Macaron shells can be flavored with many different foods including extracts, dried foods, herbs, and spices. We’ll show you how much to add of each food to flavor your macaron shells.
Extract
Extract can be added to your initial egg whites, before adding your almond flour and icing sugar.
The extract is a liquid ingredient, therefore it will emulsify better with the egg whites.
You can add 1/4 tsp to flavor your macaron shells with extract.
Coffee
Coffee is a dry ingredient, therefore you can add it with your almond flour and mix well prior to adding it to your egg whites.
You can add up to 1 tbsp of coffee grounds to your macaron batter to flavor your macaron shells.
Tea
Tea needs to be emptied out of the tea bag and placed into a mortar and pestle.
Grind up the tea. You don’t need to grind it until it forms a powder.
You still want to be able to see the tea leaves.
By grinding up the tea, this will release the aromatic flavors of the tea into the macaron shells.
You can place the tea into your batter with the almond flour and icing sugar.
This way, it will be evenly distributed in your macaron shells.
You can add 1 tsp – 1 tbsp of ground up tea to your macaron shells.
Cookie Crumbs
Cookie crumbs are a dry ingredient, therefore you can add it with your almond flour and mix well prior to adding it to your egg whites.
You can add up to 1 tbsp of cookie crumbs to your macaron batter to flavor your macaron shells.
Cocoa Powder
Cocoa powder is a dry ingredient, so you can add it in with your almond flour.
Depending on how chocolatey you want your macaron shells, you can add 1 tsp – 1 tbsp of cocoa powder. A little goes a long way.
Nuts
Nuts can be roasted to make the flavor more intense for your macaron shells.
Nuts need to be pulsed in a food processor and dried out a day in advance prior to adding them to your macaron shells.
You can add ~1-2 tbsp of dried nuts to your macaron shells if desired.
Nuts can release their oils and ruin your macarons very easily.
If you wanted to be safe, you could sprinkle a few nuts on the tops of your macaron shells instead of putting them directly into your macarons.
Freeze Dried Fruit
Freeze dried fruit can be put into a mortar and pestle.
Grind it until it forms a powder. By grinding up the freeze dried fruit, this will release the fruit flavors into the macaron shells.
You can place the freeze dried fruit into your batter with the almond flour and icing sugar.
You can add 1 tbsp of freeze dried fruit to your macaron shells.
Dried Spices
Dried spices are a dry ingredient, therefore you can add them in with your almond flour.
You can add 1 tsp – 1 tbsp of dried spices to your macaron batter to flavor your macaron shells.
Fresh Herbs
Fresh herbs need to be cut up into fine pieces.
This will release the fresh herb flavors into your macaron shells.
Fresh herbs can contain a bit of water, you can blot it with a bit of paper towel.
Add 1-2 tsp of fresh herbs to your macaron shells to flavor them.
Zest
Lime, lemon, or orange zest can be added to macaron shells for a burst of citrus flavor.
Zest contains quite a bit of liquid, so it should be dried out for a day before using it.
If you don’t have enough time, you can blot it with a paper towel to remove the moisture from the zest.
You can add 1 tsp – 1 tbsp of zest into your macaron shells.
Flavoring Macaron Shells after Piping
You can add a sprinkle of food to the tops of your macaron shells right after piping them.
Any of the above ingredients can be added to the macaron shells to give them more flavor, and an eye catching look to them.
Don’t add too much though, only a little bit in the center.
The food will dry into the macaron shell over the next 30 minutes and will adhere to it.
Once the macarons are baked, the tops of the macaron will look beautiful and be full of flavor.
Flavoring Macaron Shells after Baking
You can add a few extra foods to your macarons after they have baked to give them even more flavor.
Caramel
Caramel sauce or salted caramel sauce can be drizzle on the tops of the macarons for a sweet finish to your macarons.
Melted Chocolate
Melted chocolate can be drizzled on the top of the macaron to give it a chocolatey creamy taste to your macarons.
Icing
Icing can be piped onto the top of the macarons to give your macarons a beautiful look to them.
You can decorate designs like snowflakes, faces, writing, flowers, etc.
The icing will make the macaron have a sweet taste to them.
You can also add a sprinkle of nuts or zest on top of the icing to add more flavor to your macarons if you like.
