Food
Mouth Watering Passion Fruit Macaron Recipe
Dec
I ate a lot of food in pastry school. Like, a LOT.
I basically gained the freshman 15 all over again when I started pastry school. There was such a large volume of everything that we baked. Plus, it was all freaking delicious so it was really hard not to eat it all.
Being around like minded people, my friends and I often chatted about our favourite pastries, along with different techniques for making them. For me, macarons have always been a favourite. I love the texture of the meringue cookie as well as the intense flavours of the fillings. There are also SO many filling options! Being able to experiment with different flavours and infusing different ganaches is so satisfying.
The technical aspect also really appeals to me. I like recipes that are nitty gritty and require a lot of focus and attention to detail. I also find it incredibly rewarding to be able to nail a notoriously hard recipe.
After talking with some classmates about making macarons, I decided I wanted to try making them again that weekend.
I made a full batch of pistachio macarons (my absolute favourite) and planned on bringing them to class on Monday.
However, the macarons were so good that I ate all but one of them. That’s about 24 macarons in roughly 3 days! Looking back I can’t really comprehend how I ate so many in such a short amount of time haha.
The one macaron that made it to a single friend was very well received though.
So, without further ado, here’s how to make a batch of macarons so delicious, you’ll be tempted to eat them all in a shockingly short period of time.
The Ingredients
Macarons don’t require an extensive list of ingredients, but they are very specific in the type of ingredients used. For instance, you have to use almond flour. Unfortunately, you can’t substitute this for AP flour or bread flour as the recipe just won’t turn out the same. You can, however, substitute another nut flour that is milled just as finely. I’ve seen some people make macarons with sesame flour to make them nut free!
For the sugars, you need both icing sugar and superfine sugar. I’ve always found that I have to go to a bulk foods store to get superfine sugar, but it’s possible you can find it in your grocery store. It also goes by caster sugar or instant dissolving sugar, so it could be hiding under one of those names as well!
For your egg whites, you want to make sure that they’re aged egg whites. Aging the egg whites means that they’ve been separated from the yolk at least 24 hours before you want to use them. I usually leave mine out at room temperature for a few hours before using them as well.
The chocolate that I use for the filling in this recipe is an utterly delicious type of Valrhona chocolate. They don’t technically call it chocolate, but it’s basically white chocolate that has a very intense passion fruit flavour. It is SO good. I highly recommend using this for your filling!
If you want to colour the shells of your macarons, make sure that you use gel food colouring so that you don’t dilute the batter! These colours are also more concentrated so you can get really vibrant colours without using a ton.
The Tools
Macarons are the kind of recipe that do require a few special tools in order to ensure success.
Oven Thermometer: this is going to be essential in your macaron baking because having the oven too hot or too cold can drastically affect the way your macarons turn out. So, get yourself an oven thermometer because your oven is often off from the temperature that it’s displaying.
A Digital Scale: making macarons is a very precise process, so it’s imperative that you use a digital scale to get exact measurements.
A Stand Mixer: the egg whites have to whip for quite a while, so it’s a lot easier to use the stand mixer when beating them. You could use a handheld mixer, but your arm will be pretty tired by the end of it.
Piping Bags: I’d recommend using 2 piping bags when making macarons – one for the cookie batter and another for the filling. I also think it’s easier to use piping bags than trying to modify a ziploc bag if you don’t have one.
A Plastic Dough Scraper: this dough scraper is necessary for the macaronnage. This is the step where you use the dough scraper to push air out of the batter so that it forms ribbons. You won’t really be able to achieve this texture with another tool, so I highly recommend having one on hand.
The Cookie & Filling
The cookie of a macaron should be crisp on the outside with tell tale “pieds” or feet on the bottom. The pieds look like a small ruffle that sits under the top of the cookie. In order to ensure that your cookies get pieds, you need to let them sit out for at least 30 minutes before baking so that they develop a skin. Trust me, you do not want to skip this step!
In addition to the crisp exterior, the interior of the cookie should be soft with a chewy texture.
For the filling, I chose to make a ganache, but there are a number of other options for filling macarons. Jam is also another really popular option, or a more classic chocolate ganache. If you go with a type of ganache there are endless possibilities to the flavour that you can infuse the cream with!
For another filling option, check out these 4th of July macarons that are filled with a classic buttercream.
The magic of macarons is revealed in letting them set for 24 hours before eating them. I know it sounds silly and frustrating to have to wait so long, but trust me you need to do this. After 24 hours the cookie and the filling better meld together to create a perfectly textured cookie. If you eat one right away after they’re made, I don’t blame you, but the cookie and filling will seem separate. The cookie also seems dry to me if eaten right away. So please, try to practice some patience and wait to eat them!
How to Make Passion Fruit Macarons
Using a circle cutter about 1.5″ in diameter, draw 60 circles onto 3 pieces of parchment paper. Flip the paper over so that the marker is facing down and use the sheets of parchment to line 3 sheet pans.
Sift the ground almonds and the icing sugar together using a medium sieve. If there is a large amount of large almond pieces left, weigh them and replace them in your original measurement of almond flour. Set aside.
Whisk the egg whites until they reach firm, glossy peaks. While the egg whites are whisking, gradually add in the caster sugar along with any food colouring that you plan on using to colour the shells.
Once the egg whites have reached firm, glossy peaks, use a spatula to add them to the almond flour and icing sugar mixture, mixing them in with the spatula until the mixture is homogenous.
Now, it’s time for the macaronnage. Using a plastic scraper, press down on the mixture, going back and forth and forward. We do this to press some of the oxygen out of the egg whites. Do this for no more than five minutes until the mixture forms a ribbon on the scraper.
Transfer your mixture to a piping bag fitted with a plain tip about 8mm in diameter. It’s easier to fill the bag if you twist the end with the tip closed and fold back the top of the bag when filling.
Now, take you piping bag over to your parchment lined trays and begin to pipe your macarons! Position your tip at a slight angle to the tray and gently apply pressure until the mixture nearly fills the entirety of the circle. Finish off with a flick of the wrist and repeat to pipe the remainder of the trays.
When an entire tray has been piped, tap the tray on the counter a couple of times to release any air bubbles.
Preheat your oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. While the oven is preheating, allow the macarons to sit for at least 30 minutes. This allows them to develop the pieds that are a classic feature of French macarons.
After 30 minutes bake one tray at a time for 10-12 minutes. Check them after 8 minutes to see if they’re wobbly. If they are, bake for another 3-4 minutes.
While the macarons are baking, make your ganache. See the recipe card below for the ganache recipe!
Filling & Assembling Your Passion Fruit Macarons
Once all the macarons are done baking and have cooled to room temperature, it’s time to fill them!
Marry the cookies in pairs on your parchment paper: one row flat side up and one row flat side down.
Remove your ganache from the fridge. It should be viscous but not too hard. You also don’t want it to be too runny or it will run right out of your macarons. If it’s at all warm, wait until it’s fully cooled. Take your cool ganache and add it to a piping bag fitted with a plain tip about 5mm in diameter.
Pipe the ganache onto each upturned shell. I like to pipe any filling in concentric circles so that it’s more even and I don’t have to rely on the top cookie to press down any filling and possibly break the cookie. Once you’ve piped filling onto all the shells, put the tops on and you’re almost done!
If you’d like, you can roll the sides of the macaron in toasted coconut so that it sticks to the ganache.
Now comes the hard part of waiting 24 hours to eat your macarons. This is also an essential step as it helps the cookie and the filling to really meld together. Store your macarons in an airtight container in the fridge until ready to eat.
Eating & Storing Macarons
I know it seems brutal to have to wait 24 hours to eat your macarons, but trust me it is well worth it! I mostly like making macarons just to have as a treat around the house. They’re usually just an experiment to try different flavours, but they’re great for a number of occasions. Eggnog or peppermint flavours would be a great addition to a holiday cookie box. You could also try classic flavours like pistachio, rosewater or vanilla to add to brunch, afternoon tea or a special birthday meal.
I always store my macarons in an airtight container in the fridge. I’ve never kept macarons for more than a few days (they’re too tasty), but I think they would be good for about a week in the fridge.
Troubleshooting
These macarons aren’t absolutely perfect, but they’re pretty good! Ideally, the feet wouldn’t have spread, but they still taste great!
If you make macarons and they don’t come out perfectly do not worry at all! They’re very finicky to make and they do require some practice. However, this guide is very handy if you’d like to try to figure out where you may have gone wrong. But remember, even if they don’t come out perfectly, I’m sure they’ll still taste delicious, so try not to be too hard on yourself!
Having fun and experimenting is part of the fun of making macarons!
- Tess
Mouth Watering Passion Fruit Macarons
Ingredients
- 150 g aged egg whites
- 100 g superfine caster or instant-dissolving sugar
- 180 g almond flour
- 270 g icing sugar
- 225 g Valrhona passion fruit inspiration
- 1/2 cup whipping cream
- 25 g toasted coconut optional
- gel food colouring optional I used rose petal pink and golden yellow
Instructions
Macarons:
- Using a circle cutter about 1.5" in diameter, draw 60 circles onto 3 pieces of parchment paper. Flip the paper over so that the marker is facing down and use the sheets of parchment to line 3 sheet pans.
- Sift the ground almonds and the icing sugar together using a medium sieve. If there is a large amount of large almond pieces left, weigh them and replace them in your original measurement of almond flour. Set aside.
- Whisk the egg whites until they reach firm, glossy peaks. While the egg whites are whisking, gradually add in the caster sugar along with any food colouring that you plan on using to colour the shells.
- Once the egg whites have reached firm, glossy peaks, use a spatula to add them to the almond flour and icing sugar mixture, mixing them in with the spatula until the mixture is homogenous.
- Now, it's time for the macaronnage. Using a plastic scraper, press down on the mixture, going back and forth and forward. We do this to press some of the oxygen out of the egg whites. Do this for no more than five minutes until the mixture forms a ribbon on the scraper.
- Transfer your mixture to a piping bag fitted with a plain tip about 8mm in diameter. It's easier to fill the bag if you twist the end with the tip closed and fold back the top of the bag when filling.
- Now, take you piping bag over to your parchment lined trays and begin to pipe your macarons! Position your tip at a slight angle to the tray and gently apply pressure until the mixture nearly fills the entirety of the circle. Finish off with a flick of the wrist and repeat to pipe the remainder of the trays.
- When an entire tray has been piped, tap the tray on the counter a couple of times to release any air bubbles.
- Preheat your oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. While the oven is preheating, allow the macarons to sit for at least 30 minutes. This allows them to develop the pieds that are a classic feature of French macarons.
- After 30 minutes bake one tray at a time for 10-12 minutes. Check them after 8 minutes to see if they're wobbly. If they are, bake for another 3-4 minutes.
Ganache:Â
- While the macarons are baking it's time to make the ganache.
- Bring the cream to a simmer over medium high heat, making sure that it doesn't boil over or scald.
- While the cream is coming to a simmer, roughly chop your passionfruit chocolate.
- When the cream has come to a simmer, pour it over the chocolate and allow it to sit for a couple minutes before stirring to combine. If there are any lumps in your ganache, strain it through a fine mesh sieve
- Set the ganache aside in the fridge to allow it to cool enough to pipe.
Filling & Assembly
- Once all the macarons are done baking and have cooled to room temperature, it's time to fill them!
- Marry the cookies in pairs on your parchment paper one row flat side up and one row flat side down.
- Remove your ganache from the fridge. It should be viscous but not too hard. You also don't want it to be too runny or it will run right out of your macarons. If it's at all warm, wait until it's fully cooled.
- Take your cool ganache and add it to a piping bag fitted with a plain tip about 5mm in diameter.
- Pipe the ganache onto each upturned shell. I like to pipe any filling in concentric circles so that it's more even and I don't have to rely on the top cookie to press down any filling and possibly break the cookie.
- Once you've piped filling onto all the shells, put the tops on and you're almost done!
- If you'd like, you can roll the sides of the macaron in toasted coconut so that it sticks to the ganache.
- Now comes the hard part of waiting 24 hours to eat your macarons. This is also an essential step as it helps the cookie and the filling to really meld together. Store your macarons in an airtight container in the fridge until ready to eat.
Notes
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