Let me hear you say…BLUE VELVET IS IN THE HOUSE! Say what? (Repeat 2X) Can I get a B-L-U-E…V-E-L-V-E-T…M-A-C-A-R-O-N-S what’s that spell? Blue velvet macarons! Say it again! Blue Velvet Macarons! These macarons are the bomb.com with a small dosage of chocolate goodness and an amazing cream cheese filling.
Macarons are an amazing addition to your next event! But, I must warn you…all great things take time. To make these macarons you’ll need to start the process at least 1-3 days prior to making this French cookie. And you’ll have to wait 1-3 days before enjoying the amazing French cookie. Why so much time is needed is all explained below:
Common Macaron Mistakes
My journey of macarons if you’ve read our previous posted started in January of 2020. And I must say after extensive research I was eager and ready to make my own macarons. Now…..after making those amazing raspberry macarons, we ran into problems. When I say problems…I mean a load ton of simple mistakes. So, let’s dive into some classic macarons mistakes.
1. Cracked Macarons
There’s numerous reasons why macarons could crack. So here’s a few of our thoughts. When the macarons crack during baking, its most likely caused by too much air in the batter. But rest of sure this issue could be fixed! Simply tap your cookie sheet several times the kitchen counter after piping the macaron batter.
Another reason why your macarons may crack is because of oven hot spots. Basically some ovens may have corners hotter than other areas. To ensure your oven is the right temperature, add a thermometer. Also, we recommend that you only cook one tray of macarons at a time. This will guarantee the right circulation of air flow.
2. No Feet Formed
Macarons are known for their amazing look. (Also known as feet). So when the feet are not formed it’s more than likely caused by extremely wet batter. What do you mean batter is too wet? So if your egg whites are not aged or you use liquid food coloring. Or the macaronage was over whipped or the macarons were not dry. So, before making macarons it’s important to age the egg whites. Why? Because during the process of aging the egg whites, they become dehydrated. Simply meaning the proteins breakdown and the water content within the egg whites are absorbed. Which ultimately leads to a stronger meringue.
When making macarons it’s important to use gel food coloring rather than liquid. Gel coloring prevents that batter from becoming “too wet”. To prevent over-mixing the batter, once your are able to make a figure-8 using a spatula, stop mixing immediately! Lastly, after piping the cookie batter onto your templates it’s highly important to allow the cookies to dry. During the drying process the macarons form their outer layer skin, which helps with producing the feet during baking. Depending on your house temperature will effect the time needed for the macarons to fully dry. For example, if it’s more humid it could take 1-2 hours before the skin forms.
To know if your macarons are fully dry, carefully touch the top of your shells. If there’s no sign of batter on your finger, congratulations! Your macarons are ready to bake.
3. Hollow Macarons
So the two main causes of hollow macarons are under-whipped or over-whipped egg whites. Yep…that’s right egg whites can cause so many problems with your macarons. In order to prevent hollow shells, make sure the egg whites actually form stiff peaks. So, how do you check for stiff peaks? If you remove the whisk from your electric mixer or hand mixer. And you notice peaks in the upright position (basically not moving), the egg whites are ready to go.
Jump to RecipeTips for Blue Velvet Macarons
Okay, let’s get into some of the key tips to macarons in general.
- Use room temperature egg whites, but for the best results use aged egg whites. Aged egg whites are simply separated from the yolk 1-3 days in advance and stored in the refrigerator until macaron day. Using aged egg whites leads to more firm and stable meringue, because the egg whites are dehydrated.
- Sift or double-sift all dry ingredients. This will lead to a smooth macaron shell and prevent any clumps.
- Weigh out all the ingredients using a scale. The ultimate key to a stellar macaron is the correct measurements.
- Wipe down the inside of your mixing bowl and attachment with vinegar, this is to remove any excess grease or fat from previous baking. Also, this step helps create that beautiful meringue.
- Always use food gel to color the macarons. Normal liquid food coloring will mess up the texture of the macaron.
- Be patient and work slowly. Some of the steps to macarons can be a little stressful and time consuming, but just be patient and take your time. And your macarons will come out great every time!
- Allow the macarons to mature. Once sandwiching the macarons together with your incredible filling. They should be refrigerated for 1-3 days to mature. Maturing the macarons helps the flavors develop and softens up the macaron. So when you finally eat the macaron you hear a hard crunch noise, but the inside is delicately soft and chewy.
Key Ingredients for killer Blue Velvet Macarons
The key to these stellar blue velvet macarons is the dutch process cocoa powder. As well as our dreamy and silky cream cheese frosting.
Why Dutch Process Cocoa Powder?
We’ve made this recipe numerous times. With using natural unsweetened cocoa powder we found the macarons to be a bit blah. Although, traditional red velvet cake does use cocoa powder. When it comes to macarons that flavor does not translate well. So, we decided to use dutch process cocoa powder. Our favorite dutch process brand is the Equal Exchange Organic Baking Cocoa. Personally I just like what Equal Exchange stands for helping small farmers sell their amazing products!
Anyways….when we made our macarons with dutch process cocoa powder. Not only could you smell the scent of chocolate outside of the kitchen. The taste sends you over the moon. Dutch process has a darker hue and a smoother mellow flavor. So, when combined with the standard ingredients of a macaron….they complete it each!
Cream Cheese Filling
Our cream cheese buttercream is silky, heavenly, and simply delicious. Not only is this a killer filling for the macarons, but can also be used as your frosting for cakes, cupcakes, banana breads, and so much more! For more deets on this filling check out our silky cream cheese buttercream recipe. Just click on the bolded words.
Interested in more sweets? Feel free to check out the links below.
Follow us on Instagram…so you’ll always know the latest news.
Blue Velvet Macarons
Ingredients
- 150 g Almond Flour
- 150 g Powdered Sugar
- 150 g Caster sugar
- 38 mL Water
- 55 g Egg whites
- 55 g Egg whites
- 4 g Dutch Process Cocoa Powder
- Blue gel food coloring
- Cream Cheese Frosting
Instructions
For the Cream Cheese Frosting
- https://www.dulcetscintilla.com/silky-cream-cheese-buttercream/
For the Blue Velvet Macarons
- Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper, using a 1.5 inch macaron template, trace the circles onto the parchment paper. Or if you have silicon macaron mats, feel free to use them instead.
- In a food processor, grind together the dutch process cocoa powder, almond flour, and powdered sugar. Pulse 5-10 times, or until a fine powder is obtained. Sift the dry ingredients through a sieve into a large bowl.
- Add half of the egg whites (55 grams) and blue food gel into the dry ingredients. Mixed together until well combined. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set it aside. (Do not over mix, once everything is incorporated stop.)
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, add in the other half of the egg white (55 grams) .In a small saucepan over medium heat add the caster sugar and water. Using a candy thermometer periodically check the temperature of the sugar syrup. With a reading of 230 degrees F, start whipping the egg whites on medium-high speed using the balloon attachment. When the sugar syrup reaches 244 degrees F remove from the heat.
- Turn down the speed of the electric mixer, and slowly start pouring in the sugar syrup (in a steady stream). Increase the speed of the mixer once all of the sugar syrup is added. Allow the meringue to mix until the bowl is slightly cool to the touch and glossy stiff peaks are formed.
- Next it's time to make the macaronage. Add the meringue to the colored mixture (powdered sugar, egg whites, almond flour, dutch process cocoa powder) and fold the ingredients together gently using a rubber spatula. Continue to mix until the batter has a glossy shiny appearance. Or until the batter on the rubber spatula flows into a ribbon without breaking with slight movement of your wrist.
- To a large pastry bag insert a 1 cm round piping tip, like the Wilton #12. Transfer the batter to the pastry bag. Pipe the macarons onto the cookie sheet. Pipe straight up about a fourth of an inch away from the cookie sheet. Squeeze the piping bag until the batter covers about three-fourths of the circle. Repeat for all remaining batter. Once completed, tap the cookie sheet on the counter to smooth out the surface of the macaron shells. Basically, lift up the tray about 4-5 inches from the counter-top and drop it, repeat this at least 2-3 times. If any bubbles remain, use a toothpick to remove them. Leave the macaron shells for 15-30 minutes to dry, or until the shells are no longer sticky to the touch.
- Bake the shells for 12-16 minutes. Allow the shells to cool for a few minutes before removing from the baking sheet.
- Place the cream cheese frosting into a large piping bag. Pipe the filling into half of the macaron shells. Next, sandwich the macarons together. Transfer the blue velvet macarons to an airtight container.
- Allow the macarons to mature in the refrigerator for 1-3 days before serving. If in a rush, allow the macarons to chill for 1 hour before serving. After chilling the macarons, allow them to reach room temperature before serving. Enjoy.