Mint Macarons

These Mint Macarons are light, crisp French macarons with mint buttercream frosting. They are perfect for wedding dessert buffets and as special party treats.

Yes, I did it! I finally tackled the macaron. Well, I’m not sure that tackled is the right word since I’ve only made one batch but I successfully made Mint Macarons. My sister-in-law is getting married at the end of the month. It is a casual wedding and she asked if I would bring some desserts for the dessert and candy buffet. Even though I make desserts and sweets every week, I am not really sure what to make for the wedding. My sister-in-law isn’t picky about what desserts, but her colors are mint and bright pink. So, off to Pinterest I went to do a little research and from what I could see, macarons are THE wedding treat to have!

I’ve wanted to try making them for a long time now and the really sad thing is that I’ve never even tasted a macaron! My first hurdle was to find almond flour. Living out in the sticks, my small local grocery store doesn’t carry it and I couldn’t remember to buy it when I was in town. Finally, I checked another grocery store that is about 10 miles from my house and found it.

I’ve read blog posts about macarons from my foodie friends like Chocolate Mint Macarons from Crazy For Crust, Strawberry Colada Macarons from Taste and Tell and Blood Orange Walnut Macarons from Blahnik Baker. And more posts from blogs that I’ve never heard of. I watched video tutorials and read through comments and questions about making macarons. I even read a fictional book about a woman that opens a cafe that serves tea and macarons. I think all of that information “psyched me out”.

Nevertheless, I decided to give a try. A lot of bloggers pointed to the recipe and method from BraveTart. So, I read through several of her blog posts about the ins-and-outs of making macarons. Finally, I went ahead and followed her instructions step-by-step.

And SURPRISE… they turned out! I was so excited when I pulled the first pan out of the oven! My mint macarons are far from perfect. Many of them are more oval or even rhombus shaped. But they didn’t crack or collapse and they have feet! (Feet refers to the little foamy looking edge you can see around the bottom of the cookies.) A couple of things to note: Yes, I did use a scale to measure the ingredients and that was a first for me. I did not do anything special to the egg whites…out of the fridge into the mixing bowl. Also, I got the same results from the macarons that rested, as I did from the ones that went straight into the oven. The mint flavor comes from the mint buttercream frosting between the cookies. I would love to hear if you’ve tried making macarons and how it went for you.