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The cool, sweet hit of peppermint paired with semisweet chocolate chunks is a classic pairing that tastes exquisite in macaron form! In this recipe for peppermint chip macarons, you’ll whip up a fluffy peppermint buttercream tossed with chopped chocolate and fill gorgeous Swiss method macaron shells.

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Macaron March 2024

It’s hard to believe, but today kicks off the 5th annual Macaron March for Bakes & Blunders. Years ago, I decided that I was going to learn how to make macarons once and for all gosh darn it! I took a class at my community college in 2019 and made the worst batch of macs you’ve ever seen.

I wasn’t content to leave it at that, so I decided to start doing Macaron March to force myself to focus on the Devil’s Cookie. Every year I spend a full month focusing on macarons on my website. And over the years, I have made some big progress.

Point is, making macarons is incredibly technical and takes a lot of practice to master. And even after years of work, you’ll have bad batches. Keep at it and enjoy Macaron March!

Macaron Resources

5 Steps to Prep for Perfect Macarons
All About Meringue: Covering the Basics
Fun Ways to Fill Macarons
Macawrong Brownies or 4 Yolk Challah (delicious ways to use up extra yolks)
Basic Tools You Need to Make Macarons
Macaron Templates + Macaron Prep Checklist (available to subscribers only)
Easy Ways to Decorate Macarons

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Peppermint Chip Macarons

My husband and son would rather eat candy or ice cream than baked goods. But since they do enjoy the occasional macaron, I asked for some flavor suggestions. Ben immediately responded with peppermint chip macarons.

Since the only mint flavor I had was peppermint oil, I couldn’t add any to the macaron shells. I decided to go with a basic shell and a peppermint chip buttercream. To showcase the flavor, I also knew I’d want to drizzle some chocolate on top.

Swiss Meringue Method

My preferred method for making macarons is using a Swiss meringue. The bit of heat helps stabilize the meringue, but isn’t as much of a production as the Italian method. It’s important to whip the Swiss meringue to stiff peaks that won’t fall over when you move the whisk side to side.

Unfortunately for all of us, the amount of whipping can change batch to batch. I’ve had stiff peaks in 6 minutes, and I’ve had other batches take over 10 minutes. Rather than blindly following any recipe, pay attention to what is happening in your mixing bowl.

Related Video: Vietnamese Iced Coffee Macarons Tutorial

Top Tips for Meringue

Wipe your bowl and whisk with a bit of vinegar to remove any residual fat or grease.
Separate your egg whites one at a time into a small bowl before adding them to your big bowl. This is to prevent any stray yolk from ruining the whole batch!
Acid (like cream of tartar or lemon juice) or egg white powder can help stabilize your egg whites.
Whip your eggs at a medium speed for longer to create a more stable meringue and minimize the risk of over whipping.
Room temperature egg whites will whip up faster, but it’s best to separate the eggs while they’re cold.

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Whip It Good

To create a strong, stable meringue, I never go above a speed 6 on my KitchenAid. I start by taking 15- 30 seconds on each speed, working my way up to a 6. Then I whip for 5 minutes. At that point, I stop the mixer to check my progress.

Then I whip on a speed 4 for one minute at a time. After each minute, I remove the whisk, swirl it around the bowl and check my progress. This particular batch took 9 minutes total (speed 6 for 5 minutes and speed 4 for 4 minutes).

Free Macaron Prep Checklist for Subscribers

Peppermint Chip Buttercream

Like I said, I only had peppermint oil on hand, which I had previously used to make some chocolate peppermint biscotti. It tastes like a candy cane, not like mint. You could easily use mint extract instead, just add a bit at a time until you are happy with the flavor.

For the “chip” bit of these peppermint chip macarons, I chopped up chocolate chips. Mini chocolate chips would work as well, but I preferred the irregular sizing. I did not add the chocolate until right before I filled the macarons to prevent the chocolate from bleeding into the buttercream if it got even slightly warm.

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Drizzle Time

Naked macarons are totes fine, but I felt like these needed a drizzle to be complete. However, instead of just a basic few lines of chocolate going across each shell, I decided to get swirly!

To achieve this look, imagine drawing a circle above the macarons that overlap each other as you work your way around the cookie. To prevent thick, squiggly lines, avoid squeezing the bag too hard, and don’t go too slow.

Watch and Learn

Macarons are tricky, tricky cookies. More than any written recipe, they are about mastering technique and adapting to the conditions in your kitchen. One thing that can really help is watching tutorials, like the one I made for these peppermint chip macarons!

If there’s a particular part of the process that troubles you, leave me a comment and I’ll try to cover this in the future. It could be the meringue, macaronage, terminology, piping, creating recipes, or any other of the million steps. Just hit me up down below.

Related Reading: Vegan Lemon & Vanilla Macarons

Top Tips for Macarons

Pulse your dry ingredients in a food processor and sift out any large chunks.
Whip your meringue to stiff peaks. It’s best to whip at a medium speed for longer. Keep an eye on it!
Fold/ macaronage just until the batter flows like lava. It is best to slightly under mix if you are in doubt.
If you don’t have a macaron template yet, grab a free one from the Resource Library so that you pipe evenly sized shells.
Use a toothpick to smooth any nipples and remove any air bubbles on your piped macarons.
Bake one pan at a time and adjust the temperature and baking time if necessary.

Enjoy!

I hope you enjoy the blend of cool peppermint and semisweet chocolate in each bite of these peppermint chip macarons. My son said they were my best macs yet!

If you’re diggin’ the vibe here, you should absolutely check out the Bakes & Blunders Facebook page. It’s a great way for me to chat with fellow bakers like you, and I love getting feedback on which recipes to make in the future.

Peppermint Chip Macarons

Beautiful macarons filled with peppermint chip buttercream and drizzled with chocolate.

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Course Dessert

Cuisine American, French

Keyword almond, Chocolate, Cookies, Frosting, Gluten Free, Macarons, Peppermint

Prep Time 2

Cook Time 50

Resting Time 30

Total Time 3 20

Servings 30 macarons

Calories 117kcal

Author Colleen

Ingredients

Peppermint Chip Buttercream

1 oz pasteurized carton egg whites
6 oz powdered sugar sifted, divided 4 oz+ 2 oz
4 oz unsalted butter softened
1/8 tsp peppermint oil
1 oz semisweet chocolate finely chopped

Macaron Shells

130 g powdered sugar
130 g almond flour
127 g sugar
127 g egg whites about 4 eggs, room temperature
1/32 tsp Hawaiian Blue Master Elite powder color smidgen

Toppings

melted chocolate

Instructions

Peppermint Chip Buttercream

Whip the egg whites and about 4 oz of the powdered sugar on a high speed for 3- 5 minutes.
Bump the speed down to medium- high and begin adding the butter one tablespoon at a time, letting each piece incorporate before adding the next. Once all the butter has been added, scrape the bowl down and whip on high for 5 minutes, or until light and fluffy.
Switch to a paddle attachment and add the remaining 2 oz of powdered sugar. Beat on low to combine, then medium- low speed for 1- 2 minutes. Add the peppermint oil and beat to combine.
Fold the chopped chocolate into the buttercream. Taste and adjust flavors as desired.

Macaron Shells

Prepare 2 baking sheets with silicone mats, teflon, or templates and parchment paper. Fit a piping bag with a round piping tip. Set aside. Preheat oven to 285°F.
Pulse the almond flour and powdered sugar in a food processor and sift into a bowl. Discard any large chunks. Whisk the dry ingredients and set aside.
Combine egg whites and powdered color. Set aside.
In a clean stand mixer bowl, combine the sugar mixture and the egg whites. Whisk to combine and place bowl over a double boiler. Heat, whisking regularly, until the sugar dissolves, about 90 seconds. Remove the bowl from the double boiler and carefully dry off the bottom.
Place the bowl in the stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Gradually increase the speed to medium (KitchenAid speed 6) and whip for 5 minutes. Decrease the speed slightly (KitchenAid speed 4) and whip until you have stiff peaks, about 1- 5 minutes longer. Check regularly so that you don't overwhip the meringue.
Add the dry ingredients to the bowl and begin folding the ingredients together. Once everything is combined, continue folding until the batter flows slowly like lava.
Pipe macaron shells onto prepared baking sheets. Let the macarons dry until you can lightly brush the tops with your finger (30 mins for me). Bake for 23- 25 minutes, rotating halfway through. Gently poke shell, if it is firm, remove from the oven to cool. If they wiggle, add another minute or two.
Let the macaron shells cool on the sheet for 10 minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack.

Assemble

Pair up the macaron shells. Fill a piping bag with buttercream and pipe a dollop onto one shell, then top with the other shell. Repeat with the remaining macaron shells.
If desired, melt some chocolate and add to a small piping bag. Snip off a tiny bit of the tip and drizzle over the macarons. Allow the chocolate to set.
Place in an air tight container in the fridge overnight to let them mature. Remove 30 minutes before serving.

Notes

I was able to pipe 60 shells, which made 30 macarons. You could have a few more or a few less depending on how large you pipe your shells.
For maximum color intensity, mix the egg whites and color powder about an hour before beginning the recipe.
If making the buttercream in advance, I prefer to mix the chocolate chunks into the frosting right before piping.

Peppermint Chip Macarons