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apple macarons with cinnamon cream cheese frosting and apple filling

Apple Macarons

These Apple Macarons are filled with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting and Apple Filling in the middle!
Course Dessert
Cuisine American, French
Keyword apple, macarons
Prep Time 2 hours
Cook Time 40 minutes
Resting time 20 minutes
Total Time 3 hours
Servings 26 macarons
Calories 120 kcal
Author camila

Ingredients

Macaron Shells

  • 100 grams egg whites 3.5 oz
  • 100 grams  white granulated sugar   3.5 oz
  • 96 grams  almond flour   3.4 oz
  • 90 grams  powdered sugar  3.17 oz
  • Food coloring I used red and a touch of pink

Apple Filling

  • 1 cup apples chopped small, from about 2 small apples
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1/2-1 tablespoon water
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
  • 2 teaspoons water

Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

  • 85 grams cream cheese softened (3 oz, 6 tablespoons)
  • 42.5 grams unsalted butter softened (1.5 oz, 3 tablespoons)
  • 113 grams powdered sugar about 1 cup, 4 oz
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon powder or more to taste
  • 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

Macaron Shells

  1. Before you start, get all of your ingredients ready. Prepare a large piping bag, fitted with a large round tip. Set aside.
  2. Also set aside as many piping bags as the number of colors you’d like to color your shells. I used 2 different colors: white and red.
  3. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicon mat.
  4. I use a baking mat with the macaron template already in it. You can make your own or print it from the internet, and just place it under silicon mat, or parchment paper. I recommend using a silicon mat
  5. Measure out all of your ingredients.
  6. Sift powdered sugar and almond flour together. Set aside.
  7. Place egg whites and granulated sugar in a heat proof bowl or in a double boiler. Over a pan of simmering water, whisk the whites and sugar until frothy and sugar completely melted. It will take a couple minutes. You can test by touching the mixture between your fingers, and if you feel any sugar granules just keep whisking mixture over the water bath.
  8. Make sure the bottom of the bowl isn’t touching the simmering water.
  9. Transfer mixture to the bowl of a stand mixer.
  10. With the whisk attachment, start whisking mixture on low for about 30 seconds, then gradually start increasing speed to medium. Whisk on medium for one to two minutes, until mixture is white and starting to become fluffy. Raise speed to high for a few minutes until stiff peaks are formed. Best way to check this is to keep your eye on the whites. Once they get glossy and you start seeing streaks formed by the whisk, it might be time to stop.
  11. Whisk until stiff peaks have formed. When you pull your whip up, the peak should form a bird’s beak shape, but shouldn’t be falling to the side, the peak should be stiff, forming a slightly curved shape at the top.
  12. Pour powdered sugar and almond flour into stiff whites.
  13. Start folding gently forming a letter J with a spatula.
  14. Fold just until you don’t see any streaks of dry ingredients any longer. Once that happens, you can split the batter between the number of bowls correspondent to the colors you want to use in your batter.
  15. I split my batter into 2 different bowls.
  16. Work quickly, with each color, one at a time, folding the batter until ready, then transferring it to a piping bag. Move on to the next color and do this until the entire batter is ready.

  17. It’s time to stop folding when the batter is glossy and has a thick and flowing consistency. There are several ways to test this.

  18. First, I pick up some batter with my spatula and try to draw a figure 8 with the batter that is dripping off the spatula. If you can form several 8 figures without the batter breaking up, that’s one indication that it might be ready.
  19. There’s another test you can do. I call it the Teaspoon test.
  20. Grab a teaspoon of batter and spoon onto the parchment paper or silicon mat. Wait a minute to see how it behaves.
  21. If the batter stays stiff, forming a point and doesn’t spread out a bit, I start folding a little bit more, about 3 folds.
  22. Test again.
  23. Once the batter spreads out a bit and starts to look glossy and smooth on top, on the parchment paper, I transfer my mixture to the piping bag.
  24. You don’t want your batter to be too runny either. So be careful not to overmix. It’s always best to undermix and test several times until the proper consistency has been achieved.
  25. Transfer each color to one piping bag. Then cut the tip of each piping bag. And place them inside of a large piping bag fitted with a round tip.
  26. Applying equal pressure around the whole piping bag, start piping the macarons onto the baking sheet.

  27. Once you’ve piped as many circles as you could, bang the trays against the counter a few times each.

  28. Let your trays sit for a while so the shells will dry out a little bit. I usually leave about 20-40 minutes, depending on how humid the day is. You’ll know they’re ready when you gently touch the surface of a macaron and it seems dry.

  29. Pre-heat the oven to 300°F.

  30. Bake one tray at a time.
  31. Bake for 5 minutes, rotate tray.

  32. I bake each tray for a total of 18-20 minutes.

  33. When baked, the macarons will have a deeper color and formed feet. And they will be coming off the mat easily, and with a completely formed bottom.
  34. Remove from the oven and bake the other tray.
  35. Let the macarons cool down before proceeding with the filling.

Apple Filling

  1. Place apples, lemon juice and 1/2 tablespoon of water in a small saucepan.
  2. Cook apples over medium heat until softened.
  3. Depending on what kind of apple you are using, it might take less or more time to cook them. Softer apples will cook faster.
  4. Add more water if the apples are too dry.
  5. Add brown sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon powder.
  6. Cook for a minute to dissolve the brown sugar.
  7. Mix 1/2 teaspoon of cornstarch with 2 teaspoons of water. Mix to combine.
  8. Add this mixture to the pan.
  9. Cook for 1-2 minutes until the apple filling becomes thick.
  10. Remove to a bowl. Let it cool down in the fridge all the way before using.

Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

  1. Start by sifting the powdered sugar with the cinnamon. Set it aside.
  2. Now, cream the softened cream cheese and butter together in the bowl of an electric mixer, for about 2 minutes, until light and fluffy.
  3. Add vanilla extract. Mix to combine.
  4. With the mixer off, add powdered sugar/cinnamon mixture to the bowl.
  5. Turn mixer on low to incorporate the powdered sugar with the cream cheese and butter.
  6. Once you see no streaks of dry powdered sugar, cream mixture on medium high for one minute.
  7. This frosting will store well in the fridge for up to 5 days, covered.
  8. Make sure to always leave your frosting covered. Cover the bowl with a lid or plastic wrap, because otherwise, the surface will dry out and get hard.

To assemble

  1. Pipe a ring of Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting around the edges of the bottom shells.
  2. Spoon some Apple Filling in the middle.
  3. Top with another shell.

Storage

  1. Store macarons in the fridge for up to 5 days.
  2. To freeze: freeze them in an air tight container for 1-2 months.

Recipe Notes

*If you are not making the shells into two different colors, simply skip the steps that instruct you to divide the batter into bowls, go straight into folding the batter until the perfect consistency is achieved, transfer to a piping bag, and pipe on a baking sheet.

Scale: Please use a scale when measuring the ingredients for accuracy.

Macaron amount: it will vary greatly depending on how big you pipe the shells, and on how runny or thick the batter is.

Baking time/temperature: Baking time and temperature will vary according to your own oven. I recommend experimenting with your oven to find out the best time, temperature, position of the baking tray.

Oven thermometer: Make sure to have an oven thermometer to bake macarons. It’s one of the most important things about making macarons. Home ovens aren’t accurate at all at telling the temperature, and even a slight 5 degree difference can make or break your whole batch.

Tray rotation: Lots of bakers don’t have to rotate the trays 180 degrees in the oven every 5 minutes, but I do have to with my oven, or I will get lopsided macarons. Please adjust this according to your oven.

Nutrition Facts
Apple Macarons
Amount Per Serving (1 macaron)
Calories 120
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.