Mango Macarons

Mango macarons are a sweet summery treat with tropical flavours and a smooth cream filling.

Making perfect homemade macarons is so satisfying and I love trying different flavour combinations for all seasons. This mango cream filling for macarons is made with yoghurt which I like to add to give a touch of acidity that counteracts the intense sweetness of the mango and macaron shells.

Mango macarons are particularly tasty in summer as a tropical dessert or sweet snack. Macarons are wonderful as petit fours or as part of an elegant afternoon tea.

If this is your first time making homemade macarons check out my full step-by-step guide to making Italian macarons first.

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 145 degrees Celsius / 295 Fahrenheit. 

Prepare and weigh out the ingredients, separating the egg whites from egg yolks carefully.

Sieve the mixture ground almonds and powdered sugar and then blend together until they are a very fine consistency and completely combined. 

Place the water and granulated sugar into a saucepan. Gently warm the water and stir to dissolve the sugar. Once it has dissolved, turn up the heat, stop stirring and place the sugar thermometer into the mixture. 

Once the thermometer starts to climb above 105 degrees Celsius/220 degrees Fahrenheit, whisk the egg whites until they form soft peaks.

When the sugar syrup reaches a soft boil temperature of 115 degrees Celsius/240 degrees, start whisking the egg whites again and pour in the sugar syrup a little at a time. 

The Italian meringue will turn a smooth, glossy and opaque white. Continue to whisk once all of the sugar syrup has been added to bring down the heat until you can touch the side of the bowl and it feels warm but not hot. 

Make the almond paste by mixing the remaining egg white with the ground almond/powdered sugar mixture until it is fully incorporated. Add half teaspoon of orange food colouring (or more if you want a more vvid colour) and stir through.

Now mix the Italian meringue into the almond paste in three stages. 

Firmly mix in the first third of the Italian meringue with a metal or wooden spoon to loosen the almond paste and fully combine the two mixtures. 

Fold in the remaining two thirds one at a time using the softer spoon or spatula, being very gentle with the final third to not overmix the batter and make it too slack. It needs to be loosened but not sloppy and runny.

Move the macaron batter to a piping bag. Tie a knot in the end and relax the mixture slightly in the bag with your hands for a few seconds. Cut half a centimetre from the tip of the piping bag. 

Position the piping bag perpendicular to the tray with the nozzle a few millimetres above the surface. Squeeze the bag without lifting it up for two or three seconds, then stop squeezing and make a little circle to twist it off. Fill the trays leaving a 2cm gap in between each macaron. 

Firmly smack it down onto the work surface twice to settle the Italian macaron batter and get rid of any air bubbles. 

Bake straight away for 17 minutes, then remove from the oven and allow the macarons to cool on the tray. This is a no-rest macaron recipe, but if you cannot fit all of your macarons in the oven at once, it won't harm the remaining macarons to be out on the worktop for 17 minutes. 

Mango cream filling

Peel and slice the mango into cubes and blend until smooth.

Mix the yoghurt and mascarpone together, then add the blended mango. 

Whip the cream until thickened and then fold in the mango mascarpone yoghurt mixture. 

Put the filling into a piping bag and pipe a circle in the centre of each macaron shell. Then pipe a circle around it before sandwiching it with another macaron shell. 

Hint: If the filling seems too slack, put it in the fridge for an hour before filling the mango macaron shells.

Leftover mango? Try this mango fool recipe.

Equipment

• Weighing scales. Digital is best. Baking is a science, after all, so we need precision! I do not recommend using the cup system to make macarons. I use these ones.

• A sieve to ensure that the powdered sugar and almond flour is as fine as possible.

• A blender/food processor to thoroughly combine the almond flour and powdered sugar. This ensures a completely smooth finish on your macaron shells.

• A small saucepan to make your sugar syrup

• A jam or sugar thermometer to measure the temperature of the hot sugar syrup. The sugar syrup needs to be at a particular temperature to make Italian meringue and it is impossible to judge without a thermometer. The best thermometers for sugar syrup do not allow the bulb to touch the bottom or sides of the saucepan, thus ensuring you are measuring the temperature of the sugar, and not the pan.

• An electric whisk or stand mixer to whisk your egg whites into soft peaks before slowly adding the hot sugar syrup.

• Two large bowls, preferably glass. Try to avoid using a metal mixing bowl for the Italian meringue as it will conduct heat and prevent the mixture from cooling.

• A metal mixing spoon for combining ingredients more vigorously.

• A silicon mixing spoon or spatula for further, more gentle mixing.

• Baking sheets/trays - not high-sided ones as this builds up too much steam

• Silicon mat or baking parchment paper (but the silicon mats are better and allow for lower waste as they are not single-use)

• Piping bags - to pipe your macarons onto a baking tray, and then also to pipe your fillings.

Storage

Store leftover macarons in the fridge, they'll be fine for 3-4 days.

Filled mango macarons do not freeze well.

Food safety

• Boiling sugar can be dangerous, so do not leave it unattended and keep pets/children out of the room.
• Clean surfaces and utensils thoroughly after handling raw eggs.