Vegan Strawberry Macarons

Hello friends! Today we are making Vegan Strawberry Macarons, they are filled with Vegan Strawberry Buttercream and Strawberry Jam. And I am including a video on this page and on Youtube, to show you exactly how I made these macarons, so make sure to check it out.

Making vegan macarons can be a challenge in the kitchen. I have been baking regular macarons for many years, and they came to me way easier than the vegan ones.

But through a lot of mistakes, I have learned a lot about making vegan macarons.

These Vegan Strawberry Macarons are made using the French method. However, when I first began making vegan macarons, I was using the Italian method.

My first few recipes for Vegan Avocado Macarons, Vegan Salted Caramel Macarons, Lavender Lemon Macarons, and Vegan Raspberry Macarons were all made using the Italian method.

But I wasn’t happy with the feet at the time. I couldn’t seem to get a tall perfect feet like in these Vegan Strawberry Macarons you see here.

So it was time to change the method.

That’s when I worked on developing a different recipe and method that would yield better results. And I came up with these Vegan Biscoff Macarons (probably one of my favorite flavors still).

And I was doing two things differently than what I am currently doing with the Vegan Strawberry Macarons you see on this page. Number one: my oven temperature was 310ºF. And number two: I was reducing the aquafaba.

Currently I bake the macarons at 285ºF, and don’t reduce the aquafaba any longer.

Reduce or not reduce the aquafaba?

I always thought you had to reduce the aquafaba in order to make macarons, because reducing it would make it more concentrated, and make it whip better.

However, I saw a couple of people on a Facebook group claim that they don’t reduce their aquafaba, and use it straight from the can. And then I decided to give that a go.

And I have noticed absolutely no difference between reducing and not reducing the aquafaba, besides the elimination of this extra step. Which is kind of a big thing, because not only you had to reduce the aquafaba, but also let it cool down in the fridge for a few hours or overnight.

So the answer is: no, I don’t reduce the aquafaba any longer.

I am going to go back to all of those old posts and add notes about these current changes. However, those things worked for me in the past, so they might work for you too.

When it comes to making macarons, it’s worth trying several new ways of doing things, because these cookies are so particular, and they can be quite temperamental. There’s no “fool-proof” recipe, or a linear way of following the journey of making macarons.

So, I urge you to research for yourself, experiment with your batches, read blogs, watch videos, try what resonates with you, keep what works, discard what doesn’t.

It’s very important that you have an oven thermometer. Possibly the most important factor when making macarons.

You may have done every single thing correctly while making the batter, and then once you put the macarons in the oven, it’s completely out of your hands. But you can still have control over the results, by understanding your oven, how it bakes, and having an oven thermometer.

Please read here why it’s so important to have an oven thermometer.

Make sure to read the notes in the recipe below, watch the videos I have on Youtube, and keep practicing. Making macarons, specially vegan ones, will require a learning curve, getting acquainted with how your oven operates in relation to these cookies, and not losing hope and the fun of it.

Check out some more Vegan Macaron ideas:

• Vegan Pistachio Macarons
• Vegan Vanilla Macarons
• Vegan Coffee Macarons
• Vegan Matcha Macarons

And here are all of my Vegan desserts!

Thank you for reading! Have a fabulous day!

Vegan Strawberry Macarons

Camila Hurst

These Vegan Strawberry Macarons are made using the French method, and are filled with Vegan Strawberry Buttercream and Strawberry Jam.

5 from 2 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 1 hour hr

Cook Time 40 minutes mins

Resting time 45 minutes mins

Total Time 2 hours hrs 25 minutes mins

Course Dessert

Cuisine French, vegan

Servings 22 macarons

Calories 120 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

Vegan Macaron Shells

• 110 grams almond flour
• 110 grams powdered sugar
• 75 grams aquafaba*
• 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 66 grams granulated sugar

Vegan Strawberry Buttercream

• 1 cup powdered sugar sifted (125 grams, 4.4 oz)
• 3 tbsp freeze dried strawberry powder 19 grams, 0.6 oz
• 4 tbsp vegan butter 56 grams, 2 oz

To assemble

• 1/4 cup strawberry jam
• 1/4 cup white chocolate to drizzle over the shells, if desired
• 2 tbsp freeze dried strawberry powder to decorate the shells

Instructions

 

Vegan Macaron Shells

• Gather all of your ingredients before starting to make the macarons. Measure out the almond flour, powdered sugar, aquafaba, cream of tartar, and granulated sugar.
• Line two baking sheets with silicone mats or parchment paper.
• And fit a large piping bag with a round tip.
• Sift the almond flour and the powdered sugar together. Set aside.
• Place the aquafaba in the bowl of a mixer.
• Start whipping on low speed and add the cream of tartar.
• Whip for about 30 seconds, until the aquafaba starts getting white and thick like soup.
• Raise the speed to medium and continue to whip for another minute or so, until you are able to see streaks left by the whisk on the aquafaba.
• At this point, raise the speed to high, and start to add the granulated sugar, slowly, a bit at a time.
• Continue to whip until the aquafaba achieves stiff peaks.
• The whole whipping, from beginning to end, should last about 10 minutes. It might take more or less time depending on your mixer, and on your aquafaba.
• The peaks should be shooting straight up.
• Add the sifted dry ingredients to the whipped aquafaba. Start folding with a spatula slowly.
• Add food coloring at this point, if using any. For these macarons, I added a smidge of purple, to obtain really white shells, literally 1/4 of a drop.
• Fold the batter forming a letter J with the spatula.
• Fold until the batter is flowing slightly. You don’t want the batter to be flowing continuously off the spatula. When it comes to vegan macarons, the folding time is very very brief. You are basically just looking to incorporate the dry ingredients with the meringue. Please watch the video to see what the consistency should look like. If you grab a spatula full of batter and hold it over the bowl, it should still be separating in chunks, and not flowing continuously on a ribbon. Do not get to the ribbons stage! If you get to the ribbon stage, the macaron feet will spread out in the oven.
• Transfer the batter to the piping bag.
• Pipe 1 1/2” circles on a baking sheet lined with silicon mat. I usually use 2 sheets. This will depend on how big you pipe your macarons.
• Slam the trays against the counter to release air bubbles.
• Use a toothpick to pop any remaining bubbles.
• Let the trays rest for 30-45 minutes until the shells are dry. Test this by touching a macaron gently with your finger. Depending on humidity levels and weather, it might take longer or less time for your macarons to dry.
• Pre-heat the oven to 285ºF.
• Bake each tray separately, one tray at a time.
• Bake for a total of 20 minutes, or until the macarons are easily coming off the silicon mat.
• Remember to rotate the tray every 5 minutes, to ensure even baking.
• Baking time might vary depending on your oven, consistency of the batter, oven temperature.
• Let the macarons cool down before filling.

Vegan Strawberry Buttercream

• Sift the powdered sugar and freeze dried strawberry powder together.
• Whip the butter on medium for about 1 minute, until creamy.
• Add the powdered sugar and freeze dried strawberry powder and mix on low until combined. Raise the speed and cream for another minute.
• If you notice the buttercream is too stiff or dry, add a bit of non-dairy milk, or water, 1 teaspoon at a time.
• If the buttercream is too runny, maybe the butter is too hot. If the butter is room temperature, then maybe you need to add more powdered sugar to the buttercream.

To assemble

• Pipe a ring of buttercream around the edges of each bottom shell. Fill the middle with a little bit of jam. Top with another shell.
• I drizzled each macaron with melted white chocolate and topped with freeze dried strawberry powder.
• Make sure to let macarons mature in the fridge for 24-48 hours before serving. They will have a much better consistency and flavor.
• Let the macarons sit at room temperature for 10 minutes before enjoying.

To store

• Keep macarons in the fridge for up to 7 days.

Notes

Aquafaba is the water you obtain from cooking chickpeas (or other legumes). The aquafaba I use is water drained from a chickpea can. I prefer low or no sodium chickpea water, mainly because of the taste, I feel like the salted chickpea water adds a weird taste to meringues and such. Some people like to boil their own chickpeas to obtain the aquafaba, and you can do that, but make sure to study what are the best ratios water:chickpeas so your aquafaba is concentrated enough

Aquafaba: I used to reduce the aquafaba before. But lately, I haven’t been reducing it anymore, and it works just fine. If you do want to reduce the aquafaba, place 150 grams of aquafaba in a small saucepan and bring to a boil, simmer until it reduces to about half. I recommend using the aquafaba straight from the chickpea can.

Macaronage: Do not let the batter reach ribbon stage. If it reaches ribbon stage it will be over mixed, the batter is supposed to be thick. Watch my videos on YouTube to see what it should look like.

Thick batter: If the batter is too thick while mixing, add a teaspoon of aquafaba as you mix, until you obtain the perfect consistency.

Oven thermometer: Please make sure to have an oven thermometer! I receive a lot of troubleshooting questions and the great majority are issues caused due to not having an oven thermometer. Read this post for more detailed information about how important this is.

Oven temperature: Please experiment with your own oven temperature. Temperatures will vary depending on your oven and technique. It’s important to experiment and see what works best for your own oven. In my old oven I used to bake this same recipe at 310ºF. However, with my new oven, I bake it at 285ºF. This comes to show that the temperature will vary greatly depending on your own oven. Please experiment and find out what works best for you.

Troubleshooting: if your macarons are exploding, flattening out, with the feet spreading to the sides, that can mean a few things:

1- hot oven (make sure to have oven thermometer and experiment with the optimal oven temperature for your oven).

2- over mixed batter. It’s really easy to over mix vegan macaron batter. Mix it just until it starts to flow. Watch the videos on my youtube channel for reference.

3- under whipped meringue: make sure the meringue has really stiff peaks. It can take some time. Just be patient.

Nutrition

Serving: 1macaronCalories: 120kcal

Keyword macarons, strawberry, vegan

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!