Hazelnut Mocha Macarons with Espresso IMBC

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The warm, buttery flavors of hazelnut complement coffee and chocolate so well that I just had to combine them into one bite with my Hazelnut Mocha Macarons.  Hazelnut macaron shells are flavored with a dash of cocoa and espresso powders and filled with a creamy espresso Italian meringue buttercream.  Why drink your coffee when you could just eat these?

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Story Time

If you’ve been joining me on my baking journey for some time now, this macaron flavor might sound eerily familiar.  That’s because when I took my first community college baking class, these are the macs my partner and I made!  Well, almost exactly.  (Really missing these classes these days!)

They were awful.  I will not show you a picture of my first macarons here, but read my Classic French Macarons recipe and you’ll see what I’m talking about.  But they tasted amazing.  I learned a lot from my first blundered attempt at macarons and I still continue to learn with each batch.

Hazelnut Mocha Macarons

Naturally, my inspiration for these Hazelnut Mocha Macarons came from my very first batch of macs.  But let me tell you why these flavors work.  According to one of my favorite books, The Flavour Thesaurus, “Hazelnuts have a sweet, buttery flavour, with hints of cocoa that make them a sensational match for chocolate.”  And we all know chocolate and coffee are BFFs.

I couldn’t have come up with that description myself, but my taste buds agree.  That’s why I think an espresso Italian meringue buttercream was the perfect filling for my hazelnut mocha macarons.  IMBC is very buttery and compliments the flavor profile perfectly.

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Hazelnut Mocha Macaron Shells

If you are making macarons for the first time, I suggest sticking with an almond based recipe like my Strawberry, Champagne, and Rose Macarons.  Hazelnuts do work well for the shells, but they are difficult to get as fine, so you’ll end up with a slightly rougher texture.  And unless you use blanched hazelnuts, they will be speckled.

After pulsing the dry ingredients in the food processor, you’ll have a lot of chunks leftover.  Pulse those again, sift, and repeat.  It was my personal goal not to discard more than 20g of chunks.  Adding a few spoonfuls of the pre-sifted nut/ sugar powder helps the food processor grind up the chunks without creating nut butter.

How to Tell When Macarons Are Done

Macarons.  Troublesome cookies they are.  I’ve always struggled to know when they are done.  Bake times and oven temperatures vary drastically from recipe to recipe, so this is an important detail to know.  If you gently poke a shell, it shouldn’t wobble.  Just pop it back in for a minute or two if it gives.

You can also test by gently lifting a shell up.  Try this on an ugly one in case it breaks.  If the shell comes off of the mat or paper without leaving a chunk behind, they are good!  But give the rest a few minutes to cool before removing them.

Related Reading: Green Tea Macarons with Ginger Buttercream

Blunders?

Macarons are an incredibly technical cookie that can take years to master.  Never forget that.  I also doubt that I will ever end up with a batch that produces 100% perfect shells.  There will always be at least a few that end up cracked or lopsided.  As long as more come out perfect than not, I think we can declare success.

Which means these were a success!  If you’ll allow me to be nit picky for a minute, I can still tell you how I plan on improving them.  Frequently, I find that my shells are just slightly hollow.  With my next batch I’m going to fold the batter until just before ribbon stage to see if over mixing is the culprit. 

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Espresso Italian Meringue Buttercream

I had some leftover egg whites from my Mixed Berry Buckle so I decided to try making a half batch of Italian meringue buttercream.  Sometimes you can scale a recipe and sometimes you can’t.  Luckily, this worked!  And it was the perfect amount for the hazelnut mocha macarons.

If I didn’t have leftover egg whites, I would have made the coffee easy buttercream that I used in my Mini Opera Cake.  It has a very similar texture and is even easier to make!  But if you don’t like the buttery flavor of a meringue buttercream, just add some of the espresso mixture to my vanilla American buttercream.

How to Fix Soupy Italian Meringue Buttercream

Italian meringue buttercream is definitely not a foolproof frosting, especially if you’re a new baker.  But there is a great fix for soupy buttercream.  After you’ve added all of the butter and given it a good beat, it might look soupy.  Pop the bowl in the fridge for 5 minutes.  Then scrape it down and beat on medium- high for 2-5 minutes.

If the mixture is still not as thick as you’d like, store it in the fridge in an airtight container overnight.  Let it come to room temperature the next day and beat for several minutes, or until creamy.  I’ve had a soupy IMBC before that never came together as much as I beat it.  Pretty sure my sugar syrup never hit 245℉.  So, just try your best!

Enjoy!

Hazelnut Mocha Macarons are delicious little bites of buttery, caffeinated goodness with the barest hint of chocolate.  Espresso Italian meringue buttercream is the perfect filling for the hazelnut mocha macaron shells.  This is one of my favorite ways to enjoy coffee!

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Hazelnut Mocha Macarons

Hazelnut macaron shells flavored with espresso and cocoa powder, filled with espresso Italian meringue buttercream.

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Course Dessert

Cuisine American, French

Keyword Brunch, Frosting, Gluten Free, Macarons, Nuts

Prep Time 1 hour hour

Cook Time 45 minutes minutes

Resting Time 1 hour hour

Total Time 2 hours hours 45 minutes minutes

Servings 50 Macarons

Calories 102kcal

Author Colleen

Ingredients

Macaron Base

• 212 grams hazelnut flour
• 212 grams powdered sugar
• 1 Tbsp cocoa powder
• 1 tsp espresso powder
• 82 grams egg whites room temperature

Italian Meringue

• 90 grams egg whites room temperature
• 236 grams granulated sugar
• 90 grams water

Espresso Italian Meringue Buttercream

• 2 egg whites room temperature
• Pinch of salt
• Pinch of cream of tartar
• 5 oz sugar divided
• 1.5 oz water
• 8 oz unsalted butter room temperature
• 1 Tbsp espresso powder
• Hot water

Instructions

Hazelnut Mocha Macaron Shells

• Cut parchment paper to fit your baking sheet or line with silicone mats. Set aside.
• Place hazelnut flour, powdered sugar, cocoa powder, and espresso powder in a food processor and pulse to grind as finely as possible. Sift the dry ingredients into a bowl, discarding any large bits, and whisk to combine. If you have a lot of larger chunks, pulse these again with a scoop or two of the finely ground mixture. Repeat until you are discarding less than 20g of large chunks.
• Place the 90 grams of egg whites for the Italian Meringue into the bowl of a standing mixer with a whisk attachment. In a small saucepan, combine the granulated sugar and water and place over medium- high heat. DO NOT stir once the sugar begins to boil. Stir just to combine and leave it be after that.
• When the sugar hits 203℉ begin to whip the egg whites in the stand mixer at medium speed to soft peaks. If the egg whites hit soft peaks before the syrup is ready, bump the speed to low.
• Once the syrup hits 245℉, remove from the heat. Bump the mixer's speed down to medium- low and very slowly pour the syrup into the bowl, making sure not to hit the whisk. It's best to aim for the edge of the bowl. Increase the speed to medium and whip for about 5- 8 minutes, or until the whites hold stiff, glossy peaks.
• Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Add the 82 grams of egg whites. Stir about ⅓ of the meringue into the flour mixture until well combined. You can be a bit rough with this first addition. Now gently fold in the remaining meringue until just before you hit ribbon stage.
• Transfer the mixture to a large pastry bag fitted with a 1/2 inch tip (2A). Holding the bag straight up, pipe circles onto your baking sheet by applying even pressure (don't try to draw a circle). If you are using a template, you want to fill the circles until just shy of the edge. They will spread a bit in the next step.
• Firmly bang baking sheet on the counter several times to even the batter and loosen any air bubbles. Use a toothpick to pop any surface bubbles and even out any bumps. Bang the sheet on the counter again.
• Let the macarons sit on the counter for about an hour to form a skin. When you touch the surface it should feel dry.
• About 30 minutes before the macarons are ready to bake, preheat the oven to 310°F. Once the macarons are dry, bake one sheet at a time for 14 minutes, rotating the sheet every 5 minutes. Keep an eye on them and adjust the baking temperature and time as needed.
• Cool on the baking sheet for 5- 10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Espresso Italian Meringue Buttercream

• Place the egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a balloon whisk. Begin whipping on a low speed to break up the eggs. Add the salt and cream of tartar.
• Place the water and 4 ounces of sugar in a small saucepan and stir to combine. Heat over medium heat while you work on the meringue.
• Bump the mixer up to a medium speed and gradually add the remaining ounce of sugar one spoonful at a time. Let the egg whites whip until they form soft peaks. Turn the speed to low if they hit soft peaks before the syrup is ready.
• Once the sugar syrup hits 245°F, bump the mixer down to a medium- low speed. Slowly and carefully drizzle the syrup in, being cautious not to hit the whisk. Whisk the meringue on a medium- high speed until it reaches room temperature, about 10- 20 minutes.
• Switch to the paddle attachment and begin beating the butter in one tablespoon at a time. While the mixture will deflate at first, if it is still soupy after all the butter has been added, chill for 5- 10 minutes and continue beating.
• After all of the butter has been added, scrape down the bowl and beat until thick and fluffy, just a few minutes. In a tiny bowl, combine the espresso powder with a small dash of warm water. Stir to combine. Add this slurry to the buttercream a bit at a time until you reach the desired flavor.

Macaron Assembly

• Pair up the macaron shells by size and fill a piping bag fitted with a round tip.
• Pipe a blob of frosting into the center of a macaron shell, stopping before the frosting reaches the edge. Top with the other macaron shell and press lightly to spread out the buttercream.
• Place the finished macarons in the fridge overnight. Take them out about 30 minutes before serving.

Notes

• Add brown food gel to the shells or buttercream for a deeper color.

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