Recipe for Strawberries & Cream Macarons

[Updated 15/09/2026]

I first developed these Strawberries & Cream Macarons in 2013 while teaching macaron masterclasses. The recipe uses an Italian-meringue shell and a fresh strawberry and white-chocolate filling. If you prefer a finished celebration cake rather than baking at home, browse our macaron cakes.

Ingredients

Macaron shells, approximately 40 filled macarons

• 150g ground almonds
• 150g icing sugar
• 150g granulated sugar
• 110g egg whites, divided into two 55g portions
• 35g water
• 1g red gel food colouring

Strawberries & cream filling

• 60g fresh strawberries, puréed
• 200g white chocolate, finely chopped

Method

1. Line three flat baking trays with baking parchment. Sift the ground almonds and icing sugar together into a large bowl.
2. Mix one 55g portion of egg white with the food colouring, then stir it into the almond and icing-sugar mixture to make a thick paste.
3. Begin whisking the remaining 55g egg white on medium speed.
4. At the same time, heat the granulated sugar and 35g water in a small saucepan. When the syrup reaches 118°C, reduce the mixer speed and pour the syrup in a thin steady stream down the side of the bowl, avoiding the whisk.
5. Increase the speed and whisk until the Italian meringue is glossy, forms firm peaks and the bowl is no longer hot.
6. Fold the meringue into the almond paste in stages. Stop when the batter flows from the spatula in a thick ribbon and slowly settles back into itself. A fixed number of folds is less reliable than judging the batter itself.
7. Pipe even rounds onto the prepared trays. Tap each tray firmly a few times to release large trapped bubbles. Leave the shells until the surface feels dry enough to touch without sticking; the time varies with room conditions.
8. As a starting point, bake at about 160°C fan or 170°C conventional for roughly 11 to 13 minutes. Ovens vary considerably, so test one tray and adjust the temperature or time if the shells brown, crack or remain soft underneath.
9. For the filling, bring the strawberry purée just to the boil, then remove it from the heat. Melt the white chocolate gently and stir in the hot purée a little at a time until smooth. Cool, cover and refrigerate until it reaches a pipeable consistency.
10. Cool the shells completely before removing them from the parchment. Pair similar sizes, pipe the filling onto half and sandwich gently.

Storage

Because the filling contains fresh fruit, keep the filled macarons covered in the refrigerator. Their texture usually improves after several hours of maturation. Bring them out briefly before serving rather than leaving them at room temperature for long periods.

Macaron success depends on accurate weighing, a stable meringue, controlled macaronage and an oven you understand. Humidity can influence drying, but the old shorthand that macarons simply “love air and hate moisture” is too simplistic to diagnose most failures.

Love, Reshmi xoxo