Key Ingredients:

• Egg whites: The foundation of your meringue, ensure they are at room temperature for optimal whipping volume and stability.
• Granulated sugar: Provides structure and sweetness to the macaron shells. In the Swiss method, it’s heated with egg whites to create a stable meringue.
• Almond flour: The star of macaron shells, providing that delicate, slightly chewy texture. Finely ground flour is crucial for smooth shells.
• Powdered sugar: Also known as confectioners’ sugar, it contributes to the sweetness and structure of the shells, and is essential for the smooth buttercream.
• Black cocoa powder: This special cocoa gives your shells a striking dark color and a distinct, rich chocolate flavor, making them taste delightfully like an elevated chocolate sandwich cookie.
• Gel food coloring: Unlike liquid food coloring, gel colors provide intense, vibrant hues for your rainbow buttercream without adding excess moisture, which can disrupt the frosting’s consistency.
• Unsalted butter: The base for your creamy vanilla buttercream. Make sure it’s softened to room temperature for smooth mixing.
• Vanilla extract: Essential for infusing your buttercream with a classic, aromatic vanilla flavor that beautifully balances the chocolate shells.

Essential Equipment:

• Digital Scale: Macaron making thrives on precision. A digital kitchen scale that measures in grams is absolutely essential for accurate ingredient measurement, far more reliable than volume measurements (cups).
• Fine-Mesh Sifter: To ensure silky smooth macaron shells, a fine-mesh sifter is necessary to remove any lumps from your dry ingredients.
• Food Chopper/Processor: Used for further grinding the almond flour and powdered sugar mixture, guaranteeing an ultra-fine texture.
• Silicone Baking Mat (Macaron Mat): Provides a non-stick surface and often has pre-printed circles to help you pipe consistently sized macaron shells.
• Baking Sheet: Sturdy baking sheets are crucial to hold your silicone mats and provide even heat distribution in the oven.
• Hand Mixer or Stand Mixer: A powerful mixer is indispensable for whipping up a stable meringue. A stand mixer with a whisk attachment is highly recommended for ease and consistency.
• Plastic Bags: Useful for portioning and coloring your buttercream before transferring it to piping bags.
• Piping Bags & Tips: Essential for piping both the macaron shells and the decorative rainbow buttercream. A medium round tip for shells and a large closed star tip for frosting are recommended.
• Oven Thermometer: Oven temperatures can fluctuate wildly. An accurate oven thermometer ensures your macarons bake at the precise temperature required for perfect “feet” and shell structure.

Macarons demand extreme precision. Volume measurements (like cups) can vary widely based on how ingredients are packed, leading to inconsistencies in your batter. For instance, a cup of almond flour can weigh differently each time. Weighing ingredients with a digital kitchen scale in grams (g) is the only way to ensure the exact ratios needed for stable meringue and perfect macaronage, which are critical for achieving those signature smooth shells and “feet.”

Not at all! You can certainly leave out the black cocoa powder if you prefer classic plain or vanilla-flavored macaron shells. If you opt for plain shells, we highly recommend adding about ½ teaspoon of vanilla extract to your meringue while it’s whisking. This will infuse your shells with a lovely vanilla aroma and flavor, making them equally delicious.

Absolutely! While we chose a basic American buttercream for this recipe for its simplicity and to avoid having extra egg yolks, Swiss Meringue Buttercream (SMBC) is an excellent choice for macarons. SMBC is known for being incredibly smooth, stable, and less sweet, which many bakers prefer. If you’re familiar with making it, it will work wonderfully as a filling for these rainbow macarons. Here’s a fantastic recipe for Swiss Meringue Buttercream that we highly recommend if you choose to go that route.

Macaron recipes famously leave you with a few extra egg yolks! Don’t let them go to waste. They are perfect for enriching many other delicious desserts. We highly recommend using them to make a creamy Banana Cream Pie, a batch of rich homemade ice cream, a comforting vanilla pudding, or even a classic hollandaise sauce or crème brûlée.

Macarons can be quite temperamental, and many factors can influence the outcome. If your shells are hollow, cracked, footless, or sticky, don’t despair! Here are some common issues and potential causes:

• Hollow Shells: Often caused by overwhipping the meringue (incorporating too much air), undermixing during macaronage (batter too thick), or oven temperature issues (too hot initially). Ensure your meringue is medium-stiff and your macaronage is “lava-like.”
• Cracked Shells: This usually happens if the shells didn’t rest long enough and didn’t form a proper “skin” (croutage) before baking, or if the oven temperature is too high, causing them to expand too rapidly. Trapped air bubbles that weren’t popped after piping can also be a culprit.
• No “Feet”: The lack of characteristic “feet” (ruffles at the base) is often due to undermixing the meringue, overmixing the batter during macaronage (making it too runny), excessive humidity preventing the skin from forming, or insufficient resting time.
• Chewy/Sticky Shells: Typically a sign of being underbaked. Ensure your oven temperature is accurate and bake for the full recommended time, or slightly longer if they still feel soft.

I’m always happy to help troubleshoot if you message me on Instagram or send me an email (kayla@brokenovenbaking{dot}com)! There’s also this incredibly handy macaron troubleshooting guide by Pies & Tacos that I highly recommend checking out for detailed visual solutions.

The environment plays a significant role in macaron success, especially humidity. High humidity is a macaron’s worst enemy, as it prevents the necessary dry skin from forming on the shells, leading to cracks or no feet. I’ve personally found that when the outdoor humidity is around 50% and my apartment is around 73°F, my macarons turn out pretty perfect! However, this can vary significantly depending on your specific climate, oven, and even the altitude. Experimentation is key to finding your ideal conditions; sometimes running a dehumidifier or air conditioning can make a big difference.

For optimal freshness and flavor development, store your assembled rainbow macarons in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Macarons often taste even better the day after they’re made, as the flavors have time to meld and the shells soften slightly, achieving that perfect chewy texture. We highly recommend assembling and refrigerating them the day before you plan to serve them.

Chocolate Macaron Shells

• ▢ 63 grams almond flour
• ▢ 63 grams powdered sugar
• ▢ 7 grams black cocoa powder*
• ▢ 60 grams egg whites (about 2 large eggs) room temperature
• ▢ 60 grams granulated sugar
• ▢ 1-4 squirts black gel food coloring

Vanilla Rainbow Buttercream

• ▢ ½ cup (1 stick) (113.5 g) unsalted butter softened
• ▢ 2 cups (240 g) powdered sugar
• ▢ ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• ▢ red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple gel food coloring

Chocolate Macaron Shells

• Weigh the almond flour, powdered sugar and cocoa powder into a sifter over a bowl and sift out/discard any large chunks. Then, transfer the mixture into a food chopper and pulse for 10-15 seconds to ensure an extra-fine texture. Sift again and set aside. This meticulous sifting process is crucial for preventing lumpy shells and achieving the perfectly smooth macaron surface.
• Weigh the egg whites & granulated sugar directly into the bowl of a stand mixer (or a large heat-resistant bowl). Place this bowl over a pot with about an inch of simmering water, creating a double boiler. Whisk the mixture constantly and gently until it reaches approximately 100°F. The mixture should feel warm to the touch and the sugar granules should be completely dissolved, resulting in a transparent syrup beneath the initial white bubbles. This pre-cooking step builds a stable meringue.
• Transfer the bowl to your stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment (or remove from heat and use a hand mixer). Begin whisking on low speed for about a minute to gently incorporate air. Then, increase the speed by 1-2 notches every 3-5 minutes, allowing the meringue to gradually build volume and stability. Once the meringue starts to look white and somewhat thick, add an initial squirt of black gel food coloring. Continue increasing the mixer speed to full and whisk until the meringue reaches medium to stiff peaks (it should be thick and glossy, holding its shape when lifted, but with a slight curl at the tip). Mix in more black dye as needed to achieve a deep gray color (we usually use about 3 squirts in total). This gray will deepen when combined with the cocoa powder. Be careful not to overmix or add too much liquid coloring.
• Now for the crucial macaronage stage: gently fold ½ of the sifted dry mixture into the meringue using a spatula, performing a “cut and fold” motion. Scrape the sides of the bowl, ensuring everything is well incorporated. Then, add the remaining ½ of the dry ingredients. Continue folding until the batter is smooth, shiny, and flows off the spatula in a consistent stream, forming a “figure 8” without breaking (picture #4). This is the “lava-like” consistency; undermixing leads to thick, lumpy shells, while overmixing results in runny batter and flat, cracked shells. Transfer the perfectly mixed batter into a pastry bag fitted with a medium round piping tip.
• Pipe uniform circles onto a silicone baking mat (or parchment paper with macaron templates underneath) placed on a baking sheet. Hold the piping tip at a 90° angle, about ¼ inch away from the mat, and squeeze consistently until each circle is approximately 1-1½ inches in diameter. Release pressure and swiftly flick the bag upwards to create a clean finish. Consistent piping is key for uniform macarons.
• I recommend wearing earplugs for this next step – it’s crucial! Carefully lift the baking sheet of piped shells approximately 6 inches and firmly drop it onto your counter 5 times. This vigorous tapping helps release any trapped air bubbles within the batter, which are responsible for hollow or cracked shells. Use a toothpick to gently smooth out any remaining visible air bubbles. Drop the tray a few more times for good measure. Let the shells rest at room temperature until they develop a dry “skin” – they should feel smooth and dry to the touch, and no batter should stick to your finger when lightly touched (~45-60 minutes, potentially longer in humid environments). This resting period is essential for developing the characteristic “feet” during baking. We highly recommend making the buttercream while you wait.
• While your macaron shells are resting and developing their “skin,” preheat your oven to 315°F. Always use an oven thermometer to ensure your oven is at the precise temperature. Macaron baking is very sensitive to temperature fluctuations, so accuracy here is paramount for successful “feet” formation and even baking.*
• Bake the macarons for 12-14 minutes. Baking times can vary by oven, so keep an eye on them. The shells should feel pretty firm and stable when you gently tap on them. They should lift cleanly from the silicone mat once cooled. If they stick, they likely need a few more minutes in the oven. Let them cool completely on the baking sheet before attempting to remove them; patience at this stage prevents breakage.

Vanilla Rainbow Buttercream

• In a medium bowl, mix together the softened unsalted butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract until completely smooth, light, and fluffy. Ensure there are no lumps of powdered sugar.
• Evenly distribute the prepared vanilla buttercream into 6 small bowls, aiming for approximately 50-60 grams in each. Add one squirt of each desired gel food coloring (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple) into the separate bowls of frosting. Stir each color in thoroughly until you achieve vibrant, consistent shades. Add more dye gradually if needed.
• Transfer each colored buttercream into its own small plastic bag and snip off a tiny tip from the corner of each bag. Lay a long sheet of plastic wrap flat on your counter. Carefully pipe a line of each colored frosting next to each other onto the plastic wrap, creating a rainbow stripe (as shown in the image below). Once all colors are laid out, carefully roll up the plastic wrap from one end to form a snug log of rainbow buttercream. Snip off one end of the frosting log.
  
• Carefully place the entire frosting log (still in its plastic wrap) into a larger piping bag fitted with your preferred piping tip (we recommend a large closed star tip for a beautiful swirled effect). Squeeze out a small amount of frosting onto a plate until all the rainbow colors begin to emerge together consistently from the tip.

Assembling the Macarons

• Once your chocolate macaron shells are completely cooled, carefully pair them up by finding two shells of similar size and shape. Pipe a generous amount of the rainbow buttercream onto the flat side of one macaron shell, creating a beautiful colorful swirl. Gently place the matching top shell over the buttercream and lightly press to sandwich them together. Repeat with all remaining shells, and then stand back and admire your stunning, delicious rainbow macarons!
  

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*While we recommend black cocoa powder for its distinct color and rich flavor, you can substitute with regular cocoa powder. If you do, you might need to use a slightly more black gel food coloring to achieve a deep color.

*If you prefer not to use any cocoa powder, you can omit it entirely. In that case, for an enhanced flavor in your shells, add about ½ teaspoon of vanilla extract to the egg white and sugar mixture while whisking the meringue.

The provided nutrition information is an estimate per serving and is automatically calculated. The calorie accuracy is not guaranteed due to variations in ingredients and preparation.

The provided nutritional information is an estimate per serving. Accuracy is not guaranteed.