Strawberry French Macarons Without Food Coloring
Naturally colored Strawberry French Macarons Without Food Coloring are the cutest pastel pink dessert you'll ever see. Learn how to make these adorable petite cookies with organic ingredients and no artificial dyes in this post.
If you love making French macarons as much as I do, be sure to check out some of my other macaron recipes like Chocolate French Macarons, Green Tea French Macarons, or Chocolate Malt French Macarons.
A Quick Look At The Recipe
- Recipe Name: Strawberry French Macarons Without Food Coloring
- Ready In: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Makes: 30 cookies
- Main Ingredients: egg whites, cane sugar, almond flour, strawberry powder
- Flavor Profile: sweet strawberry
- Dietary Info: gluten free, no seed oils
- Difficulty: Hard
- Why You’ll Love It: strawberry French macarons without artificial colors
Summarize & Save This Content On
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Pastel Pink Dessert: Today I'm sharing the cutest pastel pink dessert — delicious strawberry macarons! I think if I had to choose the prettiest and most delicious macs —these Strawberry French Macarons would take the cake. This petite pastel pink dessert are even adorable on top of cakes! If you're looking for a pastel pink dessert for a themed party like a baby shower, wedding, or birthday, these are it!
- Naturally Colored: These naturally colored Strawberry French Macarons are colored with organic freeze dried strawberry powder, which also provides flavor! I made the shells and the filling both a pink color because they just look so cute and full of spring vibes.
- Naturally Gluten Free: Not only are these naturally colored Strawberry French Macarons free of artificial colors, but they are also naturally gluten free. French macarons traditionally do not have gluten, so they are an amazing cookie to bake if you have both gluten and gluten free guests as they are insanely delicious!
- Perfect Texture: The thing I love most about French macarons is their perfect combination of chewy and crispy all in one petite cookie. If you haven't ever experienced this magic, you're in for a treat. Or maybe you've had a macaron before but it was incredibly soft or even just all crispy (that means they were stale!). So, baking them fresh at home is really the best!
Ingredients
- Eggs: Make sure to use large egg whites and separate them from the yolks completely. It's ideal to weigh your egg whites so you have exactly the amount needed.
- Almond Flour: I use store bought organic almond flour. If you're using homemade almond flour, that's okay too. Just be sure to sift your homemade almond flour and then weigh it as homemade almond flour can have little bits of almonds in it and you don't want that in your French macarons.
- Butter: I use organic salted butter, which was what we used at my bakery for everything. If you want to use unsalted butter, you can, you may just want to add a pinch of salt into the buttercream to taste.
- Strawberry Powder: I use organic freeze dried strawberry powder for natural color and intense flavor! If you don't have this, you can food processor freeze-dried strawberries into a fine powder. But, I feel it's easier to just buy the fruit powder for the strawberry flavor as it's already made for you!
*For a full list of ingredients and measurements, visit the recipe card below.
Baker's Tips for Strawberry French Macarons Without Food Coloring
- Use a scale! French Macarons are temperamental (to say the least) you don't want to make a mistake measuring.
- When separating your egg whites, do not get any part of the yolk in the egg whites. If you do, set them aside and start over. Yolks are fat, and we don't want any fat in our egg whites so it will whip up into perfect meringue.
- Make sure to whisk your egg whites until stiff peaks form. The egg whites should not droop, should not fall off the whisk, or should not really even move. It will be thick, shiny, and bright white.
- Do not overstir the batter. It should be thick and barely fall off your spatula. If your batter is too runny, your macarons will spread out too much and you will probably not have the iconic feet form correctly, they will most likely be flat and on the sides of the macarons as opposed to underneath, how they should be.
- Pipe your macarons evenly, I know this can be challenging. But, they all need to be the same size so they bake properly and you don't have ones that are burned or not done. I like to count to 2 while piping, that's all it should take to pipe the size of macaron you need.
- Make sure you bang your cookie sheets. This is super important to remove air bubbles and smooth out the tops. It also helps create the iconic feet.
- Resting time is super important – as important as weighing ingredients. Because if you don't let the macarons rest for the right amount of time (even if you made them perfectly) they will not come out. So it's important to find the resting time that is right for you and your climate. This can vary. I say to start with 45 minutes because it should take at least that long. It can definitely take longer, so do not be afraid to let them sit longer if need be.
- When filling them, be sure to pick up each macaron and sandwich them together very carefully. Don't smash them on top of one another like you might a typical sandwich cookies. These are so fragile and can break so easily.
- If you want to fill them with a strawberry jam, you can use a smaller piping tip and pipe a small circle of strawberry buttercream around the edge of the macaron and fill the center with a dollop of jam. Either strawberry fillings work, just up to you which want to do.
- Eat them all the same day you bake them! I have no storage tips for you as they should not be stored.
- High Altitude — Bake at 350°F for 8 minutes or until the macs look dry and the shells look shiny.
How to Make Strawberry French Macarons Without Food Coloring
Step 1
Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.
Step 2
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, add the egg whites, cane sugar, and vanilla extract. Whisk, starting on low speed to avoid splattering, and slowly in creasing the speed to medium-high speed and then high speed, until stiff peaks form.
Step 3
Sift the powdered sugar and almond flour together into the bowl of meringue and add the strawberry powder. Turn the mixer on low for 10 to 15 rotations until the dry ingredients start to blend into the meringue. Pulse the mixer on medium/high 4 to 5 times to incorporate the batter.
Remove the mixing bowl from the mixer, and gently stir the batter with a spatula just until there are no pockets of egg whites or dry bits of almond flour. Don’t overstir. Transfer the batter to a piping bag fitted with Ateco tip #804.
Step 4
Pipe the macaron batter onto the prepared cookie sheets (30 should fit on each cookie sheet). Holding a cookie sheet firmly in both hands, and making sure the parchment paper doesn’t slide around, bang the cookie sheet on the counter a few times. Rotate the cookie sheet and bang it a few more times. Repeat with the other cookie sheet. This will smooth out the batter and will help form the macarons’ famous “feet.”
Step 5
Let rest for 45 minutes, or until the rounds of batter have formed shells.
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Step 6
Bake for 10 minutes or until the macs look dry and the shells look shiny. Let cool completely on the cookie sheets. (Be sure to check the Notes at the bottom of the recipe if you are baking at high altitude).
Step 7
To make the filling: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the butter, powdered sugar, strawberry powder, and water. Mix on low until combined, then speed mixer up to high for 1 minute or until light and fluffy. Transfer to a piping bag with no tip.
Step 8
Turn over every other macaron and pair them together. Pipe a dollop of filling onto each turned over macaron and sandwich together.
Recipe FAQ's
Yes, French macarons are naturally gluten free because they are made using almond flour.
Not in the cookies, no. All that added moisture will not do well. If you want to add in some fresh strawberry jam into the centers of the finished cookies, you can do that when filling them. You'll need to put the strawberry buttercream in a piping bag with a smaller piping tip (like Ateco tip #6 or something close to that) so you can pipe a small boarder on each turned over cookie. Then you can add fresh strawberry jam into the center before sandwiching them together.
We're using a freeze dried strawberry powder. Using a fruit powder not only colors these a beautiful pastel pink, but it also infuses strawberry flavor without moisture.
This is the fancy name for folding your macaron batter just right. You want to fold it enough that it's smooth and shiny, but also still thick enough that a nice ribbon of batter will flow off the spatula when lifted out of the bowl.
If you don't let your macarons rest long enough, the feet will not form. And, if you over mix or under mix batter, this can also happen. And if you are in a very humid climate, this can also make it worse.
Hallow macarons can mean that you underbaked the cookies or overmixed the batter. Macarons are very temperamental and all ovens may vary slightly. So, you may need to find what works best for your oven. French macarons usually take a few tries to get right in your own environment. So, don't get discouraged and keep practicing!
If you didn't let them rest long enough for the feet to form, the macaron shells can crack when baked. This can also happen from over mixing or under mixing batter. Macarons are very particular, so, just don't get discouraged as it's more about practicing with the same recipe over and over until you nail it in your own kitchen.
When the iconic feet have formed, the tops look dry.
Too much water or not enough powdered sugar. You can simply adjust by adding more powdered sugar until you get the desired consistency.
This is complete bullshit and no one should tell you to put macarons away in the fridge for 24 to 48 hours, that's absolutely insane! They do not need to mature and it's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. The longer they sit the worse they will taste as the meringue starts to go stale. French macarons need to cool completely, then be filled, then be eaten the same day for the absolute best texture and experience!
You don't! As stated in my tips above, I really do not believe French macarons can be stored and saved as they just taste lackluster when you do that. I've tried everything, the refrigerator, the freezer, plastic wrap, room temperature, an airtight container and more. They either end up completely soft or completely crispy. Even though people tell you that you can store them in the fridge, I just don't agree if you want them to taste how they should, it's just not true. They loose the magic, which is their texture! They have the most incredible soft, chewy, yet crispy texture when they are first baked and that's what makes these cookies good. So, they are a bake and enjoy the same day kind of treat! So, indulge and share with friends is my ti
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Strawberry French Macarons Without Food Coloring
Equipment
- Digital Food Scale
- Stand Mixer
- Half Sheet Pan
- Parchment Paper Sheets
- Piping Bag
- Ateco Tip #804
Ingredients
Macs
- 102 grams egg whites
- 71 grams cane sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 198 grams powdered sugar
- 113 grams almond flour
- ½ teaspoon freeze dried strawberry powder
Filling
- 85 grams salted butter (softened)
- 170 grams powdered sugar (sifted)
- 1 to 2 teaspoons water
- ½ to 1 teaspoon freeze dried strawberry powder
Instructions
- Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, add the egg whites, cane sugar, and vanilla extract. Whisk, starting on low speed to avoid splattering, and slowly in creasing the speed to medium-high speed and then high speed, until stiff peaks form.
- Sift the powdered sugar and almond flour together into the bowl of meringue and add the strawberry powder. Turn the mixer on low for 10 to 15 rotations until the dry ingredients start to blend into the meringue. Pulse the mixer on medium/high 4 to 5 times to incorporate the batter.
- Remove the mixing bowl from the mixer, and gently stir the batter with a spatula just until there are no pockets of egg whites or dry bits of almond flour. Don’t overstir. Transfer the batter to a piping bag fitted with Ateco tip #804.
- Pipe the macaron batter onto the prepared cookie sheets (30 should fit on each cookie sheet).
- Holding a cookie sheet firmly in both hands, and making sure the parchment paper doesn’t slide around, bang the cookie sheet on the counter a few times. Rotate the cookie sheet and bang it a few more times. Repeat with the other cookie sheet. This will smooth out the batter and will help form the macarons’ famous “feet.”
- Let rest for 45 minutes, or until the rounds of batter have formed shells.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Bake for 10 minutes or until the macs look dry and the shells look shiny. Let cool completely on the cookie sheets.
- To make the filling: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the butter, powdered sugar, water, strawberry powder, and water. Mix on low until combined, then speed mixer up to high for 1 minute or until light and fluffy. Transfer to a piping bag with no tip.
- Turn over every other macaron and pair them together. Pipe a dollop of filling onto each turned over macaron and sandwich together.
- Serve or eat immediately!
Notes
- Use a scale! French Macarons are temperamental (to say the least) you don't want to make a mistake measuring.
- When separating your egg whites, do not get any part of the yolk in the egg whites. If you do, set them aside and start over. Yolks are fat, and we don't want any fat in our egg whites so it will whip up into perfect meringue.
- Make sure to whisk your egg whites until stiff peaks form. The egg whites should not droop, should not fall off the whisk, or should not really even move. It will be thick, shiny, and bright white.
- Do not overstir the batter. It should be thick and barely fall off your spatula. If your batter is too runny, your macarons will spread out too much and you will probably not have the iconic feet form correctly, they will most likely be flat and on the sides of the macarons as opposed to underneath, how they should be.
- Pipe your macarons evenly, I know this can be challenging. But, they all need to be the same size so they bake properly and you don't have ones that are burned or not done. I like to count to 2 while piping, that's all it should take to pipe the size of macaron you need.
- Make sure you bang your cookie sheets. This is super important to remove air bubbles and smooth out the tops. It also helps create the iconic feet.
- Resting time is super important – as important as weighing ingredients. Because if you don't let the macarons rest for the right amount of time (even if you made them perfectly) they will not come out. So it's important to find the resting time that is right for you and your climate. This can vary. I say to start with 45 minutes because it should take at least that long. It can definitely take longer, so do not be afraid to let them sit longer if need be.
- When filling them, be sure to pick up each macaron and sandwich them together very carefully. Don't smash them on top of one another like you might a typical sandwich cookies. These are so fragile and can break so easily.
- If you want to fill them with a strawberry jam, you can use a smaller piping tip and pipe a small circle of strawberry buttercream around the edge of the macaron and fill the center with a dollop of jam. Either strawberry fillings work, just up to you which want to do.
- Eat them all the same day you bake them! I have no storage tips for you as they should not be stored.
- High Altitude — Bake at 350°F for 8 minutes or until the macs look dry and the shells look shiny.
Nutrition
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Love these naturally pink macarons!