Chocolate Macarons with Chocolate Buttercream

The absolute best chocolate macarons filled with a rich chocolate buttercream, topped with a melty chocolate drizzle and a generous pinch of sea salt flakes. 

It’s week two of Macaron Month on Baran Bakery and since we knocked out the basic steps last week, we’re moving on to the second most classic flavor, chocolate! I mean, seriously, if these pictures don’t make you crave chocolate macarons then I don’t know what will. 

If you love dark chocolate, make sure to check out my chocolate ganache cake. I also have a ton of macaron flavors like white chocolate raspberry, salted caramel, and coffee.

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How to make chocolate macarons

Last week I wrote a detailed post on how I make macarons. There are three different basic methods of making them and it seems like everyone has their own personal tips and tricks so make sure to check out my Vanilla Macaron post for detailed steps and process shots. 

To make them chocolate, I just remove 20g of the dry ingredients (10g of almond flour and 10g of powdered sugar) and replace it with 20g (¼ cup) of unsweetened cocoa powder. That way, the macaron batter stays the same because the ratio of wet to dry is the same but you get to add in different flavors. 

What kind of cocoa to use 

I prefer dutch-process cocoa powder for almost all my chocolate bakes but you can use any unsweetened cocoa powder. Dutch process generally provides a richer chocolate flavor and color. 

I don’t recommend sweetened cocoa powder because macarons are already very sweet to begin with. 

Extra Tips and Tricks

• 100% recommend a scale for measuring ingredients (except the egg whites, I use 3 large and it’s usually +/- 5 grams, which is fine). 
• Once you stiff peaks in your meringue, don’t over whip. 
• There is no perfect number of how many folds are needed to get the right batter but there is a technique. In the step-by-step photos, you’ll see how I use a firm rubber spatula to push the batter against the edge of the pan and then scrape it back off the edge. I repeat that process until it ribbons into a figure 8 without breaking. The intention here is to push out the air bubbles so that you don’t have hollow or cracking macarons. 
• When you go to pipe the macarons, I usually have a slight “nipple” on them right away but it should disappear or be very faint after rapping the tray on the counter a few times. If it doesn’t go away, dab your finger into water and then gently press the nipple down and it’ll flatten. Remember this for next time, because the batter probably just needed a couple more folds. 
• If you’re having trouble and have tried it a few times, I recommend an oven thermometer. If your oven is off even 10 degrees it can change the results. 
• I use a convection oven (with a fan) so I don’t find the need to rotate them in the oven halfway through baking but if they’re browning on one side more than the other, you can rotate them 7 or 8 minutes into baking. 
• Don’t try to remove them from the pan right away, they can break. Allow them to cool on the pan for at least 10 minutes. 

What filling to use for chocolate macarons 

I chose to make French buttercream as the filling for these chocolate macarons because I wanted to use up the leftover egg yolks. The egg yolks provide a richer, more custard-like flavor than other buttercreams so it is definitely one of my favorites but it can be a little more complicated to make than other types of buttercream. 

You can also make Swiss meringue buttercream, American buttercream or just plain chocolate ganache. If you do make another type of buttercream, you’ll want to use a recipe that has about ½ cup (113g) of butter. If you want to make it with chocolate ganache, I would probably do about 1 ½ cups (9oz) dark chocolate chips melted with ½ cup (4 oz) heavy cream. 

You can also make Swiss meringue buttercream, American buttercream or just plain chocolate ganache. If you do make another type of buttercream, you’ll want to use a recipe that has about ½ cup (113g) of butter. If you want to make it with chocolate ganache, I would probably do about 1 ½ cups (9oz) dark chocolate chips melted with ½ cup (4 oz) heavy cream. 

How to store macarons

Macarons are best served at room temperature or slightly chilled, after they’ve rested for a few hours or overnight. Make sure to store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week. 

You can also freeze them for up to a couple months. To freeze them, place them tightly in an airtight container and then place the container in a freezer bag, squeezing out all of the excess air. 

If you have any questions, comment down below and if you make these chocolate macarons, make sure to tag me @baranbakery on instagram. Remember that practice makes perfect with these babies and they’re edible even when they’re ugly! As always, have a blessed day and happy baking!

Love, B