These Halloween macarons are French meringue macarons made from almond flour, powdered sugar, egg whites and gel color, filled with vanilla buttercream. One batch makes 20 filled macarons (about 40 shells), bakes at 300°F for 15 to 17 minutes per tray, and takes about 3½ hours from start to finish, most of it resting and cooling.
The same shell batter becomes orange pumpkins, white ghosts and purple one-eyed monsters. The only real trick is color: shells bake a shade lighter than the raw batter, so tint the meringue one shade darker than you want on the plate.
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- Yield: 20 filled macarons from 1½ inch circles
- Shells: 1 cup (100 g) almond flour, 1¾ cups (200 g) powdered sugar, 3 large egg whites, ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar
- Filling: ½ cup unsalted butter, 1½ cups powdered sugar, 2 tbsp heavy cream, 1 tsp vanilla, a pinch of salt
- Oven: 300°F (150°C), one tray at a time, 15 to 17 minutes
- Time: 45 minutes prep, 30 to 45 minutes resting before baking, then cooling and filling
- Keeps: up to 4 days in the fridge in an airtight container
Put simply, the shell ratio is 1 part almond flour to 2 parts powdered sugar by weight, with about the same weight of egg white as almond flour (3 large whites are close to 100 g) and half that in granulated sugar. If you have baked my chocolate ganache macarons or pistachio macarons, the method will feel familiar.
Sifting the Almond Flour and Whipping the Whites
Sift the almond flour and powdered sugar together into a large bowl and throw away the coarse bits left in the sieve. Those bits are what make bumpy tops. I have tried hazelnut and coconut flour in this shell, and almond gives the crisp outside and chewy middle without spreading or going hollow.
Your egg whites should be at room temperature and your bowl completely free of grease. A paper towel with a little lemon juice wiped around the bowl takes care of that. Beat the whites until foamy, then add the granulated sugar slowly and keep beating until the meringue is stiff and glossy and the peaks stand straight up when you lift the beaters.
Coloring the Meringue for Pumpkins, Ghosts and Monsters
Use gel color only. Liquid color adds water, and water softens the meringue and the shells crack or spread. Add the gel at the very end of whipping and beat just until the color is even.
For one tray of each design, divide the stiff meringue into three bowls before you fold. Tint one orange (a touch of brown makes it look like a real pumpkin), one purple, and leave one white for ghosts. Then divide the sifted almond mixture into three equal parts and fold one into each bowl. Remember the darker shade rule here, because the oven fades every color.
How Runny Should Macaron Batter Be?
Fold with a spatula, scraping around the bowl and cutting through the middle. You are knocking out just enough air for the batter to loosen. It is ready when it falls off the spatula in a thick ribbon, draws a figure 8 without breaking, and that ribbon sinks back into the batter in about 10 to 20 seconds.
Check every few folds. Underfolded batter holds peaks and cracks in the oven. Overfolded batter runs flat and bakes without feet, and there is no way to undo it. I have compared this by hand and with a stand mixer on low, and the mixer goes past the right point too fast. A spatula lets you feel the resistance drop.
Piping, Resting and Baking at 300°F
Spoon the batter into a piping bag with a round tip and pipe 1½ inch circles onto parchment. Hold the bag straight up and stop squeezing before you lift. Then bang the tray firmly on the counter a few times. Bubbles come to the surface and pop, which is what keeps the tops from cracking.
Leave the shells uncovered at room temperature for 30 to 45 minutes. They are ready when a skin forms and a light touch no longer sticks to your finger. On a humid day this takes longer, so go by the touch, not the clock.
Bake one tray at a time at 300°F (150°C) for 15 to 17 minutes. Done shells have risen on ruffled feet and the tops do not wobble when you nudge them. Let them cool completely on the parchment before you peel them off.
Ghost Macarons, Jack-o-Lanterns and One-Eyed Monsters
Decorate only once the shells are completely cool, or the faces smear. An edible black marker is the simplest tool. Melted chocolate in a small piping bag or on a toothpick works too.
- Ghost macarons: uncolored shells with two dark oval eyes. White shells brown faster than colored ones, so bake them with an empty sheet pan on the rack above. Round ghosts are the reliable version. For ghost-shaped shells, slide a printed template under the parchment, fold the batter a few strokes less so it holds the tail, and pipe a circle that you drag down to a wavy point.
- Pumpkin macarons: orange shells with triangle eyes and a zigzag mouth, drawn on the top shell only.
- Monster macarons: purple shells with a thin drizzle of melted chocolate across the top and one candy eye stuck on with a dot of buttercream.
- Mummy macarons: white or pale shells with thin stripes of white icing piped from a small tip, with two candy eyes peeking through.
- Candy corn macarons: color one third of the batch yellow and one third orange, then sandwich a yellow shell and an orange shell with white buttercream so the filling shows as the white stripe.
You can decorate in stages: faces one evening, filling the next. If you are planning a whole table, the Halloween cupcake decorations use the same eyes, stripes and drizzles.
Fall Filling Flavors to Swap In
The card filling is a vanilla buttercream: butter beaten smooth, then powdered sugar, cream, vanilla and a pinch of salt until fluffy. Pipe a small mound on the flat side of one shell and press the second shell on gently, just until the filling reaches the edge.
- Cinnamon: beat 1 tsp ground cinnamon into the buttercream, or use my cinnamon buttercream. It suits orange pumpkin shells and works for Thanksgiving macarons too.
- Pumpkin spice: 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice instead of the cinnamon.
- Chocolate: beat in 2 tbsp cocoa powder and a splash more cream, or swap the buttercream for chocolate ganache.
- Cream cheese: a stiff cream cheese frosting is tangy against the sweet shells; keep these macarons in the fridge.
Hollow, Cracked or Flat Shells: What Happened
- Cracked tops: the shells had not formed a skin, or air was still trapped. Rest them longer and bang the tray harder.
- Hollow shells: the meringue was too soft or the oven too hot. Whip to stiff peaks and check your oven with a thermometer.
- No feet, flat shells: the batter was overfolded or the shells never dried. Fold less and wait for the skin.
- Lopsided feet: uneven oven heat. Turn the tray halfway through baking.
- Stuck to the parchment: underbaked. Give the next tray 1 to 2 more minutes instead of turning up the heat.
- Pale colors: the meringue was tinted too lightly. Go one shade darker next time.
Filling a Day Ahead for October 31
Filled macarons get better after a rest. The filling softens the inside of the shell, and the crisp first bite turns into a chewy middle. Fill them the day before your party, then keep them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Bring them to room temperature for about 30 minutes before serving so the buttercream softens and the flavor opens up.
For an earlier start, freeze the filled macarons in a single layer in an airtight container for up to a month and thaw them in the fridge overnight. Add candy eyes after thawing, since they can weep in the freezer.
On a party platter they sit well next to ghost brownies and pumpkin cheesecake bites. For more ideas, browse all my Halloween desserts, or the spooky cake if you need a centerpiece.
Shell and Filling Questions
Are Halloween macarons the same as macaroons?
No. Macarons are almond flour and meringue sandwich cookies with a filling. Macaroons are chewy mounds of shredded coconut, like these coconut macaroons.
What do you use to draw faces on macarons?
An edible black marker or melted chocolate on a toothpick, on fully cooled shells.
Do I need a thermometer for these macarons?
Not for the meringue. This is a French meringue with no sugar syrup. An oven thermometer does help, because an oven running hot is a common cause of hollow shells.
Halloween Macarons Recipe
These Halloween macarons are French meringue macarons made with almond flour, powdered sugar, egg whites, gel food coloring and a vanilla buttercream filling. One batch makes 20 filled macarons from 1½ inch shells baked at 300°F for 15 to 17 minutes, with a crisp outside and a chewy middle. The batter is folded until it draws a figure 8, then the shells rest until a dry skin forms, which gives them smooth tops and tall feet. Split the meringue to make orange pumpkin macarons, white ghost macarons and purple monster macarons for a Halloween dessert table or party favors. Swap in cinnamon buttercream, chocolate ganache or cream cheese frosting, and keep them in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Ingredients
- FOR THE MACARON SHELLS
- 1 cup (100g) almond flour
- 1 3/4 cups (200g) powdered sugar
- 3 large egg whites, room temperature
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- Gel food coloring (orange, purple, or black)
- FOR THE FILLING
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 2 tbsp heavy cream
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
PREPARE DRY INGREDIENTS: Sift the almond flour and powdered sugar into a large bowl, discarding any coarse bits.
MAKE THE MERINGUE: In a clean, dry mixing bowl, beat the egg whites until foamy. Slowly add the granulated sugar while continuing to beat until stiff, glossy peaks form. Mix in gel food coloring until you reach the desired Halloween shade.
MACARONAGE (FOLDING STEP): Gently fold the almond flour mixture into the meringue using a spatula. Continue folding until the batter flows like thick lava and forms a figure 8 without breaking.
PIPE THE SHELLS: Transfer the batter to a piping bag fitted with a round tip. Pipe 1 1/2-inch circles onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. Firmly tap the tray against the counter to release any air bubbles.
REST THE SHELLS: Let the piped shells sit at room temperature for 30–45 minutes until a skin forms on top and they no longer stick to your finger.
BAKE: Preheat the oven to 300°F (150°C). Bake one tray at a time for 15–17 minutes. Allow the shells to cool completely before removing them from the parchment.
MAKE THE FILLING: Beat the butter until smooth and creamy. Add powdered sugar, heavy cream, vanilla extract, and a pinch of salt. Mix until the filling is fluffy. Pipe onto the flat side of one macaron shell, then sandwich with another shell.
Notes
Use gel food coloring only and tint the meringue one shade darker than you want, because the shells bake lighter. The batter is ready when it flows in a thick ribbon and sinks back in 10 to 20 seconds; overfolding gives flat shells with no feet. Rest the piped shells until they are no longer tacky to the touch. Bake white ghost shells with an empty sheet pan on the rack above so they do not brown. Shells that stick to the parchment need 1 to 2 more minutes. For variety, replace the buttercream with chocolate ganache or cream cheese frosting. Decorate the cooled shells with edible markers, melted chocolate or icing. Fill a day ahead and store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days; bring to room temperature before serving.
Nutrition Information
Yield
20Serving Size
1Amount Per Serving Calories 116Total Fat 5gSaturated Fat 3gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 2gCholesterol 14mgSodium 17mgCarbohydrates 15gFiber 0gSugar 9gProtein 2g
