Rainbow Macarons

Learn how to make these adorable rainbow macarons! They're filled with homemade buttercream and are absolutely delicious.

📝 Ingredients

• 110 g aged egg whites - about 4 large egg whites
• 1/4 tsp cream of tartar - optional
• 110 g granulated sugar (1/2 cup + 2 tsp)
• white gel food coloring - optional
• 140 g superfine almond flour - blanched (1 1/4 cups)
• 125 g powdered sugar (1 cup)
• 40 g nonpareil sprinkles (1/4 cup)
• 113 g unsalted butter, room temperature (1/2 cup)
• 4 g vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste (1 tsp)
• 2 g fine salt (1/4 tsp)
• 250 g powdered sugar (2 cups)
• 15 g heavy whipping cream, room temperature (1 Tbsp)
• Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, and Purple Gel Food Coloring
• 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

👨‍🍳 Instructions

1. 1--- Rainbow Sprinkle Macarons ---
2. 2Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicon mats. Set aside.
3. 3Pour 110g 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 and leaves tracks.
4. 4Gradually add 110g of granulated sugar into the eggs and mix on a medium speed for 30 seconds. Increase the mixing speed to a medium high speed (KitchenAid speed 6). Keep mixing until stiff, glossy peaks form. If desired, add in white gel food coloring at this point. It will get mixed in as you fold the dry ingredient in during the next step.
5. 5Sift 140g superfine almond flour and 125g powdered sugar into the meringue, then fold the ingredients 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.
6. 6Fold 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 do this, you may need to stir it a bit more.
7. 7Pour the batter into a large piping bag fit with a medium-sized round piping tip and pipe 1 3/4-inch rounds on the prepared baking sheets, spacing them about 1-inch apart.
8. 8Bang 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.
9. 9Sprinkle nonpareil sprinkles over the piped macarons while they're still wet.
10. 10Let the macarons rest for 30 minutes, or until they develop a skin. The macarons should look matte once the skin has formed. While the macarons rest, preheat the oven to 315 F / 157 C.
11. 11Bake one tray of macarons at a time on the middle rack of your oven for 18-22 minutes. Rotate the pan halfway through to help them bake evenly and cover the shells with foil halfway through to prevent them from browning.
12. 12Remove from oven and let the macarons cool on the pan (about 15 minutes), then gently remove them from the Silpat mat.
13. 13--- Rainbow Buttercream Frosting ---
14. 14Beat 113g of room-temperature butter on a medium speed for 1-2 minutes with a whisk attachment until it becomes lighter in color and smooth.
15. 15Mix in 4g vanilla extract and 2g salt on a low speed.
16. 16Slowly mix in 250g of powdered sugar and 15g of heavy cream on a low speed.
17. 17Continue to mix on low for a couple minutes until the ingredients are fully incorporated and the desired consistency is reached.
18. 18If 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).
19. 19Divide the frosting evenly between 6 bowls and color them red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple with gel food coloring.
20. 20Pipe or spread long rows of the colorful frosting on top of a piece of plastic wrap. Roll up the frosting into a sausage-like shape by twisting the ends and snip off the end from one side.
21. 21Place the frosting log with the open end closest to the frosting tip into a large piping bag fit with a large round tip and set aside.
22. 22--- Assembling These Rainbow Macarons ---
23. 23Pair up the macaron shells then pipe a dollop of rainbow buttercream on one macaron shell. Gently press a second shell on top of the frosting to create a sandwich.
24. 24Place the finished macarons in an airtight container and chill in the fridge overnight, then let them warm to room temperature and enjoy!