Ube Macarons with Ube Buttercream
Ube macarons with ube buttercream filling are a gorgeous shade of purple with that iconic purple yam flavor. Since ube is both unique and mild in taste, it is a great option for pleasing a crowd!
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Ube Macarons
I’ve been wanting to make a batch of ube macarons for a hot minute now. Ube is fairly trendy, plus that purple hue is so dang pretty! In the past, I’ve used my ube extract to make some bangin’ frosted ube sugar cookies. It was time for a classy ube macaron.
Adding flavor extracts to your macaron shells is absolutely doable, but it can throw off the chemistry a bit, so it’s risky. I did not put ube into my macaron batter for this reason, but if you choose to experiment, start with ¼ teaspoon and let me know how it goes.
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.
Purple Swiss Meringue
To get pretty purple macaron shells to match the ube buttercream filling, I added a pinch of violet powder color from The Sugar Art to my egg whites about an hour before making my meringue. Allowing the egg whites and color to develop for at least 30 minutes will help deepen the color.
To reach stiff peaks, you’ll need to whip your egg whites anywhere from 6- 15 minutes. It all depends on the specific climate in your kitchen, plus your mixer speed. I did a speed 6 on my KitchenAid for 5 minutes, then I only needed one minute on a speed 4. Usually my meringue needs a little more time than this, but not today!
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.
Related Reading: Vietnamese Iced Coffee Macarons
Ube Buttercream
For the hit of subtle sweet potato and vanilla that ube brings, I filled the purple macaron shells with a simple ube buttercream. This is an American buttercream with a dash of ube extract added and it is delicious!
The ube extract provides all the color you need in this filling. If you do want a deeper shade, you could add a drop or two of a purple gel color. However, I really don’t think that’s necessary.
Top Tips for American Buttercream
- Beat the butter alone on a medium speed for 8- 10 minutes to get it super pale and fluffy.
- Warm up your liquid (cream, milk, water, etc.) slightly to get a smooth buttercream. Cold liquid can curdle the frosting.
- Once you begin adding the powdered sugar, never go above a medium speed to avoid too many air bubbles.
- Add a pinch of salt to cut the sweetness.
Drizzle & Sprinkle
I just couldn’t leave these ube macarons naked. They begged to be dressed up all fancy! One of my favorite ways to decorate macarons is a simple drizzle of melted chocolate or candy melts and a dusting of sprinkles.
Please note, the chocolate or candy melts will set quickly, especially if you are drizzling cold macs like I do. You’ll want to immediately add the sprinkles so that the chocolate is still tacky enough to hold them in place.
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
Enjoy!
Ube, a sweet purple yam native to Southeast Asia, adds an earthy vanilla like flavor to this batch of ube macarons. The mild flavor is absolutely delicious and an easy way to try something new!
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Ube Macarons
Ingredients
Ube Buttercream
- 4 oz unsalted butter softened
- 8 oz powdered sugar sifted
- 1/2 tsp ube extract
- 1- 2 Tbsp heavy cream
Macaron Shells
- 115 g powdered sugar
- 115 g almond flour
- 115 g sugar
- 115 g egg whites room temperature
- 1/16 tsp Violet Master Elite powder color pinch
Instructions
Ube Buttercream
- Beat the butter in a stand mixer until light and fluffy, about 5- 8 minutes. Add a third of the sugar. Beat on low until combined, then on medium for a minute or two until creamy. Scrape the bowl.
- Add half of the remaining sugar, a pinch of salt, and a tablespoon of cream. Beat on low, then on medium until combined. Scrape the bowl.
- Add the rest of the sugar and beat on low, then medium- low until creamy. Beat in the ube extract until well incorporated. If necessary, add cream a teaspoon at a time until you have the right texture.
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 290°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 22- 24 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 white candy melts and add to a small piping bag. Snip off a tiny bit of the tip and drizzle over the macarons. Immediately top with sprinkles, if desired.
- 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.
Colleen
Hi there! I’m Colleen, a novice baker with a passion for learning and improving my bakes… and blunders. On Bakes and Blunders, you can find all sorts of tasty recipes that range in difficulty, but most importantly, I’ll try to explain the reason behind important steps. If you know why a recipe works, you can tweak and adapt it to suit your unique tastes, and you’ll be able to reliably produce some very delicious treats. If you love baking and want to expand and grow your skills, or if you are a casual baker and just need some pointers, my blog is right up your alley! Join me on my baking journey and we’ll learn how to make more impressive recipes together.
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