Easy French Macaron Recipe (Macaroons)
I am often asked why have my macarons failed?! Why are there no feet?! Why have the macaron shells cracked? And which recipe do you use for your macarons? So here it is… french macaron recipe and troubleshooting.
On a recent holiday I found a 200 year old cookbook on my mums bookshelf. It tells that King Henry VIII granted an estate in Leadenhall Street to a Mistress Cornewallies in reward for the fine puddings that she presented to him. Follow these easy steps to make macarons fit for a king. You will aquire such indulgence that is pleasing to the palate and if you’re lucky enough perhaps you too will be granted an estate!
The picture above shows the 200 year old macaron recipe. They called them almond puffs. Personally I prefer to make them using my electric mixer using the recipe below.
French Macaron Recipe Ingredients
4 large egg whites (or 5 small) approx 140g (4.94 ounces)
1/3 cup or 70g (2.47 ounces) caster sugar (also known as superfine sugar)
1 1/2 cups or 230g (8.11 ounces) pure icing sugar. IF you wish to use icing mixture INSTEAD of icing sugar you will need 1 3/4 cups or 275g (9.7 ounces) icing mixture
1 cup or 120g (4.23 ounces) almond meal
2g (0.07 ounces) salt (tiny pinch)
gel food colouring (optional) note too much liquid will make the macarons fail so if it is your first time making them try with no colour until you’ve got the technique sorted.
Macaron Recipe Directions
This recipe makes approximately 40 shells or 20 filled macarons
Preheat the oven to 150C (302 degrees Fahrenheit)
Sift the almond meal and icing sugar and salt together, discarding any almond lumps that are too big to pass through the sieve.
Place egg whites and caster sugar into a bowl and mix with electric mixer until stiff enough to turn the bowl upside down without it falling out. How long this takes will depend on you mixer.
Continue to whip for 1-2 more minutes.
Add gel or powdered food colouring and continue to mix for a further 20 seconds.
Fold the almond & sugar mixture into the egg whites. This is the most important step and where most first time macaron bakers have trouble.
It should take roughly 30-50 folds using a rubber spatula but obviously this will vary depending on your folding technique. The mixture should be smooth and a very viscous, not runny. Watch the video to see what you are going for. Over-mix and your macarons will be flat and have no foot, under mix and they will not be smooth on top. See the macaron troubleshooting post for examples.
Pipe onto trays lined with baking paper, rap trays on the bench firmly (this prevents cracking) and then bake in the oven for approximately 20 minutes. Make sure you are using NON-stick baking paper or they will stick. Check if the macarons are done by quickly opening the oven and slightly pressing on top of one – if it squishes down slightly it’s not yet ready, close the oven so the oven temp doesn’t change. Taking them out of the oven too soon will mean the insides will drop and you’ll have hollow shells.
PLEASE make sure you watch the macarons FAQ and troubleshooting video. This way you can learn from the mistakes and questions of those who have made them before you.
Filling your macaroons
My favorite is flavoured ganache, but you can use jam and cream, butter cream or just eat them plain.
Ganache Recipe
100g (3.53 ounces) chocolate
30ml cream
Bring the cream to the boil and pour over the chocolate. Let stand for a minute and then stir. If it is not adequately melted then microwave for 20 seconds and stir – repeat until smooth. Allow to cool and thicken before piping onto macarons.
More macaron recipes for you:
|
Macaron trouble-shooting & FAQ
|
nut free macarons
|
orange choc macarons
|
 macaron ice cream sandwich |
SEE ALL RECIPES |
chocolate macarons
|
fun with macarons
|
Salted Caramel Macarons
|
My Cookbook
Stores that sell my book listed by country:
http://bit.ly/ARcookbook
All recipe quantities in the book are in grams, ounces and cups.
hey just wondering if you can use just gradulated sugar instead of caster?
That is one I have not tested – give it a go and let me know
Hi Ann, 😀
I have try to made the Macaron with your recipe, i love it and have fun doing it too, but it seem too sweet any way to cut down the sweetness?
I would like to make these for friends for the holidays. However, I have a few friends who have nut allergies. What can I use to keep the almond flavour or substitute the almond for those wanting a nut free treat?
Hi Grace at the end of the post there is a link to the nut free recipe.
Thank you so much Ann!
I will make sure to give you an update as soon as I get baking! Happy Holidays!
Hi ann if I want to make really small portions can I just use one egg white? Would that still work and also if you alter the portions does the mixing and folding times change as well? Many thanks!!
yes you can make 1/4 of the recipe and it will work fine
hi ann i dont understand but seems you forgot to answer my question
Do I use fresh or aged eggs?
hi maya either is fine, made no difference when I tested in this recipe
Hi Ann,
I am so excited to try this recipe! I recently became in love with the salted caramel macarons from a local bakery but they are rather expensive for one macaron. Do you happen to have a recipe for this? I’d greatly appreciate it!
Hi catherine, Usually the shells are not flavoured just the fillings. So you would need to make a caramel ganache and either add salt into it or sprinkle salt on the shells before baking (check the flavour of each component of the bought ones to discover how the have made it). If you google salted caramel ganache there are a few recipes out there.
Your recipe and instructions are great however I can’t seem to get this right. Something so easy shouldn’t be this difficult 😉
Batch 1 –No feet, lost their brilliant purple color and browned. Very brittle on the outside and sticky on the inside. They were glossy on the bottom. Only a couple of them cracked. I determined that they were slightly under mixed and that the temperature of my oven was too high at 150C.
Batch 2 – They were really cute……feet make a difference! But again they lost their brilliant purple color and browned. Less brittle/crispy on the outside and still sticky on the inside. These too were glossy on the bottom. None of them cracked. This time around I reduced the oven by 10 degrees. I took them out of the oven when they were still brilliant purple but they were not cooked as I couldn’t get them off the tray. They would stick on the bottom and fall apart from the top. I put them back in the oven for a few more minutes but then they browned top and bottom . I also used the weight measurements instead. They did turn out better than batch 1 but nothing like the store bought ones that I buy. The ones I buy a very yummy, a tad crisp on the outside and cake like on the inside and oh, yes very expensive.
Two trays baking is not working for me. Can I bake them in the middle of my oven, one tray at a time and if so at what temperature?
Would adding more almond flour make them less glossy on the bottom and less sticky on the inside and give them that cake like texture. I think the weight measurements work out better as I wasn’t sure how much to pack the cups (the more packed the cup is the more almond meal and sugar you get in the cup).
I didn’t fill any of the shells and put them in the fridge (so that I can compare the batches). Would filling them change the texture of them after they had time to settle?
Not sure if either of my batches are safe to eat does sticky mean they are not cooked on the inside?
Any help you can offer would be appreciated. I really would like to get this right without having to pay an arm and a leg for the store bought ones!
Hi Nia, Sounds like you are on track for great macarons. Yes they are fine to eat if sticky one the inside, they should not be dry inside. Yes the texture does change a little when filled and left to sit overnight in the fridge. Fill with ganache – if you look on this site for chocolate ginger or chocolate orange macarons there is a ganache recipe on both of them. Weight is more accurate than cups if you have scales then definitely weigh. Yes you can bake in the middle of the oven. If looking done but not yet cooked then try half way through placing an empty oven tray on the top shelf above them, shielding from heat coming from the top of the oven. Every oven is a little different. For the intense coloured macarons you need to use powdered colours.
Thanks Ann,
3RD time is a charm. Far from perfect but still really really good. 🙂 Can’t thank you enough for your wonderful how to instructions 🙂
Middle of the oven worked out pretty good. I definately need to get powdered food coloring as the colors are still off. (Never used powdered coloring before) so I have a no idea how to add it in and a question for you, in your video it looks like you are adding liquid coloring. What are you using?
Lovely nia, I am using gel food colour which is fine if you want pale or pastel macarons but not if you want the intense coloured ones. Gel colour is available at cake decorating stores.
Do I use fresh or aged eggs?
-Thanks Ann
Hi, I just wanted to know how many macaroons (not sides) does this recipe make?
How many degree for oven (up and low ), my macaron always no feet and stick in the paper after baking …:(
Hi Andrew, are you using non-stick baking paper? Watch the macaron FAQ video and see the example of macarons with different amounts of folding you will see the first one has no foot – try this test batch method to get a feel for what is just right.
Wax paper and baking paper got different ?
Wat speed u using when beating egg white for 8minutes ?my mixer have 1,2,4,6,8,10?
150c for up and down temperature when baking..?
How many hour to stay macaroon for dry his top ??
Hi Andrew, are you using non-stick baking paper? Watch the macaron FAQ video and see the example of macarons with different amounts of folding you will see the first one has no foot – try this test batch method to get a feel for what is just right.
Hey ann i have tried to make macaroons about four times and each time they have come out wrong. they arent hard on top and when they cool down they become like a biscuit texture they also do not have feet. here is a picture of them hopefully you know what i am doing wrong
thanks 🙂
Hi Hannah, They do look like a biscuit. Are you weighing your ingredients? Have you watched the faq video, hopefully that will shed some light on what could be going wrong. Looking at them I am now sure what has happened sorry.
I followed your recipe, step by step, however it takes me 65 folds.
Mmmm the other point was that my macarons haven’t the feet!!!! They are cracked!!! And the first batch looks better than second!! 🙁
I attacked a picture and I hope you can help me!!!!
Thanks Ann!!!!
Hi Margareth they are looking good – watch the macaron FAQ video and at 5:14 you can see the macarons from undermixed through to overmixed – yours look like the undermixed ones- the first ones in the picture no foot and with some cracks. Try as suggested in the video piping some batter, folding some more pipr some more… and you’ll get the hang of it in no time. The exact number of folds required will depend on the way you fold and what you are using to fold it as long as you know what works for you remember that and go with it.
Hallo Ann! Thanks alot for this recipe, its great 🙂
But, now I have a problem ( I have done fine macarons 5-6 times now ) the last one gets a hole under it?? They look fine, have a nice foot but no bottom, I don´t know what I do wrong.
Hi
thank you for your recipe.i’ve got question.can i use white egg podwer instead of egg white?thank you
Hi bita i have not tested that as egg white powder is pricey here – one other reader did try it and said they did not turn out great with the powder.
Hi Ann I am excited to try your recipe! Can you tell me what caster sugar is and I assume icing sugar is super fine sugar??? I read through a lot of your blog but did not see that mentioned. Judith
can u share a recipe from the book please
wow this recipe looks great!
can I use food colouring instead of powdered colouring
and what exactly is ganache and can you make vanilla ganache
sorry for all the questions i just want them to turn out good!
thank you Ann!
Hi Shelly, You can use gel colour or powdered colour or a very small amount of normal food colour – which will not give a strong colour. Too much liquid and your macrons will not work out. Ganache is made with chocolate and cream so for vanilla ganache you would use white chocolate and cream flavoured with vanilla, follow the link to the chocolate ginger macarons or chocolate orange macarons both have how to make ganache in their videos.
Hi Ann!
This is my fourth time making macarons but the first time using your recipe. The first three times…they came out absolutely hideous. This time they look beautiful! However, the center is still gooey. There are feet and the macaron looks like a macaron, however when I try to remove it, it sticks to the parchment. I’m using a fan-based oven so I set it to 125C (255F since I live in the USA). Should I increase the temperature? Right now they’ve been baking for almost forty minutes and they’re still not done ):
Also, I decided to omit coloring because I didn’t have any gels. Is it okay if I use the water food coloring? Many people have recommended against it but I think it defers between recipes.
Anyway, thank you for this recipe! I was so excited when I saw that they were smooth and had feet. I even sent a picture out to my friends 🙂
Thank you!
Anne (with an ‘e’)
Hi Anne, Fantastic to hear that you had success, were you using non-stick baking paper or ordinary greaseproof paper? If greaseproof they will stick regardless of how long you bake them. I use glad non-stick baking paper and nothing sticks to it – you can see a picture of the difference in the macaron FAQ video. Yes you can use ordinary colour but only a tiny amount – ie less than half a teaspoon so it will not give you much colour. Too much extra liquid and your macarons will not work.
Hello,
I am so sad mine didin’t turn out nice. First I think my electric mix doesn’t mix things very well, it is a large bowl, so it only mixes what is in the middle (sad). 2ndly I think I over mixed it. But the most problem I had is the oven. I have a gas oven, so I turned it to 160 to 170…but it still took me at least 40 min to bake and then it was flat out and burned… then it still stuck to the bottom of the tray…
Any suggestions for oven temperature? Is the reason why they stick because they were in there long enough? but they were getting burned at the edge…. still sticky at bottom..
Hi jennifer, if they were burning and still sticking it sounds like you needed to use the non-stick baking paper. Watch the macaron FAQ video that i just put up last week and see if it helps.