Pink Peppermint Bark Macarons.
This is a huge day!
Because I successfully made macarons without
1. having a myocardial infarction
2. getting divorced
3. throwing my <insert kitchen appliance here> out the window
and, better yet, they are fantastic.
Okay, so the reason I had to go with peppermint bark is because I am downright obsessed with these peppermint bark covered cookies. I have tried the cheaper dupes and NOTHING is as good as these ones. And I desperately want to make them, but I’m afraid they still won’t be as good.
Also, I should add, that this is all Max’s fault.
My little snuggabubs the the BEST SHOPPER. Seriously. My mom and I can have marathon shopping days (think six or eight hours) and Max has been coming along since he was born. These days, he is so much more active that he just wants to get out of the stroller and run, and even though we take a bunch of play breaks, by the seventh hour a few weeks ago he wanted to be a wild man. We were in Williams Sonoma and he grabbed a tube of these cookies from in the stroller and proceeded to chew on the can.
I mean.
I couldn’t NOT buy the cookies after my one year old chewed the can for twenty minutes.
So I coughed up the $25 (eeeeek) and opened them on the spot because we were starving.
Serious love at first bite. I like mint with my chocolate, but it wasn’t until this bite that I become obsessed with all things pepperminy barky.
It wasn’t that moment that made me try out these macs. I had been planning a peppermint brownie macaron of some sort for the season and started… let’s call it “practicing”… in OCTOBER. That’s one heck of a recipe.
I’ve never made macarons before. It only took me about 436 tries to get a recipe to work too. Stay tuned for 2015 recipe disasters, the macaron version.
Fortunately, I’ve eaten TONS of macarons. I don’t care how trendy they may be. Not only do they taste wonderful, but if you’re a texture freak like me then you straight up lose it over the soft yet slightly crunchy outside and fluffy filling inside.
Dreams dreams dreams.
Sidenote: Eddie didn’t think he liked macarons. Who knows why? Probably because he confused them with macarOOns, and since he can’t take the texture of coconut, figured I was trying to trick him.
Um, whyyyyyy would I ever do that.
Anyhoo, when we were in NYC a few months ago he went to Bouchon and said “just give me two of every flavor of macaron that you have.”
Is this man serious?
He had no choice but to get hooked (or waste all the macarons). It would be fitting though that the first macarons I successfully made were ones he wouldn’t touch, since he swears that eating minty chocolate is like having toothpaste for dessert.
Oh well! More for us.
Pink Peppermint Bark Macarons
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cups powdered sugar
- 1 cup finely ground almond meal
- 3 large egg whites, at room temperature
- 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
- pinch of salt
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract
- a drop of pink food coloring, if you wish
for the ganache(s):
- 1/3 cup heavy cream
- 6 ounces high-quality dark chocolate, chopped
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 6 ounces high-quality white chocolate, chopped (I find that Lindt works best for white)
- peppermints or candy canes, crushed
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300 degrees using the convection setting. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silpats.
- Whisk the powdered sugar and almond meal together in a bowl. Sift it thoroughly into another large bowl – you may have a few tablespoons of coarse almond meal left which is fine – discard it. This will take a few minutes! Set the bowl aside.
- Add the egg whites, cream of tartar and salt to the bowl of your electric mixer and beat on low speed until frothy. Add in the sugar gradually, very slowly, while increasing the speed to medium high. Continue to beat the egg whites for a few minutes until they are shiny and stiff. Beat in the vanilla and peppermint extracts, along with the pink food coloring.
- Transfer the egg whites into the bowl with the sifted sugar and almond flour. Fold the dry ingredients into the egg whites, dragging the spatula through the center and folding the bottom of the batter over. You don’t want to overmix! Mix until just combined. Scoop the mixture into a pastry bag fitted with a round tip – mine was 1/2 inch wide.
- Take the pastry bag and pipe 1 inch (or so) circles, leaving about 2 inches between each. Once you’ve filled up the baking sheets, tap them against the counter to release any air bubbles. Let sit for at least 15 minutes (or longer, if more humid) until the tops are no longer sticky. Place another baking sheet underneath the one with the macarons (this prevents the macs from getting too much heat) and stick the sheets in the oven. Bake one sheet at a time, for 18 to 20 minutes, until the tops are set and you can see the “feet” underneath. Remove from the oven and let cool completely.
- To fill, take two macaron shells and top one with chocolate ganache and the other with white chocolate. Sprinkle crushed peppermints over top of both, then stick the shells together to create your cookie.
for the ganache(s):
- To make the ganache, add each chopped chocolate to a separate bowl. Heat the heavy cream over medium heat until it’s just hot and the edges are bubbling, then pour 1/3 cup over the dark chocolate and 1/4 cup over the white. (I find that white needs less liquid, feel free to add more after stirring if necessary.) Let sit for 1 minute, then stir continuously until the chocolate melts and you have a smooch ganache.
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
Be sure to follow @howsweeteats on instagram and tag #howsweeteats. You can also post a photo of your recipe to our facebook page.
I appreciate you so much!
Oh oh! And pink. Because why not?
53 Comments on “Pink Peppermint Bark Macarons.”
These are so festive, so fun, and I love mint and chocolate combos!! Thanks for sharing — have a wonderful Christmas! :)
Yum!! These are absolutely beautiful. I’m a pastry chef, and there are definitely a few things you can do to resist mac failure: first of all, the bowl and mixer you use must be absolutely clean and free of any moisture or grease, and the same goes for your mixture of powdered sugar and meal. The drier everything is, the better! Also, when mixing the batter, you’re looking for a very specific ‘molten’ texture. It’s okay to be a little rough with it because you’re looking to knock some air out of the egg whites. If you drop a little batter back into the bowl, it shouldn’t flow back into the rest of the mixture instantly, but in about 30 seconds the batter should look rather smooth.
Now that I’ve said my piece, I want to mow through that entire last picture!!!
amazing, thanks for these tips!
Hi Caroline! What are your thoughts on using a different kind of meal? I happen to be allergic to Almonds (BOOOOO right?) but would still like to make these. I have been successful using sunflower seed flour as almonds and sunflower seeds have similar fat contents, but, are there anything other products that are easier to get my hands on? thge SSFlour was very time consuming to make.
This is my problem too! Would love to know the answer
Try cashew flour if you can tolerate cashews. I use it all the time instead of almond flour and it works very well. Haven’t needed to buy any in a while but I was getting it at Trader Joes.
I can’t use any actual nuts or nut flours. would coconut flour work? I’ve substituted it for almond meal for other recipes, but never macarons.
unfortunately coconut flour won’t work in this recipe – you do need the nut flour for macarons!
Not only are these so stinkin’ adorable, they sound positively delicious. I’ve never tried my hand at macarons, but you’re convincing me to give it a shot.
g.
These look absolutely incredible! I so wish I’d been in your house since October – over 400 rounds of macarons!!
Steph – http;//noruishmeclean.blogspot.com
Macaron PERFECTION!!! Nice work! xo
Those look beautiful and festive! Peppermint and chocolate goes so well together :)
Oh wow these look sos good I love macarons so much!!!
http://xoxobella.com
I’m dead. These look absolutely INCREDIBLE, Jessica! Best dessert I’ve seen this holiday season, hands down.
Oh my gosh those look SO good! Loved reading this (and wishing I had macarons in my kitchen today!).
I’m loving this twist on macarons! Filling them with peppermint bark ganache sounds delicious :)
Dani | http://www.styledvariety.com
SO CUTE!
Your macarons look beautiful! I tried to make some yesterday for a friends bridal shower and it was the biggest failure of my life to date…maybe…possibly. Anyways, they were a disaster. I don’t know if I have the courage again to try just yet but this recipe will definitely be saved for a day where I can redeem myself.
keep going! i can’t even tell you how many times i failed at them. probably 30, at least.
I had the same problem! Did a test run for my friend’s baby shower and promptly scrapped that idea since I didn’t even get ONE good cookie (I mean, they tasted good but looked terrible haha) If I’m feeling daring again, I might just try these!
Woaza! I need to learn how to make macaroons because these are gorgeous.
Goal over winter break: make macarons! These are stunning!
I made a double batch this afternoon and they came out beautifully. Great recipe. I left the white chocolate off of the last ones because dark chocolate rules!
ahh love this andi! thanks and so glad you made ’em already.
I love how bite sized macaroons are. What a great holiday spin on them!
Kari
http://www.sweetteasweetie.com
Those are the cutest macarons ever! And I love the peppermint bark flavor too, that idea is bomb :)
Jessica, I’m not sure if I love you or hate you right now. ;-)))))
I took a macaron making class when I was in Paris a couple of years ago and it was so awesome!! I’ve only made them once or twice since and I really need to get back in the kitchen and do it again before I start feeling nervous about it. It totally was not on my list for this weekend but I think I need to squeeze it in now because these are absolutely gorgeous and sound so incredibly amazing!
Congratulations on finally having macaron-making success!
Cheers,
Maureen
Do you have a picture of how you did the double baking sheet? Sounds ingenious but having a hard time figuring out how to recreate that!
Hahhaa I loved this post! These macarons are gorgeous and I love that you said you made them without having a myocardial infacrion, or getting divorced, because i too have felt the pain and anguish of failed macarons. These look so gorgeous though, great work!
Paige
http://thehappyflammily.com
Even though macarons have been pretty trendy for the past 4 years or so, I’m somewhat embarrassed to say that it took me pretty much that long to even taste one for the first time. I am certainly a texture freak and there is something so satisfying about the mouthfeel of biting into these things. There were raspberry and chocolate ones served at a Christmas party last week and I could not peel myself away from the tray! They seem very difficult to perfect, but I’d love to take a shot at these ones in particular. Chocolate and peppermint is just the most wonderful combination, and combined with the texture of the macaron? Oooooooooh!
These look delish! I am obsessed with all things peppermint and chocolate. I have a bag of peppermint Milanos at my desk and I just broke down and ate one. It’s not even 10am! At least I had breakfast first. LOL Have you had the peppermint mocha frap at Starbucks? It is delicious! And are the W-S cookies super white chocolately? I haven’t gotten them because I don’t like white chocolate. But I have ordered their peppermint oreo brownies. I can’t wait for them to arrive!
OMG made these yesterday – AMAZING. The whole family loved them. Making another batch tomorrow because they are almost gone!
Pingback: Monday Coffee + Links - The Old Fashioned Girl
¡Fantástica receta! Fácil de elaborar, con buenas fotografías y un resultado final delicioso, me encanta. Muchas gracias por compartirla con todos/as.
/ http://www.mascasaonline.com
The other day my sister asked me if I had ever made macarons, I had not, then I come to your blog (LOVE Currently Crushing On), and receive a sign from the baking Gods. I made these for my sister and maybe myself, I think I want to marry these beauties! Thank you for the great recipes and fun blog.
They look amazing and was my first attempt at macarons and it was an epic failure! Now I know why they charge so much for them!
Pingback: Pink Peppermint Bark Macarons Recipe
I have shied away from attempting macarons for years now, but they make it seem so easy on Great British Bake-Off I feel I have to give them a try. These sound amazing.
Pingback: 2015 Christmas Highlights - Hayesvision.com
Hi Jessica! I was so delighted to spot these (stunning) macarons on your blog! You are now the most amazing gal ever – there is nothing you cannot do! I have been obsessed with macarons for a few years now and I just can’t see myself ever tiring of them. You are so right – it’s all about that amazing texture. I love your combination of chocolate + peppermint. I’ve got the technique down for the most part – except when it rains, or it’s humid, or Mercury is in retrograde – but otherwise, such a triumph each time I tackle them. YOURS – are beautiful! You rock!
Pingback: Fridays are for Favorites #17
These look amazing!! Love the color and of course the flavor is perfect for this time of year!!
Pingback: Peppermint Bark Macaron Recipe | Sweet Delights
I’ve made many a macaron and my son wanted me to try this recipe for Christmas. I was disappointed when the recipe failed. The batter was to think to pipe out and it was close to a dough consistency. Back to my tried and true recipe.
Pingback: 35 Christmas Cookie Recipes That Make This The Best Time Of Year – Site Title
Hey jackass – why not print the picture with the recipe?
wow, you are super classy! why do you want the photo printed when you can see it on the computer? literally no one requests the photos to be printed because it takes up too much ink.
Pingback: 15 Must Make Macaron Recipes - Busy Moms Helper
Pingback: 23 Genius Uses for Leftover Candy Canes – Justlifab
Pingback: Tis The Season: 12 Epic Christmas Cookies And 8 That Should Have Never Come Out Of The Oven
Pingback: How To Use Leftover Candy Canes – Amanda Explains It
Pingback: 2016 Holiday Baking List. (What Are You Making?! Tell Me!) - How Sweet Eats
Pingback: Pink Peppermint Sugar Cookies. - TheDirtyGyro