Beginner Friendly Pandan Macarons

Prepping the macaron shell batter

Combine 75 grams of almond flour and 100 grams of powdered sugar in a food processor. Pulse a few times until you see a fine powder. Sift into a bowl and set aside.

Add 2 egg whites and ⅛ tsp of cream of tartar to a stand mixer. Whip on medium speed (speed 6).

Once the mixture is foamy and there are small bubbles in the bowl, start adding 50 grams of granulated sugar. Add a tablespoon at a time so you don't deflate the mixture.

Once you've added all the sugar, increase the speed to 8 and whip until stiff peaks. One way to know if you've whipped the meringue enough is to invert the bowl and if the meringue doesn't fall out, you're good!

Add ¼ tsp of pandan extract to the meringue and whisk until combined.

Combine your wet ingredients with your dry ingredients. Sift 1/2 of the dry ingredients into the meringue and gently fold until combined.Sift the rest of the dry ingredients into the meringue and gently fold the mixture until the batter slowly falls off the spoon in a steady, unbroken stream like ribbons. You have mixed the batter enough once you can draw a figure 8 without the batter breaking. Another thing to look for is if the edges of the figure 8 soften and slowly absorb into the batter over the course of a minute. One last thing you can use as a test is to spoon a tablespoon of the batter onto a plate. As you lift up the spoon, a peak will be left over. If that peak settles into the batter over 10 seconds, it is done. This is such a crucial step, and one that is the most difficult to get right.

Add a round pastry tip to a pastry bag and snip the end. Spoon the batter into the pastry bag. I like to use a #10 round pastry tip.

Piping and baking the macaron shells

Prep 2 baking sheets by placing silicone mats onto the baking sheets.

Following the macaron template, pipe the batter onto the silicone mats. Slam each baking sheet on the counter twice.

Let the macaron shells dry for at least 40 minutes until you can run your finger over the top without batter getting on it. It can take up to 1 hour.

Move your oven rack into the top third of the oven. If your heat source is coming from the top, move the oven rack to the bottom third of the oven. This prevents the macaron shell from browning.

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F (149 degrees C).

Once the macarons have dried out, bake the macarons for 18-20 minutes. Bake 1 tray at a time. They're done if you gently push the macarons and the macarons are not loose. If they move a bit, bake them for another minute and check again.

Cool the macarons for at least 20 minutes on the baking sheet until completely cool.

Making the pandan buttercream and put it all together!

While the macarons are cooling, make the pandan buttercream.

Whisk ⅓ cup of softened unsalted butter. Add ⅔ cup of powdered sugar to the bowl and whisk until combined.

Lastly, add 1 tbsp of coconut cream, 2 drops of pandan extract, and a pinch of salt to the mixture. Whisk until combined. Add the buttercream to a piping bag.

Now it's time to put it all together! Pair of the macaron shells by size. Not all your shells will be the same size so it helps to match up your shells by size before adding the filling.

Pipe the buttercream onto half the macaron shells. The amount of buttercream should be slightly smaller than the macaron shell. Place the second half on top.

You can enjoy right away, but for the best flavor, let the macarons mature in the fridge for 24 hours.