Graham cracker cake batter macarons are such a fun mix of two amazing dessert flavors. This is my favorite combination of dessert flavors and its exactly what I get when I go to an ice cream place, cake batter flavor plus graham crackers. If you haven’t had it, please go try it then make these macarons.
Tools You’ll Need
To make the shells you’ll need a mixer with a whisk attachment, sifter, kitchen scale, baking pans with mats or parchment paper, oven thermometer, wilton tip number 12. The buttercream can be made with the same mixer or even by hand if desired.
For the Macaron Shells
These are no ordinary shells. My shell recipe has been modified to include graham cracker in the shell to enhance the graham cracker flavor. You’ll sub some of the dry ingredients for some pulverized graham cracker shell. Pretty easy. If this is the first time you’re making macarons I suggest you read through my whole post on my macaron shell recipe.
I chose to sprinkle the tops of half of the shells with more graham cracker crumbs and colored sprinkles to give a nod to the cake batter flavoring that is in the buttercream filling.
For the Buttercream
The graham cracker cake batter buttercream is so flavorful. The flavor comes from the cake batter extract and the added graham cracker crumbs to the buttercream. I made it in my mixer but you could easily just whip it up in a bowl.
Put the softened butter in your mixer and whisk on medium high until it’s lighter in color. Start adding the confectioners sugar 1/2 cup at a time, on low, until it’s all combined. Add your milk or heavy cream, salt, and extract. Once the buttercream is combined and smooth sprinkle the graham cracker crumbs over it and fold them in until they’re distributed evenly.
To assemble the macarons
Assembling these is very straight forward. Pair up your shells so they match size wise. Bag your buttercream up, you don’t have to use a tip but I liked using the Wilton 2A for this. Pipe the amount you would like on one side before sandwiching it closed. It’s best to let them mature in an airtight container refrigerated before eating.
Graham Cracker Cake Batter Macarons
Equipment
- mixer with whisk attachment
- kitchen scale
- oven thermometer
- sifter
- aluminum baking pans
- macaron mats
- bowls
- spatulas
Ingredients
Graham Cracker Shells
- 120 g egg whites straight from the fridge is ok
- 115 g granulated sugar
- 5 g egg white powder
- 20 g finely crushed graham cracker
- 170 g Almond flour Blue Diamond or Kirkland brand is best
- 180 g confectioners sugar
- graham crackers for sprinkling on top optional
- sprinkles for sprinkling on top optional
Graham Cracker Cake Batter Buttercream
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened 4 oz or 1 American stick of butter
- 2 cups confectioners sugar
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp cake batter extract 3 g
- 1 TBS milk or cream 15 g
- 2.5 graham crackers crushed 40 g
Instructions
For the Graham Cracker Macaron Shells
- Preheat your oven to 305 degrees, you must use an oven thermometer for this.*
- In a bowl combine your granulated sugar and egg white powder and stir so that it is combined totally, we do this so the egg white powder doesn't clump when added in the liquid egg white.
- Measure out your egg whites and put them into your mixer bowl. I like to use the two bowl method to prevent having to waste other eggs if a yolk breaks, the fat from the yolk will ruin meringue. Crack one in a separate bowl, if there are no issues put it in the mixer bowl to be weighed. Then repeat.**
- Add the sugar mixture to the egg whites and get your mixer ready with the whisk attachment.
- Start your mixer on the lowest setting and give it about 10 seconds, you're going to do about 10 seconds at each setting until you hit 6 or medium high and then you will let it go until it's ready. I timed mine once and it took about 6 minutes but the amount of time it takes can vary for many reasons.
- We stop it when it is stiff peaks, we do not go past the peaks stage to the shaving cream phase. When you detach your whisk and circle it around in the meringue you will feel slight resistance, when you pull it up from that circle it will pull and make a peak, when you flip that whisk straight up, the peak will curl over.
- While your meringue is working in the mixer, weigh and sift your almond flour, fine graham cracker crumbs, and sugar. Do not force ingredients though the sifter.
- When the meringue is ready, remove the bowl from the mixer and add all of the dry ingredients in. Start moving the dry ingredients around to incorporate it some. Don't worry about the meringue, it will be fine. Once it's a little more manageable, I like to start spreading it on the sides of the bowl, then take my spatula to collect it all back to the bottom center by taking the side of the spatula with pressure around the bowl and down, when my spatula is at the bottom center, I scoop upwards to see how well the batter is flowing. I repeat this process until the batter is ready. In the beginning stages, when the batter is spread on the side of the bowl, you can run your spatula back and forth over the batter to work out some air. Each time I spread my batter on the side of the bowl, I note the amount of (popped) air pockets that seem to be present. It will decrease as you go. The batter is ready when the air pockets are reduced to few (some are ok we don't want it totally deflated) and when the batter is able to flow off the spatula after a circle and scoop mentioned above. This batter is very thick and will not become runny like a traditional rest recipe. It will not flow like lava, so do not over macaranage tying to get it like a traditional macaron.
- Bag the batter into either 1 large piping bag, or 2 medium with a nozzle of your choice***
- Place your silicone mat on your upside down aluminum tray. Pipe one tray at a time. I usually start piping my second tray when the first has about 6 minutes left. Begin piping by placing your bag straight up and down, a 90 degree angle from the pan. To end piping, keeping your nozzle at about the same angle, you'll want to make a quick swirl. If you notice that you've made a nipple or unsmooth section, after piping a few, set you bag down and work them smooth using a toothpick, don't wait until you've piped the whole tray because the tops do dry out a bit and it is much harder to fix later. My mats have 3 circle outlines, I like to pipe just past the second, almost to the 3rd circle. You can manipulate how tall or flat the shells are to an extent with how you pipe it, you will get a feel for that as you go.
- Once they're all piped you can tap the bottom of the tray or drop it on the counter a few times to work air out and smooth those little holes over with a toothpick. If all the steps above were just right there will be very few that you need to fix.
- If desired sprinkle on a small amount of graham cracker crumbs and colorful sprinkles.
- Check your oven temp, if it's ready you can place them in the oven. I plan to bake mine at 305 for 14 min. I check my oven temp throughout. It usually fluctuates between 295-310 throughout and it takes 14-15 min in my oven.*
- Watch them inside the oven, around half way though they start to puff up and get feet, then towards the end the feet will start to shorten. I like to check for doneness a few minutes before my timer so that they don't over bake (every tray can be slightly different). I check with the wiggle test. Carefully open the oven, gently tap the side of the top part of the shell, if it moves easily it needs more time. I consider my tray done perfect if a shell on the outside of the tray does not wiggle at all, but a shell on the inside has a tiny wiggle. When they are done remove them and set them on a cooling rack for a few minutes. Then carefully remove the pan leaving them to cool completely on the silicone mat, on the rack.
- Once they are totally cool, you can remove them. They should release very easily. Especially the outside of the mat. If the ones on the inside has a slight stick, I find it best to bend the silicone mat to help it peel away. If they are sticking to the mat, they are undercooked and you should increase your cook time next time.
- Fill them and let them mature in an airtight container in the fridge. I sometimes have a small gap that fills in once they have matured in the fridge by absorbing some liquid from the filling. A small gap is not the same thing as a hollow and is totally acceptable in a macaron.
Graham Cracker Cake Batter Buttercream
- Put the softened butter in your mixer and whisk on medium high until it's lighter in color.
- Start adding the confectioners sugar 1/2 cup at a time, on low, until it's all combined.
- Add your milk or heavy cream, salt, and extract and combine well.
- Sprinkle the graham cracker crumbs over it and fold them in until they're distributed evenly.
Assemble the Macarons
- Match up your macaron shells by size, so they are paired up.
- On one side of each pair, pipe buttercream in the center of your shell with a fat round tip.
- Put the matching macaron shells on the tops and gently push down to seal.
- Place them in an airtight container in the fridge to mature over night.
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