These raspberry macarons are unbelievably flavorful! Not only the flavor comes from the filling, but the shells are also infused with raspberries!!
Table of Contents
Why you’ll love this recipe:
I originally shared this recipe back in 2017, and I’ve tested it many times before publishing the recipe.
Although a lot of my readers raved how flavorful the macaron shells were, many were having trouble with thick batter issue.
So, I finally re-worked the recipe with the feedback I’ve gotten from my readers, and I hope this v2.0 is more foolproof.
You’ll love these raspberry macarons for many reasons:
- Incredibly flavorful shells thanks to freeze-dried raspberries – I totally eat the shells on their own a lot of the times!
- White chocolate buttercream filling complements the shells perfectly!
- Specks of crushes raspberries in the shells add slightly rustic and natural look. Super lovely!
Key Ingredients:
- Freeze-dried raspberries – Use high quality freeze-dried raspberries and open a new package when you’re ready to make macarons, because freeze dried fruits absorb humidity from the air and loose its crispness quickly. I don’t recommend already crushed raspberry powder.
- Almond flour – It’s best to use super fine almond flour to ensure smooth tops. Weigh the ingredients before sifting.
- Powdered sugar – I don’t recommend making your own powder sugar, because commercial powdered sugar has cornstarch in it. And it helps with texture of the cookies.
- Egg whites – I’ve had success with carton egg whites (Bob Evans brand, #notsponsored). You’ll need 1/3 cup of egg whites.
- Cream of tartar is optional and can be omitted. However, it helps to stabilize egg whites and create sturdier meringue. It’s just an extra insurance!
- Sugar – It’s important to use fine granulated sugar for meringue, as it dissolves quicker. You can also use caster sugar, aka baker’s sugar.
Freeze-dried vs dehydrated raspberries:
Yes, there is a difference between freeze-fried and dehydrated raspberries!
- Freeze-dried raspberries are raspberries that were quickly frozen and then slowly heated in a vacuum chamber, drying the fruits by evaporating ice before it turns into water. The end result is beautiful dried berries in its original shape and color, that’s feather-light.
- Dehydrated raspberries are berries that were dried by evaporating moisture through heating process, which yields withered and harder berries.
How to make raspberry macaron shells:
1. Prepare the dry ingredients
- Place the freeze-dried raspberries between two sheets of parchment paper and crush them with a rolling pin until fine powder.
- Sift together almond flour, powdered sugar and crushed raspberries 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.
Tip
To prevent soft, wrinkly shells and/or thick batter: It’s important to crush the raspberries right before making the recipe, so that they don’t absorb too much humidity.
2. Make the meringue
- Whisk the egg whites until foamy and add cream of tartar and salt. Then slowly add sugar one tablespoon at a time, while mixer is still running.
- When the meringue reaches soft peaks stage, add couple drops of pink gel food coloring.
- Continue beating the egg whites on the same medium low speed until hard peaks form, about 20 minutes.
Tip
Be sure your whisk and bowl are squeaky clean and free of any oil residue. (Stainless steel and glass bowls are ideal!)
3. Macaronage
4. Pipe and bake the shells
- Hold the pastry bag at straight 90° angle and pipe about 1.5-inch rounds about an inch apart on prepared baking sheets.
- Tap the baking sheets firmly on the counter (or using your hand) 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 sit out on the counter for at least 15-30 minutes, maybe up to couple hours, depending on humidity. When you lightly touch the macarons and the batter does not stick to your finger, then it’s ready to go into the oven.
- Bake the macarons for about 15-18 minutes, one tray at a time.
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.
Macaron Filling Ideas:
You can fill these raspberry macarons with any kind of filling you desire!
In the recipe card, I’ve provided white chocolate raspberry buttercream filling, which is simple yet tasty filling!
You can also fill your macarons with:
- White chocolate ganache with raspberry jam
- Easy French buttercream mixed with raspberry jam, or crushed freeze-dried raspberries
- Raspberry ganache with raspberry confi in the center. The recipe you can find in my Macaron Fillings eBook.
Macaron Tips for Success:
- Stable meringue is key for macaron success. Watch my Meringue 101 video for all the tips to make a stable meringue.
- Don’t over-mix your macaron batter. In this real-time macaronage video, I show you how to test the batter when to stop folding it.
- Pipe the macaron shells properly for nice and full shells. Here’s the proper piping technique.
- Get an oven thermometer, because every oven is different. Watch this video for more tips on baking macarons.
Video Tutorial:
Raspberry Macarons v2.0 (New & Improved)
These raspberry macarons are unbelievably flavorful! Not only the flavor comes from the filling, but the shells are also infused with raspberries!!
Ingredients
For raspberry macaron shells:
- 10 g freeze-dried raspberries Note 1
- 90 g super fine almond flour Note 2
- 60 g powdered sugar Note 3
- 70 g egg whites at room temperature Note 4
- 75 g fine granulated sugar Note 5
- ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar optional Note 6
- ¼ teaspoon coarse kosher salt
- Pink gel food coloring
For white chocolate raspberry buttercream:
- 80 g unsalted butter
- 50 g powdered sugar
- 60 g white chocolate chips
- 5 g freeze dried raspberries
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- Pinch of salt
For dipping:
- ½ cup white chocolate chips
Instructions
To make macaron shells:
- Preheat the oven to 300°F (150°C). Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper, or teflon sheet, or silicone mat.
- To prepare the dry ingredients, place the freeze-dried raspberries between two sheets of parchment paper and crush them with a rolling pin until fine powder.
- Sift together almond flour, powdered sugar and crushed raspberries 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 the 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.)
- When the meringue reaches soft peaks stage, add couple drops of pink gel food coloring.
- Continue beating the egg whites on the same medium low speed until hard peaks form, about 20 minutes. 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 one of the most crucial step. 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 used 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 using your hand) 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, working one baking sheet at a time, place one tray with macarons on the middle rack. (TIP: To prevent browning, place an empty baking sheet on top rack to shield the heat.) Bake for about 15-18 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. (TIP: It’s always better to slightly over-bake macarons than under-bake them!)
- Cool macarons complete and then remove the shells from the parchment paper. (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 make the filling:
- In a mixing bowl with whisk attachment, beat the butter and powdered sugar until fluffy, about 2 minutes.
- Melt the white chocolate chips in microwave according to package directions. (I microwaved mine for 1.5 minutes at 50% power. Stirred and microwaved for another 30 seconds at 50% power. Stirred again and microwaved for 15 seconds at 50% power.)
- Crush the freeze-dried raspberries as you did for the shells.
- Add the melted white chocolate, raspberry powder, lemon juice and pinch of salt to the whipped butter mixture. Beat until the filling is smooth and well combined.
- Transfer the buttercream into a pastry bag.
To assemble macarons
- 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.
To make white chocolate coating:
- Melt white chocolate chips in microwave per package directions, or as described above. (TIP: I like to melt the chocolate in plastic measuring cup so the melted chocolate doesn't spread too much in a bowl. It's easier to dip macarons into a cup.)
- Dip macarons half way and place on a wire rack. If desired, sprinkle more raspberry powder.
- Store the filled and dipped macarons in an airtight container in the fridge 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.
Tips & Notes
Note 1: Use high quality freeze-dried raspberries and open a new package when you’re ready to make macarons, because freeze dried fruits absorb humidity from the air and loose its crispness quickly. I don’t recommend already crushed raspberry powder.
Note 2: It’s best to use super fine almond flour to ensure smooth tops. Weigh the ingredients before sifting.
Note 3: I don’t recommend making your own powder sugar, because commercial powdered sugar has cornstarch in it. And it helps with texture of the cookies.
Note 4: I’ve had success with carton egg whites (Bob Evans brand, #notsponsored). You’ll need 1/3 cup of egg whites.
Note 5: It’s important to use fine granulated sugar for meringue, as it dissolves quicker. You can also use caster sugar, aka baker’s sugar.
Note 6: Cream of tartar is optional and can be omitted. However, it helps to stabilize egg whites and create sturdier meringue. It’s just an extra insurance!
Note 7: You can easily double this macaron recipe.
Note 8: Read this post for must-have macaron tools.
GOT MACARON TROUBLE? Check out my macaron troubleshooting guide.
Nutrition
Calories: 116kcal
Carbohydrates: 13g
Protein: 2g
Fat: 7g
Sugar: 11g
Sodium: 11mg
Did you make this?Share a comment or a review below!
I making this recipe this weekend. I’m having a hard time figuring out 70g of egg whites. How many eggs?
Hi, Nikki. I recommend weighing the egg whites for the best chance of success.
So I tried these and the first batch was a fail. Like many of the others I ended up with a very stiff paste like batter. However…..I was determined. So I troubleshot and tried a second time. I decreased the amount of raspberry powder to 5 grams and increased the egg whites to 72 grams. I also added a fourth tsp raspberry extract. Worked beautifully and had great flavor. I oive the challenge of macarons and appreciate your recipes!!
Tried these today because I love the red velvet ones. I had some trouble. I used Trader Joe’s freeze dried and used rolling pin to crush. The batter had a nice consistency when folding so I piped them out and beat the pan a few times. Let them dry so they had a nice skin. However they cracked and didn’t have good feet. I know it was user error but can’t figure it out.
Hi, Melanie. Thank you for your feedback. So this one is SO tricky with freeze-dried raspberries, and I didn’t realize this until people started making this recipe. My suspicion is that it’s a lot to do with the humidity. I have no problem with it and I live in a relatively dry climate. Couple questions for you to troubleshoot:
1. Did you crush the freeze-dried raspberries right before sifting? And did you make the batter right away? Or did you crush the berries/ prepare the dry ingredients in advance?
2. Did your shells have soft wrinkly top? Or just cracked and no feed, but with nice hard crust?
Thanks!
Agree with others. I was so excited to use this recipe and something isn’t right. I thought it was me,but, tried it two days back to back and each time no feet, dark brown, and all cracked. I weighed the ingredients every time. Before attempting the second time, I even watched the video you recommended and then read the tips. Still the second batch was terrible. Luckily they were only a garnish to my cupcakes, but, would not recommend someone make these having wasted the ingredients and time.
Hi, Jake. I appreciate your feedback. I’d love to troubleshoot the issue, if you’d like. What brand of freeze-dried raspberries did you use? And how and when did you crush it? How was the consistency of the batter? From your description, your macarons came out dark brown, which leads me to suspect your oven may run hotter? Hope to hear back from you.
Excellent recipe! Thank you for the precise instructions and for creating such a carefully written and tested recipe. My kids and I made these today and they turned out beautifully.
Oh, Gina, thank you so much for your lovely comment. I’m so happy your macarons turned out great and you and your kids are happy! 🙂
Unfortunately, as others have commented, this was not a great recipe. I had a similar cement like paste (even after making sight variations three different times). I love the raspberry/white chocolate combo, but I’ll need a better base macaron recipe.
Such a bummer!! These raspberry macaron shells are truly the most flavorful shells I’ve ever made. I’d really appreciate if you could provide some more details, so I can try to recreate the issue and help to troubleshoot it. What kind of freeze-dried raspberries did you use? And how how did you turn it into a powder? With a rolling pin, or a food processor? Also how much in advance did you prepare the raspberry powder? And one last question, is it super humid in your area?
I see that this recipe has gotten some flak… so wanted to pop in and say I had no issues! And that’s coming from someone who has only just gotten into baking and had no idea how to make a macaron before this. I had no issues with the thickness when I followed the recipe. It does take a while, but I think the end result is worth it! Great recipe!
Melanie, thank you SO much for your feedback! I’ve been so bummed that many have so much trouble, but it’s really good to hear that yours turned out great! Thank you again!
I made these (but used the buttercream filling recipe from the strawberry macarons, as I didn’t have any white chocolate on hand) and they turned out great! I didn’t use any food coloring, and the raspberry powder itself was enough to tint them a very pretty pastel pink. I loved that the raspberry flavor came through so strongly!
Ah, Heather, you can’t imagine how happy I’m to read your feedback. Lots of people have no luck with this recipe, which makes me so sad, because the flavors are SO good! And I’m beyond excited that you made these beauties successfully. Thank you again for your feedback!
this is literally the worst recipe i have ever attempted. the proportions are wack and the batter is like cement. whoever tested and retested this recipe must’ve been absolutely drunk or cracked out. highly disappointed.
Boy, I sure hope you’re not this rude in person, Sarah! And I don’t know if you realize or not, but there’s a real human behind the screen. That being said, I understand the level of frustration failed macarons can cause. Believe me, I’ve been there. Now, if you haven’t been so RUDE, I’d have loved to help you troubleshoot the issue. 🙁
Your comment is really uncalled for Sarah. Maybe you should actually look at what you did wrong instead of blaming the creator of this recipe because apparently other people had no trouble making these macarons. I hope whatever caused your misery and unhappiness you deal with it instead of taking it on others.
You should NOT be that rude! She worked really hard on this, and you shouldn’t be shaming her! Macarons are really difficult to make, and she knows what she’s talking about. The only way for yours to be that bad is if you did it WRONG. I don’t want to hear you shaming her again. Try to be kinder in the future.
as others have said, the batter for these was far too thick. ended up adding a little extra beaten egg white (as per advice on the internet) in an attempt to loosen the batter, which seemed to work, but the macarons ended up flat as pancakes – no doubt because i’d overmixed it trying to get the batter to the right consistency. i’ve only made macarons once before so i don’t have a lot of experience, but they worked pretty well with the other recipe i used and i could tell the batter was not right with these. not sure what the problem was but it seemed like the proportions of dry ingredients was too much and they could have done with more egg whites from the start?
Hi, Ryan. Thank you for your feedback. Sorry yours didn’t turn out. The ratio is correct, it’s basically same as my basic macaron recipe. However, in this recipe the freeze-dried raspberry makes a huge difference. May I ask if you crushed your freeze-dried raspberries with a rolling pin, or in a food processor? Or did you use ready raspberry powder?
I crushed them with a rolling pin as suggested, and then sieved out the seeds.
The ratio is definitely off. Another recipe that I’ve had success with is 170g icing sugar, 160g almonds, 160g granulated sugar, and 4 eggs’ whites. Your recipe is working out to about 2.5 eggs’ whites. Although there’s correspondingly smaller amounts of sugar. I think the main issue is that it’s way too easy to lose moisture in the mixing process and you’re working with such small amounts that the recipe becomes really sensitive to that.
I’d recommend increasing the size of the recipe and maybe going with a bit more egg than written.
We followed the recipe exactly as written, and I’d say that the “concrete” comment is a bit off, but these are far too dry to turn out well. You’ll never get to the proper consistency folding this in.