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Bunny Macarons

These adorable Bunny Macarons are the perfect treat for Easter. They're decorated with an easy royal icing design and filled with my classic vanilla buttercream.
Prep Time40 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Resting time20 minutes
Total Time1 hour 15 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: French
Keyword: bunny macarons, macarons
Servings: 18 macarons
Calories: 130kcal
Author: The Tipsy Macaron

Equipment

  • Kitchen scale
  • Strainer
  • Whisk
  • Stand mixer
  • Two spatulas
  • One 16 inch pastry bag
  • Four 8 inch pastry bags
  • Round piping tip (I used the Ateco 10)
  • Two silicone mats
  • Two half sheet pans
  • Oven thermometer
  • Three small glass bowls (to mix royal icing)
  • Food coloring markers (optional)

Ingredients

  • 90 grams powdered sugar
  • 80 grams almond flour
  • 70 grams egg whites (room temperature)
  • 70 grams granulated sugar
  • 2 grams egg white powder (optional)
  • ½ tsp vanilla extract
  • 3 drops pink gel food coloring

Vanilla buttercream

  • ¼ cup salted butter (½ stick)
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp heavy whipping cream
  • tsp vanilla extract

Royal icing

  • ½ cup powdered sugar
  • ½ tsp meringue powder
  • ½ tsp water (room temperature)
  • 2 drops black gel food coloring
  • 1 drop pink gel food coloring

Instructions

Prepare dry ingredients

  • Sift powdered sugar and almond flour using a whisk to break down any clumps. Set aside.
  • Line sheet pans with silicone mats and place the templates under the mats.
  • Insert the piping tip into the 16 inch pastry bag.

Make the meringue

  • Whisk the egg whites on medium speed (speed 4) until you see small bubbles (this can take as little as 15 seconds sometimes).
  • Slowly add 3 tbsp of granulated sugar, 1 tbsp at a time, waiting about 10 seconds between each tbsp.
  • Whisk until you start to see tracks in the meringue.
  • Increase speed to 6 and continue slowly adding the remainder of the granulated sugar, 1 tbsp at a time, until you’ve added all the sugar.
  • Once you have soft peaks, stop the mixer, scrape the sides and add the vanilla extract and the pink gel food coloring.
  • Whisk for about 5 more minutes, or until you have stiff peaks.

Combine ingredients

  • Add in the powdered sugar and almond flour mixture in three parts, 1/3 at a time, folding each part until fully combined.
  • Once the meringue and dry ingredients are fully combined, stop folding.
  • Now you need to deflate some of the air in the batter by taking the spatula and smearing the batter on the sides of the bowl two or three times, and then folding once or twice.
  • Repeat the process of smearing some of the batter on the side of the bowl and folding until the batter looks smooth and glossy and runs down the spatula slowly in ribbons.
  • You can test the consistency by lifting the spatula and letting the batter run down. If it falls in ribbons and sinks back into itself within 30 seconds, the batter is ready.
  • Transfer the batter to the 16 inch pastry bag.

Pipe the macarons

  • Take the pastry bag and, holding the bag at a 90° angle, pipe the bunny head first and then the two ears.
  • Pop any air bubbles with a scribe or a toothpick. Don't tap the tray against the counter because the macarons might spread out and lose their shape.
  • Let the macarons rest until they form a skin and are no longer sticky.
  • While the macarons are resting, preheat the oven to 300°F.
  • Bake the macarons for 14-15 minutes.
  • Macarons are ready when they no longer shift if you touch the tops.
  • Let the macaron shells cool for at least 30 minutes before decorating.

Make the royal icing

  • In a small bowl, combine the powdered sugar, meringue powder, and a few drops of water and stir with a spoon.
  • Continue stirring adding a few more drops of water if necessary.
  • Check the consistency by lifting the spoon and counting how many seconds it takes for the icing to sink back into itself. If it takes around 20 seconds, it's ready.
  • Separate the icing into 3 small bowls. Add 1 drop of pink color to one bowl and 2 drops of black to the remaining bowl. Leave the white icing as is, but add 1 or 2 drops of water to reach 15 second consistency.
  • Transfer the royal icing to separate 8 inch piping bags, and cut a very small opening at the tip of each one.

Decorate the macarons

  • If using the food coloring markers, mark the macarons where you'll be placing the royal icing.
  • Now take the black royal icing and decorate the eyes, nose and whiskers.
  • Add the pink icing for the mouth.
  • Take the white icing and outline the ears and then fill them in. If adding the pink polka dots to the ears, you can add them after a few minutes when the white icing has started to dry a bit.
  • Let the royal icing dry for about an hour.

Vanilla buttercream

  • In a medium bowl, using the stand mixer, whisk the butter until smooth.
  • Add half of the powdered sugar and whisk until fully combined.
  • Add the remaining powdered sugar and whisk until combined.
  • Add the heavy cream and the vanilla extract and mix until creamy and smooth.

Assemble the macarons

  • Fill an 8 inch pastry bag with the buttercream and cut a ¼ inch opening at the tip of the bag and pipe the buttercream.
  • Top the filled macaron shells with the decorated shells and refrigerate for at least 24 hours so that the macarons can mature.
  • When ready to eat, remove the macarons from the refrigerator at least 20-30 minutes before and let come to room temperature before eating.

Notes

All ovens are different so temperature and baking times should only be used as a guide
Mixing bowl should be clean and grease free
Weigh all ingredients in grams for accuracy
Use room temperature egg whites (to bring eggs to room temperature quickly, put them in a bowl filled with hot water for about 5 minutes)
Sift the almond flour and powdered sugar together because almond flour is moist and doesn't sift well alone
Mix the egg white powder and the granulated sugar before adding to the egg whites to fully dissolve the egg white powder
Whisk the meringue until you have stiff peaks
Let macarons dry before baking so they don't crack
*Calories reflected are for macaron shells only

Nutrition

Serving: 1 macaron | Calories: 130kcal