These gorgeous white macarons, filled with silky smooth white chocolate ganache, are pure dream for every macaron lover! Grab a coffee and read my recipe testing notes to get these pure white macarons.
Table of Contents
- Recipe Testing Notes:
- How to make white macaron shells:
- 1. Make the meringue
- 2. Sift the dry ingredients
- 3. Mix the batter (Macaronage)
- 4. Pipe the macaron shells
- 5. rest and Bake the macaron shells
- 6. Cool and pair the macaron shells
- How to make white chocolate ganache filling:
- White Chocolate Ganache Filling Tips:
- Assemble the macarons
- More Macaron Recipes & Resources:
- Pure White Macarons with White Chocolate Ganache Filling Recipe
Since my very first basic macaron recipe, I’ve shared many different flavored macaron recipes. Even though things don’t always go smoothly and macarons come out disastrous sometimes (yes, it happens!!), they’re so worth it. No matter how they look, they always taste delicious! (Plus, you can turn failed macarons into delicious macaron brownie cookies!)
And the joy of perfect macarons is addicting too!
Anyway, today we’re baking simple macarons without any bright flavors. But don’t be fooled by its simplicity, white macarons are actually one of the biggest challenges among macaron bakers!
Recipe Testing Notes:
In the quest for the best baking technique to create these beautiful white french macarons, I’ve tested 4 different methods.
- TEST #1. Baked as usual, on middle rack, for 18 minutes at 300°F.
- TEST #2. Baked on middle rack, for 18 minutes at 300°F, but placed a parchment paper over the macarons after initial 10 minutes.
- TEST #3. Baked on middle rack with an empty baking sheet place on top rack, for 18 minutes at 300°F.
- TEST #4. Added white gel food coloring in the batter and baked on middle rack with an empty baking sheet place on top rack, for 18 minutes at 300°F.
Results:
Test 1 notes: As you can see in the photo below, macarons from test #1 browned the most.
Test 2 notes: Then macarons in test #2 browned less than in test #1, but they got weird dimple in the middle from the weight of the parchment paper. I even placed the parchment paper half way through baking, hoping that the shells are set. But even then, they still browned.
Test 3 notes: Much better result. Almost no browning!!!!
Test 4 notes: Added white food coloring definitely made a difference in brightness of the macarons. And combined with shielding the top heat, the macarons had flawless white color! Winner!!
Conclusion:
- Use white gel food coloring
- Shield the heat from the top by placing a tray on top rack.
How to make white macaron shells:
If you’re new to making macarons, check out my easy macaron recipe for beginners, where I explain each technique in depth.
1. Make the meringue
I think french meringue method is the easiest no-fuss way for us, home-bakers. And once you learn to make a stable french meringue, you’ll get great results as well!
- Combine egg whites, granulated sugar, salt and cream of tartar, if using, in a large bowl.
- Whisk at a consistent medium low speed until the meringue reaches soft peak stage, about 20 minutes.
- Add white gel food coloring.
- Continue whisking at the same medium low speed until the meringue reaches stiff peaks.
2. Sift the dry ingredients
- Sift the dry ingredients 3 times. I usually do this while meringue is whipping in the stand mixer.
3. Mix the batter (Macaronage)
- Sift in almond flour mixture into the meringue.
- Fold the dry ingredients into the meringue with a large silicone spatula. Then fold the batter until lava-like consistency, which means the batter is thick, yet runny enough to slowly flow off the spatula.
to test the consistency of the batter
A lot of recipes, including mine, say that the macaron batter should be lava-like consistency. But what does that mean exactly?
Here’s a great way to test the consistency of macaron batter:
Scoop the batter with a spatula and drop it back into the bowl. The batter should fall in a continuous ribbon, then the next drop won’t fall immediately. And keep an eye on the ribbon in the bowl. If the edges of the ribbon dissolve into the batter within about 10 seconds, the batter is ready!
4. Pipe the macaron shells
- Transfer the batter into a piping bag, fitted with a round tip (I use Wilton 2A tip).
- Pipe 1.5-inch rounds on two baking sheets, lined with teflon sheets or parchment paper.
- Tap the baking sheet from the bottom a few times to smooth out the shells and pop any air bubbles trapped in the shells. If needed, use a toothpick to pop stubborn bubbles.
FREE MACARON TEMPLATE
I made a perfect template for you. Subscribe to my e-mail list and download this custom macaron template for FREE. (This template is perfect for my recipe and super easy to use!)
5. rest and Bake the macaron shells
- Rest macaron shells before baking for 15 minutes.
- Bake, one baking sheet at a time, for 15-18 minutes. I don’t use convection settings for baking macarons. My oven is set to heat from top and bottom.
6. Cool and pair the macaron shells
- Cool the macaron shells completely and then remove them from the baking surface. If the shells are stuck to the baking surface, the shells are either underbaked, or you need to let them cool completely.
- Pair the shells by size and arrange them on a baking sheet, or wire rack, placing one shell bottom side up.
And can we just admire that perfectly fluffy and full interior!
Macaron 101: A Comprehensive Guide
Master the art of French macarons and create your signature flavors!
How to make white chocolate ganache filling:
This simple white chocolate ganache is divine. Silky smooth and creamy, rich and indulgent!
1. Chop the white chocolate
Chop white chocolate into small pieces and place them in a heat-resistant bowl.
2. heat heavy cream and make ganache
- Heat heavy cream until nice and hot. (I microwave it for about 1 minute.) Pour the hot cream over white chocolate. Let stand for 2 minutes and the stir until chocolate is fully melted.
- Blend the mixture with an immersion blender until silky smooth, which means the mixture is emulsified.
- Cover with a plastic wrap, making sure it touches the surface of the ganache.
- Refrigerate for at least 5 hours, or overnight, to thicken and stabilize the ganache. After the chilling time, ganache should be nice and thick, and hold its shape when piped!
White Chocolate Ganache Filling Tips:
The success for this beautiful filling lies in 3 things:
- Quality white chocolate – I used Ghirardelli white chocolate bar and I love it.
- Precise ratio of ingredients – The ratio of white chocolate and heavy cream is pretty specific to achieve the proper consistency.
- Proper emulsification and stabilization – After melting the chocolate in cream, we need to emulsify the mixture to create that indulgent creamy smooth texture. And that means mixing it vigorously until smooth. Note, we’re not trying to incorporate air into the mixture, so don’t use a whisk. If you don’t have an immersion blender, use a spatula instead. And finally, it’s important to let the ganache set for at least 5 hours in the fridge to thicken and stabilize.
Assemble the macarons
Now that you’ve bake beautiful macaron shells and made a perfectly smooth creamy white chocolate ganache, let’s fill your macarons.
- Transfer the ganache into a piping bag. You can use a round piping tip or simply cut a hole.
- Pipe a dollop of filling on one macaron shell and place another shell on top to sandwich the cookies.
More Macaron Recipes & Resources:
- How to Fix Hollow Macarons – If you’re struggling with hollow macaron shells, I’ve shared 7 tips to fix this annoying issue.
- Visual Troubleshooting Guide – Got cracked, lopsided, wrinkled macarons? Don’t fret, this troubleshooting guide will guide you how to fix them the next time.
- My Go-To Macaron Tools – My detailed guide to 9 essential macaron tools, complete with my honest review of each tool, product recommendations, and why you need them.
- Easy Macarons Recipes for Beginners – My comprehensive tutorial to basic macaron recipe with in-depth explanation of each technique.
- Chocolate Macarons Recipe – Up for a challenge? Try my chocolate macaron recipe next time you crave some chocolate. 😉
Pure White Macarons with White Chocolate Ganache Filling
Ingredients
For white chocolate ganache:
- 8 oz (227 g) white chocolate
- ½ cup (130 ml) heavy whipping cream
For white macaron shells:
- 100 g almond flour Note 1
- 65 g powdered sugar Note 2
- 70 g egg whites at room temperature Note 3
- 75 g super fine granulated sugar Note 4
- ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar optional Note 5
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon white gel food coloring
Instructions
To make the ganache filling:
- Since the ganache filling requires long chilling time, we’ll start with the filling.
- Chop white chocolate into small pieces and place them in a heat-resistant bowl.
- Heat heavy cream until nice and hot. (I microwave it for about 1 minute.) Pour the hot cream over white chocolate. Let stand for 2 minutes and the stir until chocolate is fully melted.
- 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. Refrigerate for at least 5 hours, or overnight, to thicken and stabilize the ganache. After the chilling time, ganache should be nice and thick, and hold its shape when piped!
To make macarons shells:
- Preheat the oven to 300°F (150°C). Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper, or teflon sheet, or silicone mat.
- To prepare dry ingredients, sift together almond flour and powdered sugar twice. (Note: If you have up to 2 tablespoons of chunky dry ingredients left in the sifter, you don't have to replace it. Simply discard those chunky bits.)
- To make meringue, in a clean mixing bowl with a whisk attachment, combine egg whites, granulated sugar, cream of tartar and salt and beat the mixture on medium speed until soft peaks form. (I set it to speed 4 on my KitchenAid stand mixer. It takes 30-40 minutes to whip the meringue, but it's well worth it for nice and full shells.)
- Add white gel food coloring when the meringue reaches soft peaks.
- Continue beating the meringue at the same medium speed until hard peaks form. Visual cues: Meringue should ball up inside the whisk, and when you lift the whisk, the meringue should hold a pointy end and have sharp ribs.
- To make batter, sift almond flour mixture into the meringue. Using a silicone spatula, fold the dry ingredients into the meringue until fully incorporated. Then continue to fold the batter until it's runny enough to draw a figure eight. To test, take a small amount of batter and drop it into the bowl. If the small peaks dissolve into the batter on its own in about 10 seconds, the batter is ready. If not, fold couple more times and test again. Be careful not to over-fold the batter. (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 macaron shells, transfer the batter into a pastry bag, fitted with a round tip. (I use this Wilton 2A tip.)
- Hold the pastry bag at straight 90° angle and pipe about 1.5-inch rounds about an inch apart on prepared baking sheets. (TIP 2: Download my free macaron template. Simply pipe the batter to fill inner circle.)
- Tap the baking sheets firmly on the counter (or slap the bottom of the baking sheet with one of your hands) a few times to get rid of any air bubbles. You can also use a toothpick to burst some large air bubbles. This step ensures smooth tops.
- Let the macarons rest on the counter for 15 minutes before baking.
- To bake, bake the macarons for 15-18 minutes, one baking sheet at a time, on the middle rack. 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 complete and then remove the shells from the baking surface. (TIP: Don't remove the shells while warm, you may risk breaking the shells, or the bottom might get stuck to the baking surface.)
To assemble macarons:
- Transfer the ganache into a pastry bag with round tip.
- Pair the macaron shells by size and arrange them on a wire rack. Line them up so that bottom shells are upside down.
- Pipe a dollop of filling on bottom shells. Place the top shell over the filling and press lightly so the filling spreads till the edges.
- Refrigerate the filled macarons in an airtight container for at least 24 hours to mature, which allows the filling to soften and flavor the shells.
- To serve, bring the macarons out about 30 minutes prior to serving.
Do you have to “age” egg whites in this recipe? If so, what is the process for doing this step.
Can you please convert grams to cups?
I am living in Ireland . Never made macarons before so I want to try this recipe. It’s impossible to get a white gel food colouring but I’ve managed to find a white powdered food colouring. Can I use this as a substitute and if so how much should I use.
May I ask from the UK if fine granulated sugar is what we know as Caster Sugar please? Also a little confused as you have heavy whipping cream but someone asked if whipping cream can be used… want to check if it should be UK Double Cream or Whipping Cream for me 🙂
Hi, Lou. Thanks for reaching out! Yes, caster sugar is what you need. And as for heavy whipping cream, you need one with 36-40% milk fat content. It looks like double cream has 50% milk fat, and whipping cream is around 35%, which should work just fine.
Amazing thank you! I am trying these tonight so will nip and get whipping cream! Hoping humidity wont be too much of an issue in my partners house for these! I make marshmallows there and they are always a little damper and more dense than usual!
Made and came out perfect… never made macarons before! I couldn’t get whipping so I had to get double cream but all it did was make it a bit difficult to pipe in at first… I feel when they are served and sat at room temperature it may make them a better texture anyway in a warm environment so for any UK’ers don’t panic about the lack of whipped cream in supermarkets these days!
The only thing I had issue with was the browning of those on the edges of the oven but I will invest in another mat and tray should I ever make them again. I got a silicone one from Amazon and it was sooooo perfect! Super thrilled I managed this for the “White Board” I have been asked to bring on Friday night!
This technique worked perfectly for me for white shells! I used a different filling so can’t speak to that but the cookies turned out great.
I tried this recipe and it turned out to be hit! But I felt the shells were little underbaked as when it was baked the top shells were firm and bottom was perfect too but after half an hour the shells were soft.
I would like to ask if I overbaked the macarons and fill the shells, will there be the crunch after storing in refrigerator or it will be like soft chewy macaron.
Yes, you can bake them 30-60 seconds longer for crunchier shells. Thanks for your feedback, Kehul!
tried this recipe twice, the macarons turned out great! super delicious! however, i’m not sure why some of them are hollow despite the fact I tapped the tray before baking to get rid of the air bubbles. any idea to fix this?
i meant to give the recipe five stars, but i accidentally gave it a four stars, apologies!
No worries. Thanks for letting me know. I removed your 4-star rating and left this 5-star one in place!! I really appreciate your rating!!!
Hi, Hillary! So happy my macaron recipe worked for you!! Hollow macaron issue is quite common and I have a video on 7 things you can do to fix hollow macarons. Hope it helps.
Hi,
Could you please let me know if temps are for conventional or fan oven please ?
Thank you so much
Cathy
Hi, Catherine. Oven temperature is for conventional ovens.
Why my macrons wrinkle?
Can we use fresh egg white or always aged 24 hour
Hi, Sonal. Wrinkled macarons are usually due to excess moisture, or oily almond flour. Other potential reason could be weak meringue. I never age my egg whites. I just use fresh egg whites.
I’m having trouble converting the grams to either uscups or ustablespoons/teaspoons. Can you help?
Hi, Andie. I intentionally only provided metric measurements for my macaron recipe, because these finicky cookies require precise amount of ingredients, or else there is a good chance they won’t turned out as intended.