This Strawberry Macaron recipe is bursting with strawberry flavor and because we use the Swiss meringue method for making macarons, this recipe is foolproof!
Ahhh, the beautiful delicate French confection known as macarons.
They are so lovely, so delicious, and notoriously finicky!
Le sigh.
But I have good news! If macarons have ever been temperamental with you, this recipe will be your new best friend.
Let me explain.
The base for the batter for French macarons is made of meringue + almond flour + powdered sugar. The French method for making meringue involves beating raw egg whites with sugar. It’s an easy process, but it yields a somewhat unstable meringue.
And this is why macarons can be so tricky.
If you use a more stable meringue, you are much more likely to have success when making macarons. I’d even say, making macarons becomes foolproof with a more stable meringue!
So then the question is, what’s a more stable meringue?
There are two other methods for making meringue in addition to the French method: the Italian method and the Swiss method. I talk about both the French and the Italian methods in my post on Apple Pie French Macarons.
This recipe for Strawberry Macarons uses the Swiss method for making meringue to make macarons, and that’s what this post focuses on. Basically, instead of beating raw egg whites with granulated sugar (like in the French method), in the Swiss method for making meringue you heat the egg whites and sugar to dissolve the sugar. Subsequently, you beat the egg white/sugar mixture until it forms stiff peaks. And then you carry on making the batter the same way that you would with French meringue.
Heating the egg whites and sugar is an extra step that takes about five minutes more, but is absolutely worth it. This step is what makes this recipe foolproof!
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The Best Strawberry Macarons Recipe
Ingredients for Strawberry Macarons
- Almond flour
- Powdered sugar
- Strawberry powder
- Egg whites
- Granulated sugar
- Strawberry extract
- Red gel food coloring
How to Make Macarons Using the Swiss Method to Make Meringue
- Add the granulated sugar and egg whites to the bowl of a double boiler.
- Whisk until the egg whites are frothy and the sugar is dissolved. You can test this with your fingers. Dip a finger into the egg white mixture and rub it on another finger; if you don’t feel sugar crystals, it’s good to go. Alternatively, you can test this with a thermometer; the temperature should be around 150F.
- Add the egg white/sugar mixture to a large bowl and use a handheld electric mixer to beat until it forms stiff peaks.
- Add 1/3 of the almond flour mixture to the meringue and use a rubber spatula to gently fold it in.
- Continue folding the almond flour mixture into the meringue 1/3 at a time.
- Be careful not to over-mix. A good test is to see if you the batter falls off the spatula in ribbons to make a figure 8 shape.
- Line 2 large baking trays with parchment paper or silpat liners. Fit a piping bag with a round tip, and transfer the batter to the piping bag. Pipe the batter into 3/4-inch circles about 1 inch apart.
- Tap the trays firmly against the countertop a few times to release any air bubbles. Let the piped cookies sit at room temperature until they form a skin and feel dry on top, about 30 to 60 minutes. And then it's time to bake!
How to Store Macarons
Store macaron shells in an airtight container layered between pieces of parchment paper at room temperature for up to 3 days before filling them.
Once filled, you can store macarons in an airtight container layered between pieces of parchment paper in the fridge for up to 1 week.
Equipment for This Recipe
- Double Boiler
- Mixing Bowls
- Handheld Electric Mixer
- Rubber Spatula
- Piping Bag
- Baking Trays
- Silpat Baking Mats – I find that the silicone mats that are specifically for macarons make it easiest to pipe macarons evenly.
Variations on This Recipe
- Go blue. Make these macarons blueberry instead of strawberry! Use blueberry powder, blueberry extract, blue gel food coloring, and crushed freeze dried blueberries for topping.
- Or go with raspberry. Do the same thing but with raspberry instead.
- Other fruit will work too! Mango and banana are also delicious choices.
Macaron FAQs
How Do You Make Foolproof Macarons?
In the French method for making the meringue for macarons, raw egg whites are whipped with sugar. The resulting meringue is combined with almond flour and powdered sugar to form the base of macarons. However, as you know if you’ve made macarons using this technique, French meringue is finicky about humidity, temperature, folding techniques, etc.
The best way I know of to make foolproof macarons that work every single time is to use the Swiss method for making meringue. This is the method we use to make this Strawberry Macarons recipe.
To make Swiss meringue, heat egg whites and granulated sugar over a double boiler until the sugar is dissolved. Then whip the egg whites to stiff peaks and continue on with the recipe in the same way you would when you use French meringue.
However, Swiss meringue is much more stable and as a result the macaron batter is a lot less temperamental. This really is a foolproof method for making macarons!
How Do You Flavor Macarons?
There are two ways you can add flavor to macarons: in the shells or in the filling.
When I make macarons, I like to use the Swiss meringue method for making the batter if I want to flavor the macaron shells. This is because this type of meringue is much more stable and a lot less finicky than French meringue.
Here are a few ways you can flavor meringue:
- Extracts, such as vanilla, almond, peppermint, etc.
- Spices, such as cinnamon, nutmeg, etc.
- Fresh citrus zest, such as lime, lemon, orange, etc.
- Powdered freeze fried fruit
- Instant coffee powder
More Macaron Recipes to Make
Did You Make This?
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Xoxo, Faith
Strawberry Macarons
Ingredients
Strawberry Macarons:
- 105 grams fine almond flour
- 100 grams powdered sugar
- 5 grams strawberry powder
- 100 grams egg whites
- 100 grams granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon strawberry extract
- 1/4 teaspoon red gel food coloring
Vanilla Buttercream:
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 tablespoons milk plus more if needed
Other:
- 1/4 cup white chocolate flavored candy melting wafers
- 1 1/2 tablespoons freeze dried strawberries finely crushed
Instructions
For the Strawberry Macarons:
- Sift together the almond flour, powdered sugar, and strawberry powder through a fine mesh sieve, discarding the pieces left in the sieve.
- Prepare a double boiler, making sure that the water doesn’t touch the bottom of the bowl. Add the egg whites and sugar to the double boiler bowl, whisking until the egg whites are frothy and the sugar is dissolved. You can test this with your fingers. Dip a finger into the egg white mixture and rub it on another finger; if you don’t feel sugar crystals, it’s good to go. Alternatively, you can test this with a thermometer; the temperature should be around 150F.
- Add the egg white/sugar mixture to a large bowl and use a handheld electric mixer to beat until it forms stiff peaks.
- Beat the strawberry extract and red gel food coloring into the whipped egg whites.
- Use a rubber spatula to gently fold 1/3 of the almond flour mixture at a time into the egg whites. Be careful not to over-mix.
- Line 2 large baking trays with parchment paper or silpat liners. Fit a piping bag with a round tip, and transfer the batter to the piping bag. Pipe the batter into 3/4-inch circles about 1 inch apart.
- Tap the trays firmly against the countertop a few times to release any air bubbles.
- Let the piped cookies sit at room temperature until they form a skin and feel dry on top, about 30 to 60 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 325F.
- Bake the trays one at a time until the macarons develop a puffed “foot” on the bottom and are light golden around the outside, about 15 minutes, rotating the tray once every 5 minutes.
- Let the cookies cool completely before removing from the baking tray.
For the Vanilla Buttercream:
- Beat together all ingredients in a large bowl until light and fluffy, adding enough milk to achieve the right consistency.
To Assemble the Macarons:
- Match up similar sized and shaped macarons into pairs.
- Fit a piping bag with a star tip, and transfer the buttercream to the piping bag. Pipe a ring of buttercream on the bottom cookie of each cookie pair. Place the matched cookie on top to form sandwiches.
To Decorate the Macarons:
- Place the macarons on a wire rack on top of a parchment-lined baking tray.
- Melt the white candy melting wafers in a microwave or double boiler. Stir until smooth. Transfer the melted candy to a zip-top plastic bag and snip off one corner. Drizzle the melted candy decoratively on top of each macaron. Before the candy drizzle sets, sprinkle a tiny bit of finely crushed freeze dried strawberries on each.
- Let the candy set before serving.
Video
Faith's Tips
- To Make Strawberry Powder: If you don’t have strawberry powder, you can make it with freeze dried strawberries. To do so, add about 9 grams of freeze dried strawberries to a spice grinder, coffee grinder, or high-speed blend and process until it forms a fine powder. Sift the powder through a fine mesh sieve and discard any solid pieces. Measure 5 grams to use in this recipe.
- Pulse the Almond Flour and Powdered Sugar Together in a Food Processor: It’s helpful to add the almond flour and powdered sugar to a food processor and pulse several times before sifting.
- How to Tell When the Batter is Mixed Enough: Knowing when the batter is finished being mixed is a real art, and can be tricky! A lot of people say it should flow like lava. A good test is to see if you the batter falls off the spatula in ribbons to make a figure 8 shape.
- Silicone Macaron Baking Mat: A silpat macaron mat is helpful to get the same size cookies.
- Storage: Store the macarons stacked between wax paper in the fridge for up to 1 week.
- For More Tips: I include tons of tips and tricks for making macarons in my recipe for Apple Pie Macarons.
Nutrition
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