Coconut French macarons are sandwiched with strawberry buttercream in these light meringue cookies.
As with most things, my blogging journey has taken many twists and turns over the last 7 years. When I first started, my blog was really just a place where I could review and talk about the recipes that I had made. That’s why – if you go through the first few years of my blog, you will find a sprinkling of recipes that I didn’t love or that I had problems with.
Today, it’s more about bringing you the best of the best. If we didn’t love it, it doesn’t make it on. There is testing and changing and perfecting.
Somewhere in the beginning/middle years, I decided that I needed to start challenging myself. That’s when the Daring Bakers came in – and with a monthly challenge – I was stretched and challenged and learned something new every month. But ever since I stopped those monthly challenges, I haven’t been as diligent in trying new things. New recipes? Yes. Working on the skills that I had already tried but needed to perfect? Yes. But branching out and trying something completely new? Not so much.
But that has changed. It all started with an email from Sucré. If you’ve been to New Orleans, that name will probably be familiar. Hey – even if you haven’t been to New Orleans, you’ll probably know who they are. I have never been, but have visiting Sucré on my culinary and travel bucket list!! Sucré is a boutique that specializes in macarons. Not macaroons. Macarons. The French meringue cookies that people go crazy over. They emailed me, offering up a chance to go head to head with some of my fellow bloggers, and to make up my own flavor combination for a macaron.
I had never even heard of macarons before I started blogging. A little ways into my blogging adventure, I came across these delicate cookies on Tartelette. I started hearing stories about how difficult and finicky they can be, and to be honest – I was scared from the beginning. Since I had no idea what they even tasted like, Helen from Tartelette graciously agreed to do a little cookie swap with me. I received her cookies in the mail and fell in love.
Since then, macarons have become a little easier to find. I’ve had good ones, and I’ve had ones that were not as good. But all of these years, I have been too scared to try them.
Even though my calendar has been overflowing lately, I decided that I needed to take this challenge on. Mostly because I was feeling the need to challenge myself – to try something new. And I’m so glad that I did!!
The biggest thing that I learned was that the reason so many people are scared to make macarons is probably because there is so much information out there, and it can get confusing and overwhelming. I read blog post after blog post, article after article, watched video after video. Everyone claims that their method is the best way, and a lot of the information out there is contradictory.
What I learned is that you have to figure out what works for you. I am not an expert by ANY means. And normally, I probably wouldn’t even post these here until I had everything down and perfected, but this post is mostly about the journey. And let’s face it – even when a batch of macarons doesn’t turn out quite right, they are still delicious!!
Sucré sent me a recipe that was adapted from their recipe for a home cook. I was totally going to use that recipe, but since this was my first try, I was a little scared to go with it as written. I know that especially with macarons, they can be finicky and most people weigh out their ingredients. The recipe that sucre sent me was in volume, not weight. I thought I’d convert it to weight, but there were a lot of conflicting opinions as to how much a cup of almond flour weighs. So needless to say, my first batch was a total flop. (I should have just stuck with the volume measures!!)
But I would not be defeated, so I decided to try a new recipe. A few bloggers had recommended a recipe from BraveTart, and her method seemed the least intimidating of any that I had read.
So I set to work. One of the biggest differences that I saw on this method versus the million other recipes I read was that she says that there is no need to “rest” the macarons before baking. Most recipes say to leave the macarons out for 30 minutes to an hour so that a skin can form on the meringue. So I decided to try her method. The batch made enough for 2 baking sheets, and since I never have good luck with baking 2 sheets at the same time, I put the first sheet into the oven and left the second out to rest on the counter.
When I pulled the first tray out, I was so sad because they were all cracked and there were no feet. I put the second tray in anyway, and to my surprise, when I pulled them out, they looked amazing! All of the macarons had smooth tops and feet except one that had slightly cracked. I was so confused as to why the 2 trays were so different, when they came from the same batch of batter.
So I did some more research, and so many things pointed to not resting the macarons. It made sense, since my second try had rested for about 25 minutes before I put it in the oven. So I decided I needed to try it again. A third batch was made, and I did exactly as I did the with the previous batch. Almost the exact same results.
I know several other bloggers have had good luck without resting, but maybe it’s an altitude thing, or something else beyond my control, because I think it’s pretty apparent that I need to be resting my macarons. Which is fine, because it’s only 30 minutes!
I still need a lot of practice. These are definitely not perfect, and they were hollow when they shouldn’t have been, but I’ve caught the macaron bug now. I can’t wait to get back into the kitchen to try to figure out what works perfectly for me!!
I decided to go with a coconut flavored shell with a buttercream made with fresh strawberries for the filling. I have already thought of new flavor combinations I want to try, too, but I’m not going to lie – these were pretty amazing!!
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Coconut French macarons are sandwiched with strawberry buttercream in these light meringue cookies.
Ingredients
For the Coconut Macarons
- 115 grams almond flour
- 230 grams powdered sugar
- 144 grams egg whites
- 72 grams sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 teaspoon coconut extract
For the Strawberry Buttercream*
- 1 heaping cup diced strawberries
- 1 cup butter, softened
- 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
To make the macarons:
- Sift together the almond flour and powdered sugar. (You may have to work at getting all of the almond flour through the sieve. I ended up using a spatula to press it all through.)
- Combine the egg whites, sugar and salt in a large bowl (if using a hand mixer) or in the bowl of a stand mixer. Beat on low until the egg whites are frothy. Increase the speed and beat for a few minutes, then turn the speed to high and beat until the whites are very stiff and dry. Add in the coconut extract and beat another minute or so.
- Pour the dry ingredients into the egg whites and using a rubber spatula, start folding in the dry ingredients. Keep folding until the mixture starts to come together. When the batter is ready, it will flow together in a lava-like consistency.
- Working with half of the batter at a time, transfer it to a pastry bag fitted with a large round tip. Pipe the batter into a parchment lined baking sheet in 1 1/2-inch rounds.
- Holding the sides of the pan, tap the pan firmly on the counter, then turn the pan and tap again. (This will help any air bubbles dislodge from the cookies.)
- Let the pans sit on the counter for 30-45 minutes.
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 300F. Bake the macarons for 15-18 minutes, or until you can cleanly peel the macaron away from the paper. Allow to cool completely on the pans.
To make the buttercream:
- Place the strawberries in a blender or food processor and process until smooth. Use a sieve to strain out the seeds and place the strawberry puree in a small pan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, and stirring frequently, cook until it reduces by half. Remove from the heat and cool completely.
- Beat the butter until light and fluffy. Add in 1 cup of the powdered sugar and the vanilla and beat on low until combined. Add in 1/3 of the strawberry puree and beat to combine, followed by 1 more cup of powdered sugar. Repeat with another 1/3 of the puree and 1 cup of powdered sugar. Add in the remaining 1/3 of the strawberry puree, beating until combined, and then the remaining 1/2 cup of powdered sugar. Beat until light and fluffy. Add a few drops of red food coloring if desired to enhance the color.
To assemble the macarons:
- Take 2 similar sized macarons and pipe or spread some of the buttercream onto the flat side of one of the cookies. Place the flat side of the second cookie down on the buttercream. Repeat with the remaining cookies.
- Macarons are best once they have aged at least a day. Store in an airtight container in the fridge. Let them come to room temperature, about 20-30 minutes, before eating. They also freeze very well.
Notes
Macaron recipe slightly adapted from BraveTart
Buttercream recipe slightly adapted from allrecipes
*You will probably not need the full amount of buttercream for filling the macarons.
Those are so pretty! I love the flavor combination 🙂
Gorgeous! These are high on my bucket list! 🙂
These are gorgeous and I just love the flavors!
I caught the macaron bug earlier this year, too! Martha Stewart had a recipe recently so I tried making them for the first time, but I’m excited to try your recipe here–sounds delicious.
These are so dainty. They’re gorgeous and perfect for spring. After reading this post, I just may adventure into finally making macarons!
These are absolutely perfect!
I love the tropical twist, it sounds absolutely amazing!
These are amazing and the pictures are absolutely stunning! I love this flavor combo!
These are just amazing, I can’t take my eyes off them. I’m in awe of anyone who can make a good looking macaron!
Mac success ACCOMPLISHED!! Yours look great!! I used the Brave Tart tutorial as well, but also found that resting was required for me. I also lowered my oven temp to 275, which i think helped with the hollow shells!
In any event, these are GORGEOUS!! I love the flavor combo…makes me want to be on the beach right now…and/or in the kitchen whipping up a batch of these!! I think I’m going to share my finished version of my macs later this week and then I can’t wait to get in the kitchen to make more!
I’m going to totally try lowering the oven temp. I also think I was too gentle when I folded in the dry ingredients. After watching lots of videos, I think I just still had too much air in mine. Can’t wait to see yours!! (PS – LOVED the pb&j ones you made!)
So pretty! I love spring time flavor too!
Heading over to vote for you now! Beautiful job!!
These are gorgeous! Love the flavor combination!
Beautiful!! Gorgeous macarons!! The flavor combination is perfect too 🙂 I started with BraveTart’s recipe as well.
These are beautiful! They have the “feet” and everything. I’ve also had macarons on my baking to-do list for years so I’m glad this Sucre challenge will push me to finally make them, too.
They look amazing, I know they taste as good as they look. I’m working up my nerve to make these
Hi Deborah,
I just voted for you on Sucre. I hope you win and good luck!!
Thanks for this post! I have also attempted macarons several times and always got cracked results. I still went ahead and assembled them with cream and they tasted delicious. 🙂
Your combination sounds divine … I book marked your recipe to try soon. 🙂
Rosa
Oh Deborah! I hope you are proud of yourself because THOSE look beautiful and I have to say, I think those are some of your best pictures! I wish I was brave enough to try making them, but hey…if you ever want to mail me some of yours, I would be all for the taste testing 🙂 Way to go hon!
You are too kind – I struggled so much with those photos, so I’m glad you like them!
I love making macarons and this flavor combination is a must try! Good work, they are gorgeous!
Gorgeous macarons and I love these flavors!
They look PERFECT to me!! Wow!
WOW-These look soooo yummy! After seeing these, i’m totally inspired to go make macaroons!
I love the color contrast of these macarons. The combination of flavors also sound amazing! I think macarons aren’t very difficult to make, but there are many steps. Little mistakes can lead to a complete failure. I still have a long way to go until I have mastered the skills. I will have to try out your recipe!
I love French macarons, and in this months issue of food network mag, they have a recipe that I want to try, yours looks just as good! Now I’m really excited to try my hand at these delicious cookies!
Haha – I bought that issue just to read that article!! Their recipe uses volume instead of weight, and I’d really suggest using weight because I think they they are very fickle that way. I’m definitely still working out kinks, but it’s been fun!! Hope you get a chance to make them!
I adore macaroons and can’t wait to try this recipe! I wanted to share that I included your adorable pictures in my inspiration post today. I hope you love it as much as I love your post! Happy Baking!
xo Christina
I have always wanted to try my hands on those macarons. Your pics won me over and I followed your recipe exactly (baked at 275 degree though). My first macarons turned out beautifully with those high feet. 😉
Thank you so much.
Yay! I’m so glad they were a success for you!
Hi there,
I have to come back and let you know that your strawberry filling is the bomb.
Amazing. Goes so well with the macarons. I ate 5 and a friend of mine who heard that I made them came over right away and finished 4 in a row.
I have to tell you that I was not a fan of macarons. I mean they look real dainty but they are overly sweet. Just ewww. Well, that was my experiences with store bought macarons. And I always got them from those fancy french bakeries for $2 or so a pop!
I can’t wait to try didferent flavors.
One more thing: I hardly ever leave comments. But I had to for these macarons of yours.
Hi
Can i make lemon macarons following the same recipe just substituting coconut with lemon extract?
I’m guessing that should work just fine!
I come across the flavor combination and knew it was for me! I can tell you that the only time I tried not resting the macarons was also a disaster, so I never did that again. I’m not delicate when mixing. I use my KA the whole time. I was afraid to try these for 40 years and could kick myself for listening to all the hype. They’re actually super easy ..who knew?
★★★★★