The ultimate chocolate mint cookie! These Mint Chocolate French Macarons are amazingly good. Let me show you how easy it is to make your own French macaron cookies with a decadent chocolate mint ganache filling. Super fancy yet totally doable at home!
What are mint chocolate French Macarons?
French macarons are delicate cookies or shells made of meringue and almond flour, plus food coloring and various flavorings. They date back to 15th century France. A macaron is not to be confused with the macaROON which is made with sweetened coconut flakes. French macarons are sandwich cookies with a variety of fillings ranging from buttercream to jam to chocolate ganache. The Mint Chocolate French Macarons that I’m sharing today are filled with a mint infused chocolate ganache filling. They’re SO good!
Ingredients You Need to make Macaron Shells
Almond Flour – Also called almond meal. I used the brand Blue Diamond because it’s extra fine.
Powdered Sugar – Also called confectioner’s sugar. I prefer to buy it in the 2 lb. bag at the grocery as it’s pre-sifted.
Large Egg Whites – Make sure they are room temperature for this recipe.
Store Bought Egg Whites in the Carton – You need 100g of egg whites, so when you weigh your egg whites that you separated, you might not have exactly 100g. I use the store bought carton egg whites to supplement this recipe. And add a little to make it 100g (if needed).
Granulated Sugar
Food Coloring Gel – I prefer using food coloring gel because it’s thicker and more concentrated than traditional food coloring. It only takes a drop or two. I used Americolor Leaf Green for this recipe.
Do You need to sift almond Flour for macarons?
There are many different opinions on this question. Personally, I do NOT sift the almond flour OR the powdered sugar when making macarons. That is because I am LAZY. Also, I prefer doing things the easiest way possible. Since I don’t sift, it’s important for me to use extra fine almond flour. I prefer the brand called Blue Diamond (affiliate). I order from Amazon. I’m sure there are other good brands out there, you can experiment with if you wish. And if you feel like it’s too lumpy, you can always sift. I also do NOT sift the powdered sugar. I buy it at the grocery store in the 2 lb. plastic bag. The grocery store brand works fine such as Publix, Walmart, Kroger, Ingles, etc. Make sure you whisk together your almond flour and powdered sugar very well to get any lumps out.
Note: If you want to sift your almond flour and powdered sugar, go right ahead. It will give you a slightly smoother macaron shell.
The Macaronage Stage of Mixing the Batter
What is macaronage? It is the phase of the macaron making process where you fold the dry ingredients into your meringue. The recipe calls for whisking together the powdered sugar and almond flour, then setting aside. Then you beat your egg whites and granulated sugar over a double boiler until the sugar dissolves. At that point, you remove from the heat and beat until stiff peaks form. The next step is the MACRAONAGE stage of mixing the batter. It’s the act of carefully FOLDING the almond flour/powdered sugar mixture into the meringue. You will gently fold it in at first. Once it is combined, then you will continue to fold and mix until your batter is smooth, shiny and falls off the spoon or spatula in a flowing stream. This takes about 5 minutes. A classic way of testing whether it’s ready is to scoop some of the batter and let it drizzle down into the bowl and make a figure eight pattern. Then you know it’s ready to be piped on to the cookie sheet.
Pro Tips for Making Perfect mint chocolate french Macarons
Make sure you have all the ingredients and tools that you need BEFORE you start this project.
Ordering this Macaron Kit will be very helpful (it’s the one that I use).
Time is your friend. Don’t rush these. It’s important to let the piped macaron shells dry out for an hour BEFORE baking.
Also, let them cool COMPLETELY before removing them from the cookie sheet. Use a metal spatula to slide underneath and lift from the mat or parchment paper. Don’t use your hands to remove the macaron shells.
Be gentle when you are filling the macaron shells. They will break easily.
For the best taste results, let your filled macaron shells “age” overnight. This allows the flavors to become more vibrant and the texture is more soft and moist.
TOOLS FOR SUCCESS
Macaron Kit – 15 piece set includes TWO mats with macaron template, plus much more!
Blue Diamond Almond Flour – My favorite brand for this recipe!
Americolor Food Coloring Gel in Leaf Green
Note: The above items are affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
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Mint Chocolate French Macarons
Ingredients
For the macaron shells
- 1 cup almond flour ( Scant cup or 105g - I used Blue Diamond Almond Flour)
- 1 cup powdered sugar (Scant cup or 105g)
- 3 large egg whites, room temperature (100g - weigh your egg whites and add a little extra from a carton of store bought egg whites, if needed)
- ½ cup granulated sugar (Scant ½ cup or 100g)
- 1 drop leaf green food coloring gel (or one more drop if you want it darker)
For the mint chocolate ganache
- 1 ¼ cups semi-sweet chocolate chips (or 70 ounces. I used dairy free)
- â…” cup unsweetened coconut milk (In the can, stirred well. Or use heavy cream if you can tolerate dairy.)
- 1 teaspoon peppermint flavoring (I prefer Simply Organic brand because it's an oil)
Instructions
For the macaron shells
- Line two half sheet pans with silicone mats (I like the ones that have the circle pre-marked on the mat - found on Amazon, see blog post for link). You could also use parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the almond flour and powdered sugar (make sure you get out any lumps). Weigh out the ingredients for best results. Set aside.
- Place egg whites in a heat proof bowl. I like to weigh the 3 egg whites. If they are less than 100g, then add enough liquid egg whites (from the carton) to reach the 100g mark. Add the granulated sugar. Place bowl over a pan of boiling water, whisking constantly for 90 seconds. This will dissolve the sugar. Remove the bowl from the heat and immediately start beating with an electric mixer with the whisk attachment on medium high for 1 minute, then turn up to high and beat 2 minutes or until stiff peaks form. (Do not overbeat or they will be too dry.)
- Fold half of the almond flour mixture into the beaten egg whites until combined, then fold in the remaining half of the almond flour mixture. Keep folding until completely combined. Add the food coloring. Continue to fold and stir until you have a smooth batter that runs off the spatula easily and fairly quickly. You should be able to drizzle a figure eight pattern. This took me 6 minutes. Note: You will need to use some "elbow grease" towards the end, meaning to put some muscle into it. You will be delicate with it at first, when you're folding, then you don't have to be so delicate towards the end.
- Pour batter into a large pastry bag fitted with a ½" round pastry tip. Start piping the batter, holding the bag at a 90° angle. Squeeze bag until you've piped a round of macaron batter that almost reaches the edges of the macaron template or about 1 â…œ-inch wide. You should have enough to pipe about 40 shells. Tap pan on counter to release the air bubbles. Use a toothpick to pop any bubbles that appear. Let the shells dry for 40-60 minutes. You can preheat the oven at this point to 325°F. Bake the shells for 16-18 minutes. Let them cool completely. Use a metal spatula to slide underneath the macaron shell and lift from the pan. Don't use your hands, the shells might break. Note: Ovens may vary. If you want to TEST bake one cookie first, you could do that. If they aren't baked long enough, they will be too soft, but baked too much and they will be too hard.
For the mint chocolate ganache
- Place chocolate chips in a microwave safe medium bowl. Microwave on high for 30 seconds. Stir. Add coconut milk and microwave for another 30 seconds. Stir until smooth. Heat for a few more seconds, if needed, but be careful because the chocolate will burn very easily. Stir in peppermint flavoring. Cover and let cool so it can thicken up a bit.
- To fill macarons, scoop the ganache into a pastry bag fitted with a round pastry tip such as a #12. Tie the end so it doesn't spill out. Pipe a dollop of ganache onto half of the macaron shells, then place the remaining shells on top. Store macarons in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week. You can also freeze them for 1-2 months.
Notes
Nutrition
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Liz says
Wow! Gorgeous!! You've inspired me to add these to my baking list!!