Lucky Charms Cereal Macarons
These fun, green macarons are filled with a Lucky Charms milk cereal ganache. Decorate the outside with some gold sprinkles and marshmallows for St. Patrick's Day.
Servings: 30 macarons
Calories: 159kcal
Equipment
- stand mixer with whisk attachment
- light colored baking sheets
- silicone mat or parchment paper
- pastry bag with ½ inch (1.3 cm) round tip
Ingredients
Macarons
- 112 grams egg whites
- 140 grams super fine almond flour
- 140 grams confectioners' sugar
- ½ teaspoon cream of tartar
- 126 grams granulated sugar
- 7 drops green gel food coloring
- 3 drops yellow gel food coloring
- gold sprinkles (optional)
Lucky Charms Ganache
- ¾ cup, plus more for garnish Lucky Charms cereal
- ¾ cup heavy cream divided
- 1 ¼ cups, plus an additional 2 tablespoons (24 grams) for garnish white chocolate morsels
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
Instructions
For the Macarons
- Separate egg whites from yolks, and allow egg whites to come to room temperature.
- Measure dry ingredients using a kitchen scale. Double-sift the almond flour and confectioners' sugar together in a large mixing bowl.
- Wipe down the mixing bowl and whisk attachment with a little white vinegar on a paper towel to remove any leftover oils.
- Prepare your piping bag with a ½ inch (1.3 cm) round tip. Push part of the side of the piping bag into the piping tip to ensure nothing leaks out. Set the bag inside a tall glass, and pull the remaining top of the piping bag out over the outside of the glass to make pouring the batter easy and clean.
- Add room temperature egg whites and cream of tartar to a stand mixer bowl fitted with a whisk attachment. Whip on medium-low speed until the eggs are very foamy, about 3 minutes. Add a third of the granulated sugar at a time, allowing the mixer to beat in each batch of sugar for about 45 seconds before adding in another batch.
- Once all the granulated sugar is incorporated, turn the mixer speed to medium-high, and allow the egg whites to continue to whip until stiff peaks form, about 10–11 minutes. Add green and yellow gel food coloring once the egg whites reach soft peaks stage. Once at stiff peaks, you'll notice the meringue starts to ball up inside the whisk and is glossy. To test the meringue stiffness, pull the whisk out. A stiff peak should stand straight up (no curl at the tip). You'll also know it's ready because you can fully flip the bowl over and nothing moves or falls out. Make sure not to overbeat the meringue at this stage (this is when the egg whites look dull or curdled).
- Pour the sifted almond flour and confectioners' sugar into the meringue mixture, and gently fold them together using a silicone spatula. Continue until all the meringue is fully incorporated, and no dry bits of almond flour remain on the bottom of the bowl.
- Begin working the batter until everything is fully incorporated (this is called the macaronage process). Slowly spread the mixture along the side of the bowl, then wipe it back down. Be sure to do this gently. Repeat until the mixture has reached a smooth, shiny, flowing consistency. You can test this by lifting your spatula and seeing if the batter drops almost like lava. Once the batter drops back into the bowl, it should take about 10–15 seconds for the ribbon that formed to "disappear" back into the rest of the batter. Don't over macaronage the batter or the macarons will not properly bake in the oven.
- Pour the batter into the prepared piping bag. Hold the bag vertically, and gently pipe 1.5 inch (3.8 cm) circles. Once you have reached the desired size, release the pressure on the bag, and twist your wrist without lifting up. Continue until no batter remains.
- Tap the sheet pan down the counter a few times to release any air bubbles. Pop the air bubbles with a toothpick. Optionally, top half of the macaron shells with gold sprinkles while the batter is still wet. Allow the batter to sit on the counter and dry for 60+ minutes until a thin "skin" develops, and you can touch the tops without ruining the macaron. This resting time will vary depending on the humidity (they may take up to 90+ minutes to dry if you live in a humid or rainy environment). While the macarons are drying, heat oven to 300°F (150°C).
- Bake one sheet at a time on the center rack of the oven for 19–23 minutes. You can test that the macarons are done by gently touching the edge and the feet of the macarons. If the shell wiggles, is sticky, or wet, the macarons need to bake longer. Remove macarons from the oven, and allow to cool on baking sheet until completely cooled.
For Lucky Charms Ganache
- Add Lucky charms cereal and ½ cup (118 ml) heavy cream to a container. Allow to sit at room temperature for 1–2 hours until the cereal has absorbed some of the cream.
- Place cereal, infused heavy cream, and the remaining ¼ cup (60 ml) heavy cream in the container of a blender. Puree until all of the cereal has been blended into the heavy cream, scraping down the sides of the blender as needed.
- Add pureed heavy cream and white chocolate morsels in a medium-sized heat-safe bowl. Heat in the microwave on 50 percent power (medium) for 30 second increments, stirring in between, until the chocolate has completely melted.
- Add fine sea salt to the chocolate, and stir until combined. Optionally, to make the ganache a smooth texture, use an immersion blender to thoroughly mix and break up any larger pieces of cereal.
- 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.
- Optionally, decorate the macaron shells with Lucky Charms marshmallows. Heat 2 tablespoons (24 grams) of white chocolate morsels in the microwave on 50 percent power (medium) for 30 second increments, stirring in between, until the chocolate has completely melted. Place a dot of melted chocolate on the back of Lucky Charms marshmallow and adhere to the macarons with gold sprinkles. Repeat until all of the macarons with gold sprinkles have been garnished.
- Match up macaron shells so that a gold sprinkle shell is paired with a similar size/shaped plain shell. Pipe the filling on one side of the macaron shell using a ½ inch (1.3 cm) round piping tip. Gently, place the matching shell on top of the filling.
- Mature the macarons with the filling in an airtight container in the refrigerator overnight. This will allow the macarons to slightly soften and develop a deeper flavor.
- Store the macarons in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 7 days.
Notes
Having trouble with your macarons? See the full troubleshooting guide above.
Whipping the meringue to stiff peaks (not over or under) is one of the most crucial steps when making macarons. Both under-whipped and over-whipped meringue can result in cracked shells. This is because the meringue needs to have the proper structure in order to rise in the oven.
In order to achieve stiff peaks, you need to learn the visual cues you can use to know that your meringue has whipped to stiff peaks:
- You'll notice the meringue starts to ball up inside the whisk while it's mixing.
- Pull the whisk out of the mixer. A stiff peak should stand straight up (no curl at the tip).
- You can fully flip the bowl over and nothing moves or falls out.
- The meringue feels sturdy (not flimsy).
Nutrition
Calories: 159kcal | Carbohydrates: 21g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.001g | Cholesterol: 9mg | Sodium: 75mg | Potassium: 56mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 17g | Vitamin A: 257IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 59mg | Iron: 2mg
