 filled macarons
Add to Shopping List
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups plus 1 teaspoon confectioners’ sugar
- 1 cup (4 ounces) finely ground sliced, blanched almonds
- 6 tablespoons fresh egg whites (from about 3 extra-large eggs)
- Pinch of salt
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- Macaron Filling
Directions
- To make the macarons: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl, whisk together confectioners' sugar and ground almonds. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip egg whites with salt on medium speed until foamy. Increase speed to high and gradually add granulated sugar. Continue to whip until stiff glossy peaks form. With a rubber spatula, gently fold in the confectioners' sugar mixture until completely incorporated.
- Line baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside. Fit a pastry bag with a 3/8-inch #4 round tip, and fill with batter. Pipe 1-inch disks onto prepared baking sheets, leaving 2 inches between cookies. The batter will spread a little. Let stand at room temperature until dry, and a soft skin forms on the tops of the macarons and the shiny surface turns dull, about 15 minutes.
- Bake, with the door of the oven slightly ajar, until the surface of the macarons is completely dry, about 15 minutes. Remove baking sheet to a wire rack and let the macarons cool completely on the baking sheet. Gently peel off the parchment. Their tops are easily crushed, so take care when removing the macarons from the parchment. Use immediately or store in an airtight container, refrigerated for up to 2 days or frozen for up to 1 month.
- To fill the macarons: Fill a pastry bag with the filling. Turn macarons so their flat bottoms face up. On half of them, pipe about 1 teaspoon filling. Sandwich these with the remaining macarons, flat-side down, pressing slightly to spread the filling to the edges. Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.
- Variations: To make coffee-flavored macarons: In step 1, add 2 drops brown food coloring to the egg whites after they are whipped. In step 4, blend 1/2 cup macaron filling with 1 1/2 teaspoons espresso powder dissolved in 1/2 teaspoon warm water for the filling. To make cassis-flavored macarons: In step 1, add 2 drops purple food coloring to the egg whites after they are whipped. In step 4, use 1/3 cup good-quality cassis jam for the filling. To make pistachio-flavored macarons: In step 1, add 2 drops green food coloring to the egg whites after they are whipped. In step 4, combine 1/2 cup macaron filling with 1 tablespoon pistachio paste for the filling.
Recipe Reviews
More from Food
New From Our Blogs
-
an ode to vinegar
Everyday Food Blog, February 22, 2012 -
Three Oscar-Themed Dinner Parties
Taste of the Test Kitchen, February 22, 2012 -
today's recipe: pork tenderloin with sauteed apples and leeks
Everyday Food Blog, February 21, 2012 -
today's recipe: Huevos Rancheros
Everyday Food Blog, February 20, 2012 -
today's recipe: Chicken and Lentil Burger
Everyday Food Blog, February 19, 2012
My first try at macarons, too, and mine came out perfectly -- legs and all! I was a bit skeptical about the ground almonds but there was no gritty texture at all! I used a dab of gel paste (just a dipped toothpick) and they were a lovely pink. I filled them with a white chocolate coconut ganache, also pink. One problem (mine, not the recipe) : Piping them was a challenge! Anyone have a helpful hint on how to control the piping of this somewhat "flowing" batter to get a uniform result?
This was my first attempt and they came out PERFECTLY! We let them sit out for an hour and a half (not 15 minutes as suggested) and the ones we baked on parchment paper slid right off vs. the ones we baked on Silpats. We baked them for exactly 8 minutes and used convection setting. Leaving the door slightly ajar really helped the baking process, too. We used semi-sweet chocolate ganache to fill them...YUM!
(cont.) I have tried many a macaron recipe, and this one probably gave me the worst results, to be honest. My shells were cracked and there were no feet, the tops were over cooked while the insides were too gooey. I would also recommend using almond meal, as home-ground almonds were too heavy for these shells and the consistency was far too gritty.
This recipe was awful. First of all, you can't add food coloring to a macaron recipe, you have to use either coloring paste or coloring powder. If you use liquid or gel coloring your shells will crack. Secondly, the best way to get the little feet at the bottom of the macarons is to leave the egg whites out in a sealed container. You can do this for up to a week, but I like to leave them out just until they're at room temp. And after you pipe the macs, leave them to dry for 2 hours.
love the idea that you can make different flavors from one main recipe!
QUESTIONS for those who have tried this recipe 1) how was the texture of these cookies given they call for home-ground almonds (as opposed to almond flour) ... were they at all "gritty"? 2) has any one tried both this recipe and MS's other recipe titled "French Macarons" http://www.marthastewart.com/318387/french-macaroons My 13 yo is in love with these cookies and wants to make them for a French class project, so we are looking for a recipe that's both easy & good. MERCI!
QUESTIONS for those who have tried this recipe 1) how was the texture of these cookies given they call for home-ground almonds (as opposed to almond flour) ... were they at all "gritty"? 2) has any one tried both this recipe and MS's other recipe titled "French Macarons" http://www.marthastewart.com/318387/french-macaroons My 13 yo is in love with these cookies and wants to make them for a French class project, so we are looking for a recipe that's both easy & good. MERCI!
I think this is the easiest recipe on the internet. I had 2 previous attempts with David Lebovitz recipe on Marcaron's and both a fail. I was able to successfully make Macarons on the 1st attempt. I am elated that I no linger have to pay$1.50 per Macaron at a trendy bakery any more. I can now make as many flavor concepts that I want and enjoy them with great pleasure.
Thanks-you Martha and your brilliant test kitchen. On 2 the next challenge!
This is by far the EASIEST macaron recipe out there! On my first try I followed the recipe as written, and although the batch came out slightly burnt (as others have posted), they were still yummy and gorgeous--crisp outside shell, chewy soft inside--and they had nice FEET! On my second try I lowered the heat to 330?Ǭ? and that seemed to do the trick. One more thing: a hand blender with whisk attachment works better with the amount of egg whites in this recipe.
In France, they're known as macaroons. In English speaking countries it's macarons simply to distinguish from non-French macaroons.
I believe kspuds is right. There is a difference, as he/she said, between macarons and macaroons. Macarons are all the rage in France right now.
kspuds -- these are ALSO known as MACAROONS. Look it up!
I followed this recipe and it worked fairly well. Managed to burn the first batch, but adjusted my oven temp down about 25 degrees and shortened the cooking time to around 10 minutes. I also decided to use silpats instead of parchment after the first batch and found them to be much easier to get up.
These are MACARONS, not macaroons. Macaroons have coconut in them, macarons are little sandwich cookies.
Loved making these. I wasn't able to get feet, but this is my first time making macaroons. There is always next time!
Made these as written and they turned out perfect- no cracks and nice feet! I think that the difference between the recipes re temperatures has to do with cracking the oven door. My oven set at 350 with the spoon in the door was about 300.
I have the Martha Stewart Baking Handbook and there's a recipe for French Almond Macaroons. Why are the baking temperatures different? The one in the book says to bake at 300 degrees F. and this recipe says to bake at 350 degrees F. Are there any differences between these cookies? I really want to make these cookies, Thank you.
I tried this recipe today. The results was really fantastic! I've tried other recipe before, but it just didn't turn out well. I tried this today, and I'm really very very happy with the outcome. Even the Macaroon Filling was very good! I mixed with other flavours to get varieties. However, I found them all to be quite sweet. The next time I attempt, I will reduce the sugars! :)