These mint macarons are here to impress! Light and crisp, with a satisfying chew in the middle, these delightful little cookies are filled with minty chocolate ganache. Or you’d prefer a boozy filling, I also included minty Baileys ganache!
Also, in this macaron recipe, we’ll talk in depth about how to pair and fill macaron shells, how to mature and store them properly. Keep reading…
What’s your favorite thing to do when you’re stressed? For me, it’s baking. But definitely not macarons!
- Chocolate brownies, sure.
- Indulgent chewy cookies, yes!!
But never ever french macarons!
Because if those finicky macarons come out less than perfect, it’ll just make a bad day worse! You know what I mean, right?
Anyhow, I still love baking macarons. Because it brings SO much joy when you pull out a tray full of perfectly round and smooth macarons with beautiful feet. Pure bliss!
If you’ve ever baked macarons, you know what I mean, right?
But if you’re new to baking macarons, I highly recommend starting with my basic macaron recipe.
How to make mint macarons:
- Make the meringue – make sure to whip your meringue until stiff peaks and it balls up inside your whisk.
- Sift the dry ingredients to aerate and remove large chunks.
- Mix meringue with dry ingredients until perfect consistency – runny enough to draw a figure eight.
- Pipe 1.5-inch circles on 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and bake.
How to fill macarons:
Before you fill macarons, we need to pair them. This basically means we’ll find equal size macarons and put them together.
When ready to fill, place one shell upside down and other pair next to them, as pictured below. Pipe a dollop of ganache filling on bottom shell and place the other shell on top. Gently press to distribute the filling evenly. Voila, your mint macarons are ready!
Well, almost. Let’s talk about maturing…
What does maturing macarons mean?
Many macaron recipes direct you to fill the macarons and store in the fridge for at least 24 hours to mature. But what does that mean?
Maturing macarons basically means letting the filled macarons rest in the fridge to allow the filling seep into the shells, softening and flavoring it. This’s especially important if the macaron shells have no flavoring.
That’s being said, I have no problem devouring a few macarons right away, with and without filling!!
To mature filled macarons, place them in an airtight container and place it in the fridge for up to 24 hours.
Bring the macarons to room temperature for 30 minutes before serving.
How to store macarons:
Once the macarons matured in the fridge for 24 hours, you can either keep them in the fridge or you can also freeze them!
- Refrigerate in an airtight container for 3-5 days, depending on the filling.
- Freeze in airtight container for up to 1 month.
You can also freeze unfilled macarons shells in airtight container for up to 3 months.
Mint French Macarons with Minty White Chocolate Ganache Filling
Ingredients
For macaron shells:
- 100 gr fine almond flour
- 100 gr powdered sugar
- 65-70 gr 1/3 cup egg whites
- ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar optional (Note 1)
- 50 gr fine granulated sugar Note 2
- ¼ teaspoon peppermint extract
- 1 drop green gel food coloring
Filling #1 – Mint White Chocolate Ganache:
- 8 oz white chocolate chips
- ½ cup 120ml heavy whipping cream
- ¼ teaspoon peppermint extract
Filling #2 – Minty Baileys Ganache:
- 8 oz white chocolate chips
- ¼ cup 60ml heavy whipping cream
- ¼ cup 60ml Mint Baileys
- ¼ teaspoon peppermint extract
Instructions
- To make macaron shells, line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- To prepare dry ingredients, sift together almond flour and powdered sugar twice.
- To make the meringue, in a clean mixing bowl with whisk attachment, whip the egg whites at speed 2 until foamy. Add cream of tartar and continue to mix on medium speed.
- Start adding sugar one tablespoon at a time, beating for 30 second between each addition. Increase the speed to 4 (medium low) and beat until hard peaks form. This takes 8-10 minutes, but this method makes the most stable meringue.
- Add peppermint extract and green food coloring. Continue to beat for a minute or two at speed 4. The meringue should be balled up in the middle of the whisk, and you should see sharp ribs and pointy end. (Watch this meringue video for more information.)
- To mix the batter (macaronage): sift the almond flour mixture over the beaten egg whites once again.
- Very gently fold the mixture, running the spatula clockwise from the bottom, up around the sides and cut the batter in half. The batter will look very thick at first, but it will get thinner as you fold. Be careful not to over mix it though. Every so often test the batter to see if it reached the right consistency. To test the batter, drop a small amount of the batter and count to ten. If the edges of the ribbon are dissolved within ten seconds, then the batter is ready. I repeat, do NOT mix again. If you still see edges, fold the batter couple more times and test again. (TIP: Making french macarons is all about the technique. This is the most crucial step of all. Let me try to describe the folding motion as best as I can: run the spatula clockwise from the bottom, up around the sides and cut the batter in half. If you’re beginner macaron-baker, I suggest to count every fold. It takes roughly about 50 folds to reach the proper consistency. After 50 folds, start testing the batter, and continue testing after every couple folds.)
- To pipe the macarons, transfer the batter into a pastry bag with a round tip. (I use this Wilton 2A round tip.)
- Pipe out 1.5-inch rounds about an inch apart on prepared baking sheets.
- Tap the baking sheets firmly on the counter a few times to get rid of any air bubbles. If you don’t release the air bubbles, they will expand during baking and crack the beautiful macarons shells. And who wants cracked macarons, right?
- Let the macarons rest and dry for 15-30 minutes. On a humid day, it might take an hour or so. To see if it’s ready to be baked, lightly touch it. If the batter doesn’t stick to your finger, then it’s ready.
- To bake, preheat the oven to 300°F (150°C).
- Place one baking sheet with macarons on the middle rack. And place an empty baking sheet on top rack to shield the heat from above and to prevent excess browning.
- Bake the macarons one sheet at a time for about 18-20 minutes. It’ll take longer for larger macarons. To test for doneness, touch a macaron lightly and try to move it. If it slides and wobbles, bake a minute or so longer. The cooked macarons should be firm to touch and the base shouldn’t move.
- Cool the macarons on the sheet for 10-15 minutes, and then transfer onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- To make the filling, bring heavy cream to a simmer, not a boil. (If you’re making filling #2, heat the cream and Baileys together.)
- Pour the hot cream over the white chocolate chips and let stand for 2 minutes. Then mix until smooth with a rubber spatula.
- Using an immersion blender, blend the mixture until silky smooth, which means the mixture is emulsified. Cover with a plastic wrap, making sure it touches the surface of the ganache. Chill the ganache in the fridge until nice and thick, about 1 hour.
- To assemble macarons, transfer the ganache into a pastry bag with round tip. Pair the macaron shells by size and pipe a dollop of ganache on half of the macarons shells. Place the other shell on top and press lightly so the filling is spread till the edges.
- Store the filled macarons in an airtight container in the fridge for at least 24 hours to mature. Then bring them out about 30 minutes before serving. These macarons with white chocolate ganache also freeze beautifully. (Read more about maturing, storing and freezing in the post above.)
Tips & Notes:
Nutrition Facts:
This mint macarons recipe was originally published on April 7th, 2014, and last updated on March 2, 2020.
Annie says
Hi! These worked much better than any recipe I have tried so far! If I would like to make them a darker green, can I add more food coloring or would that be too much liquid? Thank you!!
Shinee says
Hi, Annie. Yes, if you’ve got the technique down, you can absolutely use more food coloring. I use a lot of food coloring to get bright red for my red velvet macarons, and black macaron cake, with no issues.
Tereze Gruntmane says
They came out perfect, only thing, I was able to make 17 complete macaroons and they were on small size, I baked 1.5 sheets, I would love to make 2 complete sheets, so I will try to double this recipe and then I should get 3 sheets with macaroons