Black Macarons

Learn how to make these gorgeous black macarons! My step by step tutorial & detailed recipe will help you master these delicious little cookies.

📝 Ingredients

• 63 g superfine almond flour - blanched (1/2 cup + 1 Tbsp)
• 63 g powdered sugar (1/2 cup)
• 7 g dark or black cocoa powder (1 Tbsp)
• 55 g aged egg whites, room temperature - about 2 large eggs
• pinch cream of tartar - optional
• 55 g granulated sugar (1/4 cup + 1 tsp)
• 1 squirt black gel food coloring
• 56 g unsalted butter, room temperature (1/4 cup)
• 7 g dark or black cocoa powder (1 Tbsp)
• 4 g vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste (1 tsp)
• 1 g fine salt (1/8 tsp)
• 1 squirt black gel food coloring
• 125 g powdered sugar (1 cup)
• 15 g heavy whipping cream, room temperature (1 Tbsp)
• Kitchen scale
• Stand Mixer or Electric Mixer
• Large, flat baking sheets
• Silpat Mats (or parchment paper)
• 1 Large Piping Bag (18-inch)
• Round Piping Tip - Ateco 805
• Small French Piping Tip

👨‍🍳 Instructions

1. 1--- Black Macarons ---
2. 2Sift 63g superfine almond flour, 63g powdered sugar and 7g of black cocoa powder into a large bowl and set aside.
3. 3Pour 55g of aged egg whites into the bowl of a stand mixer with a whisk and mix on a medium speed until the surface of the egg whites is covered in small bubbles. Add in a pinch of cream of tartar and continue to mix until it reaches the soft peak stage.
4. 4Add 55g of granulated sugar into the eggs and mix on a medium speed for 30 seconds. Add in the black gel food coloring at this point, then increase the mixing speed to a medium high speed. Keep mixing until stiff, glossy peaks form.
5. 5Add in the dry ingredients then fold the mixture together with a rubber spatula. Use a circular motion that sweeps around the edge of the bowl and then pull through the bottom of the bowl to make sure everything is getting mixed together. Fold until a thick ribbon of batter runs off the spatula when it is lifted. You should be able to draw a couple figure 8's with the batter running off your spatula when it is the right consistency. If the stream of batter breaks before you're able to this, you may need to stir it a bit more.
6. 6Pour the batter into a large piping bag fit with a medium-sized round piping tip and pipe 1 1/4-inch rounds on the prepared baking sheets, spacing them about 1 inch apart.
7. 7Bang the pans firmly on the counter a few times to release air bubbles, then pop any remaining air bubbles that come to the surface with a toothpick.
8. 8Let the macarons rest for 30 minutes to develop a skin. The macarons should look matte once the skin has formed. As the macarons rest, preheat your oven to 315 F.
9. 9Bake one tray of macarons at a time on the middle rack of your oven for 15-18 minutes and rotate your pan halfway through.
10. 10Remove from oven and let the macarons cool on the pan (about 15 minutes), then gently remove them from the silpat mat.
11. 11--- Black Chocolate Buttercream Filling ---
12. 12Beat 56g of room-temperature butter on a medium speed for 1-2 minutes with a whisk attachment until it becomes lighter in color and smooth.
13. 13Mix in 7g black cocoa powder, 4g vanilla extract, 1g salt and a squirt of black gel food coloring on a low speed.
14. 14Slowly mix in 125g of powdered sugar and 15g heavy cream on a low speed.
15. 15Continue to mix on low for a couple minutes until the ingredients are fully incorporated and the desired consistency is reached.
16. 16If the frosting is too thick, add in additional heavy cream or milk (1 tsp at a time). If the frosting is too thin, add in more powdered sugar (1 Tbsp at a time).
17. 17Place in a piping bag with a small round tip and set aside.
18. 18--- Assembling These Black Macarons ---
19. 19Pair up the macaron shells then pipe a dollop of chocolate buttercream onto the bottom of one macaron shell. Gently press a second shell on top of the frosting to create a sandwich and repeat with the remaining shells.
20. 20If desired, brush the top of each macaron with a streak of edible gold paint.
21. 21Place the finished macarons in an airtight container and chill in the fridge for a few hours or overnight. Remove the macarons from the fridge about 15 minutes before you want to eat them to let them come to room temperature. Store any leftover macarons in the fridge.