A classic and beloved flavor, lemon poppy seed, combines the subtle tangy taste of lemon with some crunch from poppy seeds. This filling is beautiful and vibrant, especially when paired with a bright yellow macaron shell.
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I've created a lot of macaron filling recipes throughout my macaron baking journey. Even though I love macarons filled with buttercream, jam, and caramel, ganache macaron fillings are my favorite!
This ganache recipe is unique because it pairs a white chocolate base with layers of lemon and poppy seeds.
It's the perfect summer macaron filling recipe filled with citrus flavors!
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What You'll Learn In This Recipe
- The correct ratio of chocolate and heavy cream when making lemon poppy seed ganache for macarons.
- How to achieve a silky smooth ganache filling.
- My best tips for making ahead and storing ganache filling.
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Ingredients You Need
- White chocolate morsels: For an even more amazing-tasting ganache, use high-quality chocolate like Guittard or Callebaut.
- Unsalted butter: If you choose to use salted butter instead of unsalted butter, be sure to adjust the amount of added salt to taste.
- Heavy cream: Ganache needs heavy cream to achieve a silky smooth consistency. Do not substitute with half and half or milk.
- Lemons: For this recipe, we're utilizing both the lemon peel and juice.
- Vanilla extract: Use a clear vanilla if you want to maintain the white color of the chocolate.
- Poppy Seeds
- Fine sea salt: Even sweet macaron fillings need a bit of salt to level out the taste.
How To Make This Recipe
1. Place the white chocolate morsels and butter in a medium-sized heat-safe bowl.
2. Heat the heavy cream in the microwave until it begins to steam and bubble, but doesn’t boil over. Once hot, pour over the chocolate and allow it to sit, fully submerged, for about 3 minutes.
3. At this point, the chocolate should be mostly melted. Add the lemon peel, lemon juice, vanilla extract, poppy seeds, and fine sea salt, then whisk until the mixture is smooth and fully blended.
If there are still bits of chocolate or butter, heat the entire mixture in the microwave on 50 percent power (medium) for an additional 15 - 30 seconds, then stir until the correct consistency forms.
4. Transfer the ganache to a shallow container, and press plastic wrap against the surface to prevent a skin from forming on top.
5. Finally, place the ganache in the fridge, and allow the mixture to cool until it’s firm enough to pipe.
Expert Tips
- Storage: The filling can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 - 3 weeks, as long as your heavy cream is fresh. Before piping on the macarons, allow the ganache to sit at room temperature until it reaches a pliable consistency.
- If the ganache is too warm when serving the macarons, the filling will push out the sides of the shell when you bite into it. Serve the macarons shortly after pulling them out of the refrigerator from maturing, once they reach room temperature.
- I prefer to pipe 1 teaspoon (about 5 - 7 grams) of ganache filling sandwiched between two macaron shells.
Recipe FAQs
If your ganache is too firm to pipe, it may have sat in the fridge a little too long. Place the ganache on the counter and allow it to slightly warm closer to room temperature. Give the ganache a stir to check that it's a pipeable consistency.
Yes, you can make the ganache up to 7 days ahead of when you plan to use it. Store it in the refrigerator in an airtight container.
Before you need to pipe the ganache filling, allow it to slightly warm closer to room temperature. Give the ganache a stir to ensure it's at a pipeable consistency.
To serve the macarons, remove them from the refrigerator and allow them to come to room temperature. Once at room temperature, dig in and enjoy!
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Lemon Poppy Seed Macaron Filling
Equipment
- heat safe bowl
- piping bag and tip
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups white chocolate morsels
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter softened to room temperature and cut into 1 tablespoon (14 grams) pieces
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon freshly grated lemon peel
- ¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons poppy seeds
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
Instructions
- Place white chocolate morsels and butter in a medium-sized heat-safe bowl.
- Heat heavy cream in the microwave on 100 percent power (high) for 1–2 minutes, until the heavy cream begins to steam and bubble but doesn’t boil over. Immediately, pour the heavy cream over the chocolate. Make sure all of the chocolate is submerged under the cream. Allow the mixture to sit, without stirring, for 3 minutes.
- Add lemon peel, lemon juice, vanilla extract, poppy seeds, and fine sea salt to the chocolate, and whisk until the mixture is smooth and fully blended. If there are still bits of chocolate or butter after stirring with the cream for 60–90 seconds, heat the entire mixture in the microwave on 50 percent power (medium) for an additional 15–30 seconds, then stir until the correct consistency forms.
- Transfer ganache to a shallow container, and press plastic wrap against the surface of the ganache (to prevent a skin from forming on top). Place the ganache in the fridge, and allow the mixture to cool until it’s firm enough to pipe, about 1–2 hours.
- Match up macaron shells so they are paired with a similar size/shaped shell. Pipe filling on one side of the macaron shell using a ½ inch (1.3 cm) round piping tip. Gently place the matching macaron on top of the filling.
- Mature the macarons with the filling in the refrigerator overnight. This will allow the macarons to slightly soften and develop a deeper flavor.
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