This post may contain affiliate links. Read my Disclosure page.
These Wild Blueberry Macarons are made with Bonne Maman Wild Blueberry Preserves used in both the buttercream and center filling. YUM!
This post is sponsored by Bonne Maman®. All opinions are 100% my own. Thanks for continuing to support the brands that help make ‘Mike Bakes NYC’ possible!
With cookie season upon us, these wild blueberry macarons are the perfect treat to make for yourself and/or for loved ones.
As a bonus, you can share these macarons pre-portioned and packaged in up-cycled Bonne Maman jars, which make the perfect, personal gift container!
How to Make Wild Blueberry Macarons
If there’s one thing to know before making French macarons at home, it’s this: these cookies are not simple. Impossible? Absolutely not. Requiring BOTH patience and practice? Yes.
That’s why they’re so expensive in bakeries and restaurants! These are quite finicky little cookies, as I’ve said before. I’m not saying this to intimidate you! I’m saying this to prepare you for a macaron journey. If they don’t come out perfect the first time (they rarely do), know that they will still taste delicious! Looks aren’t everything!
Here are the basic steps to making macarons:
- Sift together the almond flour and powdered sugar and discard any bits that won’t pass through the sifter.
- Whip the egg whites and granulated sugar to a stiff meringue.
- Fold the dry ingredients into the meringue using the macaronage technique.
- Pipe the macarons onto your baking sheet.
- Bang the baking sheet on the counter to get rid of any air bubbles.
- Let the macarons dry at room temperature until dry to the touch. (DO NOT skip this step.)
- Bake the macarons and then cool completely.
- Match up by size, and fill to make cookie sandwiches.
The Wild Blueberry Buttercream Filling
Let me tell you about a frosting that is almost too good to be true. Standard ingredients here– softened butter that is whipped until silky smooth and fluffy. Confectioners’ sugar added 1 cup at a time to really smooth things out and add even more fluff. Next up? Bonne Maman's Wild Blueberry Preserves! There are 2 tablespoons in the buttercream, and then a nice dollop in the center of the piped buttercream to really amp up that wild blueberry flavor.
Bonne Maman fruit spreads are made only with ingredients that might be found in your (or your grandmother’s) kitchen: whole fruit, sugar, lemon juice, and fruit pectin. Giving you the premium, homemade taste that you know and love.
Quick Tips for Making Wild Blueberry Macarons
- The measurements listed are by weight. I strongly recommend using a scale for macarons. They are incredibly finicky and temperamental, so the ingredients have to be precise.
- Wipe down your bowl. Before whisking, make sure your whisk and bowl are sparkling clean and grease/oil-free. Any traces of grease will not let your eggs whites whip to stiff peaks. I like to wipe my bowl down with some lemon juice and a paper towel before starting.
- The number of macarons you make can vary depending on the size you make your macarons. I make mine about an inch to an inch and a half in diameter.
An extensive list of tips and macaron troubleshooting can be found in my Ultimate French Macaron Guide! (Click 'jump to recipe' and scroll up)
Wild Blueberry Macarons
Ingredients
For the Macarons:
- 115 grams almond flour
- 200 grams powdered sugar
- 120 grams egg whites (approx. 4 large eggs), room temperature
- 100 grams granulated sugar
- Blue gel food coloring (do NOT use liquid coloring)
For the Wild Blueberry Buttercream:
- 70 g unsalted butter softened
- 240 g powdered sugar
- 30 g Bonne Maman Wild Blueberry Preserves
- 15 g milk
For the Wild Blueberry Filling:
- 50 g Bonne Maman Wild Blueberry Preserves
Instructions
To Make the Macarons:
- In a medium bowl, sift together the almond flour & powdered sugar and set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the egg whites on medium speed until foamy. Continue to beat until your whisk begins leaving visible trails in the foamy egg whites.
- Once you can see trails, gradually add the granulated sugar, increase the mixer speed, and whip on medium-high until the meringue forms. Add blue gel food coloring, if using, then beat on high until stiff peaks form. (Be sure not to over-whip your egg whites otherwise you risk drying them out.)
- Remove the bowl from the stand mixer, add the dry ingredients to the meringue and fold with a rubber spatula from the bottom of the bowl upward then press the flat side of your spatula through the middle against the side of the bowl. (The batter will look very thick at first, but it will get thinner as you fold.) Continue folding until the batter gets to a lava-like consistency.Pro Tip: The figure 8 test is a great way to check your batter’s consistency; pick up the batter with your spatula and let it flow down into the bowl while drawing the figure “8”. If it can do that without the batter breaking, immediately stop folding.
- Transfer the batter into a large pastry bag with a medium-sized round tip.
- Holding the piping bag at a 90 ̊ angle to the surface, pipe out the batter into 1.5-inch rounds about an inch apart on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. (Feel free to print out a macaron template if you’re worried about size/uniformity).
- Holding the baking sheet with both hands, carefully bang the sheet firmly on the counter a few times to get rid of any air bubbles. (If you don’t release the air bubbles, they will expand during baking and crack your macaron shells.)
- Repeat the piping and banging process until you have used up all the batter (usually about three sheet pans worth.)
- Let the macarons rest and dry for 30 minutes or until a skin has developed; on a humid day, it might take an hour or more. To see if they're ready to be baked, lightly touch the shells. If the batter doesn’t stick to your finger, then it’s ready. (Don’t forget to remove the macaron templates, if using, before baking!)
- While the macarons are resting, preheat the oven to 300˚F (150˚C) and position the oven rack in the center of the oven.
- Bake the macarons, one tray at a time, for 18-20 minutes, rotating the pan once halfway through the baking process.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the sheet pan for 10 minutes before peeling off the parchment paper and cooling completely on a wire rack. (If the bottoms are a tiny bit sticky, keep them on the tray to cool off for an additional 10-15 minutes. If, however, the bottoms are already brown, they peel off cleanly, or they appear over-baked, then carefully take them off the tray immediately to cool down.) Repeat the baking process with the remaining sheet pans.Pro Tip: It’s always better to over- rather than under-bake your macarons as the maturation process can typically salvage ones that are over-baked.
To Make the Wild Blueberry Buttercream:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat the butter on medium-high speed until creamy, about 2 minutes.
- Add the powdered sugar, Bonne Maman Wild Blueberry Preserves, and milk and beat until well combined. Turn the mixer back up to medium-high speed and beat the mixture for an additional 2 minutes until the filling is fluffy. If needed, add in a little more milk 1 teaspoon at a time until you reach your desired consistency. If the buttercream is too runny, add additional powdered sugar 1 tablespoon at a time. Transfer the buttercream to a pastry bag.
Assembly:
- Place the wild blueberry filling into a small piping bag fitted with a round tip. Pair each macaron shell with another of a similar size and place the shells on a baking sheet. Pipe a ring of wild blueberry buttercream on one shell, then a blob of wild blueberry preserves in the middle. Place the second shell on top, gently sandwiching together. Repeat with the remaining macarons. Store the filled macarons in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days and bring back to room temperature before enjoying.
Notes
- Macarons are best enjoyed the next day after they mature in the fridge (since the flavors will be absorbed into the shell). If your shell is hard/crunchy/over-baked, letting them mature will also cause the shells to absorb the moisture from the filling and soften up / give them their signature chewy texture.
Nutrition
MikeBakesNYC LLC owns the copyright on all images and text and does not allow for its original recipes and pictures to be reproduced anywhere other than at this website unless authorization is given. If you enjoyed the recipe and would like to publish it on your site, please re-write it in your own words, and link back to my site and recipe page. Read my Disclosure page. This post may contain affiliate links.
Debra G.
Second time that I made macarons, turned out well. I may make another batch tomorrow now that I am an expert 😉