A complete guide to a perfect french macaron

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A complete guide to a perfect French macaron is a post which is going to help you create the perfect macaron and answer all your macaron related queries. 

I am a big big macaron lover. The first time I ever tasted a macaron was at Pooja Dhingra’s, Le 15 cafe in Mumbai city and I absolutely loved it. Making macarons is an art in itself. You need to get the right textures, chewiness, crisp shell, perfect feet and so on. Trust me, just the right recipe doesn’t do it all. You need to work on your oven skills, batter consistency and most of all PERFECTION WITH PRACTISE 

How do you achieve so much ????

Let me help you …

The first time I decided to try macarons, I got into real details of how it should look, taste, feel, etc. And just like many of you, I was never satisfied with what I baked. My family loved it each time I made them but that inner satisfaction of mastering the art was far away. After many attempts, I finally got to PERFECTION and that calls in for a celebration… So here’s everything you need to know about macarons. I hope it helps you create some stunning ones

Guide To A Perfect French Macaron

Difference between macaroons and macarons  ??

What’s a Perfect Macaron like  ??

A perfect macaron has unbroken feet, a smooth, crisp & glossy top shell with a chewy inside, no cracks and a filling that is in perfect balance with the size of the macaron shell

Tips & Tricks – Guide To A Perfect French Macaron

1. Silicon mat or parchment paper

Some bakers prefer using the silicon mat and some prefer the parchment paper. I recommend using a silicon mat. You can use a regular silicon sheet or the ones meant for macarons, both work well. When macarons are baked on a parchment sheet they normally get slightly brown at the bottom which shouldn’t happen. If you do not have a silicon mat make sure you use good quality parchment paper or wax paper this won’t get the bottom brown. If the parchment paper is too thin (not good quality) your macaron shells will be darker at the bottom

2. Macaron Template   

I always use a macaron template. It is important your macaron shells are of the same size to make perfect macarons. If they aren’t they do not look good and sometimes the filling even oozes out. You do not require a template if you working on a macaron silicon mat. If you working on a parchment paper or any regular silicon mat, place the template sheet below it and pipe the macaron mixture. Once done remove the template from below and there you have all the macaron shells of the same size. A macaron shell size is normally 3.5 cms (circle) however you can make them as big or small you’d like.

3. Food color

Make sure to use gel-based food colors in your macaron mixture. Using liquid colors may change the texture and consistency of the mixture. I like to keep the macaron shells light in color, see what suits you best.

4. Cream of tartar

A lot of people skip the cream of tartar in their macaron recipe, however, I never do that. Yes .. Never skip this one. I believe that the cream of tartar is what creates magic and yields perfect macarons. Macarons are perfect only when your meringue is foamy & stiff. Cream of tarter makes sure the egg whites are whipped well and does not deflate easily while you folding in the other ingredients. If the whipped meringue (egg whites) deflate easily the macarons will not form its feet and may even not get a shape (flat macaron shells)

5. Almond meal

 Make sure to grind & sieve almond meal even if its the best you’ve purchased. You do not want any lumps or pieces of ground thick almonds. Your almond meal should feel just like flour. What I like to do is add the icing sugar (from the weighed icing sugar itself, no extra sugar but the same icing sugar that was weighed for the macarons) to the grinder while grinding the almond powder. This will keep away the moisture in the almonds, therefore, giving you a light & fine powder (not lumpy)

6. Egg whites

You do not require aged eggs for macarons. Just make sure the eggs are at room temperature

7. Resting macaron shells

 Once the macarons are piped it is important to let them sit out for 30 mins before baking. The macarons should form a skin on top. Thus, when you touch the top of the macaron it should feel dry with no batter sticking to your finger. Only once the top dries, you can go ahead and place them in the oven. Do not let it sit out for more than 40 to 60 mins. 30 mins is perfect.

Macaron Batter & consistencies – Guide To A Perfect French Macaron

In addition to the above tips, you need to get the consistency right. This, however, happens only with practice.

When folding the stiff egg whites & sugar (meringue) with the icing sugar & almond flour make sure the mixture is not over beaten nor under beaten. The batter consistency should look like molten lava. When you pick the batter with the spatula it should be smooth and drop slowly. The batter should not be runny. Use the number 8 technique. The number eight technique is when you pick the batter with the spatula and try making a number 8 by moving the spatula and dropping the batter while forming the number in the same batter bowl. It should not be runny but drop smoothly forming the number. However, once dropped, within 20 to 30 seconds the number should sink into the remaining batter in the bowl (it should not be visible)

Similarly, when the batter is put in the icing bag, it should not flow out on its own but only when you apply a little pressure by holding the top of the bag.

However, if the batter is runny it will ooze out of the bag on its own. Macarons made with a batter like this will have no feet.

Know what went wrong – Guide To A Perfect French Macaron

Reasons for cracked macarons shells ??

Over mixed batter 

Did not let them dry well before baking

Reasons for no feet, less feet, uneven feet ??

Over mixed batter which leads to making the batter runny

The egg whites & sugar mixture (meringue) was not beaten well (stiff peaks)  

Oven temperature is low

Reasons for hollow shells ?? 

The egg whites were beaten too much 

Oven temperature is high

Reasons for soft macaron shells ??

The oven temperature is too low 

Macarons are underbaked (you need to bake them for few more minutes)

Reasons for sticking to the baking sheet or silicon mat  ??

Undercooked

Didn’t wait once baked and immediately  took it off the sheet when warm 

Guide To A Perfect French Macaron

Oven Instructions 

You may follow all the above tips & tricks but your macarons may still turn out to be a disaster, therefore, make sure the baking process is right

Temperature 

Macarons are normally baked at 160 Degrees Celsius / 320 Degrees Fahrenheit. You may set your oven at this temperature, however, your macarons may still go wrong. Note: Every oven is different. Therefore, its good to invest in an oven thermometer to know the exact temperature of your oven. Some oven temperatures even drop while baking, some ovens heat up quick. An oven thermometer will tell you the exact temperature of your oven every second. 

Rack position

Regular ovens come with three racks. Top, bottom & middle rack. Macarons need to be baked on the middle rack for balanced baking. However, you may want to see what suits you best as each oven is different. 

Preheating oven

Very very important in any baking. It is compulsory to preheat the oven at 170 degrees Celsius for 20 to 30 mins before baking macarons. Once preheated bring the temperature to 160 degrees and place your macarons in the oven.

Convection Fan

The oven fan helps to distribute heat evenly.  However, skip the option if your oven comes without a fan option

Macaron patterns – Guide To A Perfect French Macaron

Here are some additional tricks

Dusting

Macaron dusting can be done using cocoa powder. Just after piping the macarons dust them with cocoa powder using a sieve.

Method: Put a teaspoon of cocoa powder in a sieve and keep tapping it while moving over the macaron tray (just like you dust icing sugar over cakes). Let the macaron shells dry for 30 mins. Once done put them to bake.

Macarons with swirls of color

Take a nozzle bag, using a brush put strokes of different edible gel colors to the bag. Put in the batter and start piping the macarons 

Recipe – Guide To A Perfect French Macaron 

These cookies are finicky but once you get it right you going to be so proud of yourself. They look fancy and can also be used sandwiched with any filling you like

Ingredients 

Macaron Shell

• Egg Whites: 55 grams (Room Temperature)
• Icing Sugar: 100 grams
• Almond Powder: 50 grams
• Castor Sugar: 25 grams
• Cream of Tartar: 1/8 teaspoon (very important)

Chocolate Coffee Filling 

• Dark Chocolate: 1 Cup or 185 grams
• Fresh Cream: ¾ Cup
• Salted Butter: 1 tablespoon
• Instant Coffee Powder: 1 tablespoon

Instructions

For the macaron shell

• Sieve the Icing sugar & almond powder together, set aside
• In another bowl, beat the egg whites on slow speed for 10 Seconds and then add a pinch of cream of tartar
• Add the Castor Sugar 1 tsp at a time, beating on medium speed until the egg whites form stiff peaks
• Add any color of your choice to this mixture. Always make the batter one shade darker than the desired color, as macarons turn lighter after baking
• Fold in the Almond powder & Icing sugar mixture with the egg whites.
• The mixture should feel like molten lava consistency. Follow the 8 no pattern method to check the consistency
• Do not over mix or under mix the batter
• Once done, put the mixture in a nozzle bag, pipe circles onto a baking paper. Tap to remove extra air bubbles and let the macarons dry out for ½ hour until the top layer of the macarons dry
• Bake at 160 degrees in a preheated oven for 18-20 mins ( preheat for 30 mins)
• Let cool completely and only then they will leave the baking sheet

For the filling

• Heat the fresh cream along with the coffee powder until it comes to a boil or microwave it for 60 secs
• Add the chopped dark chocolate to the hot cream, mix until all the chocolate is well melted. Add the butter, mix well and set aside.
• Let the mixture sit at room temperature for 8 hours
• Once set pipe the filling onto a macaron shell and sandwich it using another shell

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Perfect French Macarons (Recipe Card) – Guide To A Perfect French Macaron

Lastly, kindly note that macarons are one of the most finicky cookies to make. Therefore, you shouldn’t get disheartened if there do not work out in a couple of attempts. Make sure to keep trying till you succeed. 

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