S'mores Macarons (With Step-by-Step Instructions)

When I first set out to make these s'mores macarons, I didn’t realize what an undertaking it was going to be. I had made macarons once in the past with my dad, and the process went well on the first try. The meringue was whipped and stiff, the shells had perfect feet but weren’t hollow, and they were sweet but not overly so.

This time, it was a different story.

I decided months ago that I wanted to create a recipe for s’mores macarons, and I naively thought I could just crush up some graham crackers and add them to the batter with no issues. Boy, was I wrong! I tried this on two occasions before I realized that way was not going to work. The first time I tried, the batter stuck to the wax paper and didn’t rise at all. The second time, the flavor was there, but the shells were completely cracked—every last one of them.

By this point, I felt like it was a challenge I wanted to solve. I thought through the recipe and what had been going wrong and lo and behold, the third time was the charm!

I am writing this step-by-step to help you learn from my mistakes. This way you can make perfect s'mores macarons the first time!

Ingredients

Almond Mixture

• 3 egg whites
• 1 ¾ cups almond flour
• 1 ¾ cups powdered sugar
• 1 tbsp. cocoa powder
• 1 tsp. cinnamon

Italian Meringue

• 3 egg whites
• ¼ cup water
• 1 cup sugar

Chocolate Ganache and Marshmallow

• 1 cup chocolate chips
• ½ cup heavy cream
• 1 jar marshmallow fluff
• 1 graham cracker, in crumbs optional, for topping

Instructions

(Before you get started, separate 6 egg whites into two separate bowls and let them come up to room temperature).

First up, the dry ingredients.

This is where I got into trouble the first two times. I wanted the shell of the macaron to taste like a graham cracker, so I thought I could substitute in crushed graham crackers for some of the almond flour. This didn’t work for me at all. I believe it caused the moisture content to be way off, and what came out of it didn’t even resemble a macaron.

I decided instead to incorporate the FLAVORS of a graham cracker. By including a little cinnamon into the batter, and just a touch of cocoa powder for color, I achieved exactly what I was looking for!

• In a food processor, add almond flour, powdered sugar, cocoa powder, and cinnamon. Pulse ten times to combine. (This really helps to ensure everything is smooth)
• Using a fine sieve, sift pulsed dry ingredients over a large mixing bowl. Discard anything that is too big to fall through the sieve.
• To the dry ingredients add 3 of the room temperature egg whites. And stir until it creates a paste. Cover with a towel or plastic wrap (so that it doesn’t dry out) and set to the side.

The Meringue:

• In a stand mixer, begin whipping the second set of 3 egg whites.
• While those whip, combine sugar and water in a small saucepan. Heat until the sugar is dissolved and the syrup reaches 240 degrees.
• Once the egg whites are frothy, begin pouring the hot syrup down the side of the stand mixer, very slowly. When all of the syrup has been incorporated, increase the speed to medium-high and whip until the meringue is glossy, smooth, and forms stiff peaks.
• Uncover your almond mixture, and slowly begin folding in the meringue in thirds. I did so by scraping the sides and then bringing my spatula down the center. Because we are using an Italian meringue, it is more resilient and less prone to falling.
• Once all of the meringue has been added, continue to fold the mixture until it falls from the spatula in ribbons (A good marker is the ability to drip a “figure 8” with the spatula without the mixture breaking).
  

Piping the shells

• Place the template under the parchment paper and trace the circles. It takes a little extra work, but the paper can be reused in batches, if desired.
• Place parchment paper onto a baking sheet, putting a tiny bit of the batter under each corner to keep it in place.  Add the batter to a pastry bag, and pipe 1 ½ inch circles, leaving space in between each for the mixture to spread.
• Now comes the fun part. Bang the pan on a hard surface a few times, to get any air bubbles out. This really helps to ensure a smooth shell. If you see any extra bubbles that aren’t releasing, you can poke them with a toothpick. (If you want to sprinkle a few graham cracker crumbs on top of the finished shells at this point, feel free).
• Let the shells sit out for 15-20 minutes. This with help to dry out the shells, which again helps to create a smooth surface, but it also helps to ensure that those beautiful feet form. The shells should end up having a soft matte appearance, and no longer be sticky to the touch.
• Bake at 300 degrees for 17 minutes.
• Let the macarons cool and then repeat the process until all of your batter has been used up.

Side note: Do not use wax paper or silicone mats. They add too much moisture to the delicate macarons.

I was impatient, so I did the piping freehand. But if you want perfectly round circles, it’s a good idea to use a template.

Assembling

I decided after working for hours on perfect macaron shells that I earned the right to just buy marshmallow fluff from the store. I transferred the fluff into a piping bag, and cut a small hole on the tip.  

The chocolate ganache was very easy to put together. It only takes two ingredients, chocolate and heavy cream. I melted the chocolate and then stirred in the heavy cream until well-combined and smooth. I transferred the ganache to a piping bag and then put it in the fridge for a little while to make it a bit less runny.  

• Pipe a small amount of marshmallow fluff on one macaron bottom and a small amount of ganache on another. Press together gently. Repeat the process until all of the shells have been used.
• I suggest making these s'mores macarons a day ahead of when you want to serve them, the texture really improves after 24 hours. ( I wouldn’t judge you if you snuck a couple early, though).

French meringue vs. Italian meringue

There are two different types of meringues commonly used for macarons, French and Italian.

French: This is the most basic meringue. It is commonly used, but not very stable until it is cooked. With this method, the egg whites are whipped (generally with some sort of stabilizer like salt or cream of tartar), and as they begin to get frothy, sugar is added. They continue to be whipped until they form stiff peaks.

Italian: This method takes a little more effort, but in my opinion it is 100 percent worth it because it produces a far superior meringue. It begins by whipping the egg whites until soft peaks form, and then hot (240 degree) sugar syrup is added slowly. The egg white/sugar mixture continues to be whipped until it is satiny, glossy, firm, and cool. This meringue is safe to eat without further cooking and is very stable.

If you can’t already tell, we are going to be using the Italian method here. Macarons are finicky as it is, and I want any help I can get with ensuring that they will turn out well. For me, using an Italian meringue is like creating a safety net for myself.

Important takeaways (i.e. learn from my mistakes)

• Only use parchment paper to bake the macarons on
• Do not forget to bang your tray on a hard surface a few times to get out any air bubbles
• Let the shells sit to create a skin
• Italian meringue is one hundred percent the way to go.
  

Looking for other dessert ideas? Try these adorable blueberry hand pies with homemade blueberry filling. Or if you're craving something with more chocolate, try these Potbelly Copycat Dream Bars! If you want to keep with the chocolate and marshmallow theme, here is a recipe for a delicious s'mores dip!

For a simple cookie recipe using almond flour, try almond flour peanut butter cookies or chewy chocolate hazelnut cookies.