These lavender blackberry macarons have a delicious blend of floral and fruity flavors, featuring a creamy lavender ganache and and bright blackberry filling. Follow along with the decorating tutorial as well to create an artistic touch on the shell using a simple royal icing lavender stem design. The combination of fragrant lavender and juicy blackberry creates a beautifully balanced flavor, making these macarons as wonderful to eat as they are to admire!

If you’ve been following my desserts for any length of time, you know I love using floral and herb flavors. I love the freshness and interest they bring to a dessert, and the balance and contrast they bring to sweet or tangy fruits, or even creamy and indulgent flavor profiles.

With Spring on the way, I’m ready for fresh flavors, so I’m excited to share this recipe with you!

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Ingredients to Make Lavender Blackberry Macarons

Purple Macaron Shells

• Egg Whites (Not boxed)
• Granulated Sugar
• Cream of Tartar (Stabilizes the meringue)
• Almond Flour (Finely Ground, I recommend Blue Diamond or Kirkland)
• Powdered Sugar
• Purple/Violet Gel Food Coloring (Here’s the link to the one I used)

Lavender Ganache

Ganaches are truly a delicious not too sweet macaron filling option with very few ingredients! Here’s what this lavender ganache uses.

• White Chocolate (I typically buy Ghirardelli Bars or Lindt from the store)
• Heavy Cream
• Lavender Extract (I love Angel Bakes Brand)
• Purple Gel Food Coloring (Optional)

Pure Bulgarian Lavender Extract For Baking And Mixology. Keto Friendly, Vegan, Gluten Free. (Lavender, 2 Oz)

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Blackberry Filling

• Fresh or Frozen Blackberries
• Granulated Sugar
• Lemon Zest
• Lemon Juice
• Cornstarch and water (To thicken)

Lavender Royal Icing Decoration

This decoration is of course optional, but I love the visual indicator of the lavender flavor AND the delicate crunch the little bit of royal icing gives these lavender blackberry macarons!

Satin Ice Royal Icing Mix, 14 Ounce

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• Satin Ice Royal Icing Mix
• Water
• Lavender Extract (Optional)
• Purple, Green, and Brown Gel Food Coloring (I used Violet, Emerald, and True Brown from The Sugar Art)

Lavender Ganache

To begin this recipe, you’ll need to make the lavender ganache far enough in advance for it to have time to set. It’s best to let it set at room temperature to allow it to cool evenly. The shine on the ganache tends to be higher when set at room temp as well!

This recipe uses a typical 3 part white chocolate to 1 part heavy cream ratio for a pipe-able but still smooth and soft to bite through consistency.

First, finely chop the white chocolate to allow for even melting and add to a heat safe bowl.

Next, stir in the heavy cream.

Microwave in short bursts, starting with 20 seconds and then decreasing the time as you go, stirring well after each trip in the microwave. Heat in the short bursts and stir until fully melted. Do not over heat the chocolate or you run the risk of the ganache splitting and becoming grainy.

Stir in the lavender extract and violet gel food coloring if desired.

At this point, you can use an immersion blender to really blend the mixture and make it extra smooth.

Cover the ganache with plastic wrap touching the surface of the ganache, and set aside to cool and set for at least 3-4 hours, preferably several.

Purple Macaron Shells

Next up, let’s talk about how to make the macaron shells! If you’ve never made macarons before, I highly recommend reading through my Basic French Macarons post to get the tips and tricks you need to have the best chance of a successful batch!

You can also head over to my post, Macaron Supply List: Everything You Need to Make Your Own Macarons to make sure you’re all set in the equipment department.

For the shells, you’ll whip the french meringue with the egg whites, sugar, and cream of tartar, and then add in the purple gel food coloring towards the end of the process when you’ve almost reached stiff peaks.

Fold in the sifted and combined almond flour and powdered sugar until the batter settles in on itself with just subtle lines when scraped to the bottom of the bowl and wiggled back and forth a few times. Read more in the Basic French Macarons Post to learn about the Wiggle test I use to check when the batter is done being folded!

Next, pipe the shells on silicone mats on an upside down baking tray, and tap the trays a few times to remove excess air bubbles.

After this, you can either rest the shells at room temp until they are dry and no longer tack to the touch, or you can proceed with oven drying! Read through my post How to Oven Dry Macarons and Skip the Resting Process to find out how you can save time baking your macarons.

Bake the shells one tray at a time at 300 degrees for 18-20 minutes until they hold firm when gently pressed on the side near the “foot”. If they wiggle, bake for a few more minutes and test again.

Once baked, set aside to cool fully before removing from the mat.

Blackberry Filling

While the shells are baking, you can whip up the blackberry filling! This is almost the same filling as my Blackberry Filling, but for macarons I tend to thicken it up just a bit more so it doesn’t ooze out too much or soften the shells to quickly.

To begin, simply stir together the blackberries (fresh or frozen is fine) with the lemon zest, juice, and sugar, and then cook over medium heat until the berries have broken down.

Mash the berries as you go to speed up the process.

Once the berries have thoroughly broken down, mix the cornstarch and water together in a small bowl, and then pour into the blackberries and continue stirring and cooking for an additional 2-3 minutes until the mixture has thickened and the starchy taste is gone.

Finally, set it aside to cool.

Lavender Royal Icing Macaron Shell Decoration

Preparing the Royal Icing

To decorate these shells, you’ll need about 1/2 cup of royal icing. If you have a recipe, that’s great, if not, I recommend using Satin Ice’s Royal Icing Mix for a quick option for a small batch.

Satin Ice Royal Icing Mix, 14 Ounce

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I whipped up about 1/4 of the container following the instructions with the water for a stiff consistency, and then split it into two bowls, with 2/3 of the mix for the purple, and 1/3 for the green. You’ll have a bit of extra icing but honestly it’s nice to have enough to practice if you want or if you just want the bags to be easier to hold.

Use 2-3 drops of Violet Gel Food coloring to color the larger portion, and load into a piping bag. No piping tips needed for either of these colors.

Use 2 drops of Emerald (Green) and 1 drop of True Brown for the deep green shade in the smaller portion of icing. Bag this as well with no piping tip.

Piping the Lavender Royal Icing Design

Before decorating, match up each shell with another shell of equal size. Lay them next to each other with one shell facing up and one shell facing down. You’ll only need to decorate the top shell in each pair.

To decorate the shells, cut a small corner of each piping bag off to begin.

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Starting with the green, pipe one taller curved stem slightly off center, and then a shorter curved stem next to it.

Then, using the purple, pipe small dots along the stem in an organic way, tapering the shape out towards the top a little. Leave a little bit of space between the dots along the stem so you can still see some of the green. See photos for reference.

Allow the lavender design to dry before assembling, or just be cautious to not smudge the design as you put the macarons together.

Assembling the Lavender Blackberry Macarons

First, load the lavender ganache into a piping bag fitted with a 10 or 12 piping tip. Pipe a ring of ganache on the bottom edge in each pair, leaving just a little bit of room around the edges. The ganache won’t “squish” out much because of the consistency so don’t leave too much space.

Next, place the blackberry filling in a plastic bag or a piping bag and cut off the tip. Pipe the filling into each center of ganache.

Finally, sandwich the top shell on each macaron. Allow the macarons to mature in the fridge in an airtight container for 24 hours to achieve their optimal texture and flavor!

And that’s it! These Lavender Blackberry Macarons are so dreamy and I hope you enjoy them!

If you give it a try, make sure to leave a rating or tag me on Instagram and let me know what you think. Happy baking friends!

Lavender Blackberry Macarons

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Prep Time 1 hour hr 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 40 minutes mins

Total Time 2 hours hrs 10 minutes mins

Course Dessert

Cuisine French, Italian

Ingredients

  

Lavender Ganache

• 6 oz white chocolate finely chopped
• 2 oz heavy cream
• 1 pinch salt
• ¼ tsp lavender extract
• 1 drop violet gel food coloring

Purple Macaron Shells

• 130 grams egg whites (Approximately 4-5 large eggs, use scale to measure)
• 120 grams granulated sugar
• ½ tsp cream of tartar
• 200 grams almond flour
• 200 grams confectioner’s sugar
• 2-3 drops violet gel food coloring (I used The Sugar Art Brand)

Blackberry Filling

• 1¼ cups fresh or frozen blackberries
• 3 tbsp granulated sugar plus an optional additional tsp if berries are extra tart
• 1 tsp lemon zest
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 2 tsp cornstarch
• 2 tsp water

Lavender Royal Icing (If you have a recipe you already use, this decoration takes about 1/2 cup of royal icing)

• 3.5 oz Satin Ice Royal Icing Mix
• 1 tbsp water
• 2-3 drops lavender extract (optional)
• 3 drops violet gel food coloring (The Sugar Art brand)
• 1 drop true brown gel food coloring (The Sugar Art brand)
• 2 drops emerald green gel food coloring (The Sugar Art brand)

Instructions

 

Lavender Ganache

• In a medium size microwave safe bowl, stir together the white chocolate, heavy cream, and salt.
• Microwave for 20 seconds, and stir.
• Continue microwaving in 10 second intervals, stirring well each time until smooth.
• Stir in lavender extract and gel food coloring.
• Cover ganache with plastic wrap (directly touching the surface of the ganache) and set aside to cool until set. This can take a 3-4 hours minimum, several is preferred, so make the ganache far enough in advance to allow time for it to set.

Purple Macaron Shells

• *See notes for Oven Drying Process before beginning. This is what I primarily use currently, but this recipe will detail out a traditional rest method.
• Line 2 upside down baking sheets with a silicone mat (circle template optional but recommended).
• Place a medium sized round piping tip (like a Wilton 2A) in a large piping bag. Twist the bag right behind the tip and add a clip to seal off the opening. Place the bag tip down into either a clean tall cup with the edges folded over the rim to keep the bag open, or clip it into a bag holder.
• Using a kitchen scale, carefully weigh out and sift the confectioner’s sugar and almond flour into a medium mixing bowl. Whisk well to fully blend the two together.
• Place egg whites, granulated sugar, and cream of tartar into a large mixing bowl, and begin beating with a whisk attachment using either a handheld mixer or a stand mixer for 2 minutes on a medium low speed (Kitchen Aid Speed 4).
• Turn up the mixer to a medium speed (Kitchen Aid Speed 6) and beat for an additional 2 minutes.
• Add violet gel food coloring
• Turn mixer up to medium high speed (Kitchen Aid Speed 8) and beat for 3 more minutes, or until peaks are very stiff and the meringue clumps up in a ball in the center of the whisk. Test stiffness by removing whisk and pointing it upward. (See photos in post) Once the peaks can hold their shape flipped upright, your meringue is ready.
• Pour half of your almond flour/confectioner’s sugar mixture into the bowl with your meringue, and fold 15 times. One fold is scraping all the way around the edge of your batter in your bowl, and then dragging your spatula through the middle. Be sure to scoop around the bottom of the bowl as well so you don’t miss any dry ingredients.
• Pour in the remaining dry ingredients, and continue folding (approximately 30 more folds) until dry ingredients are fully incorporated, your batter is no longer super clumpy. Do not overfold. Please note this recipe stays a bit thicker than most, and should not be folded to the traditional figure 8 test consistency. Start checking your batter’s readiness every 5 folds or so at this point by scraping all batter down to the bottom of your bowl, and then wiggling your bowl back and forth several times. If the batter levels out with few peaks and lines remaining, it should be ready. (See photos in Basic French Macarons post for reference.)
• Pour batter into prepared piping bag, and twist the opening off. Hold your bag at the twist between your thumb and pointer finger. Remove the clip.
• Holding the piping bag straight up and down, apply pressure to begin piping your batter in the center of your 2" circle templates, releasing pressure once you are a few millimeters short of your desired size. After you release pressure, use a small quick circular flick to release your tip from the piped macaron.
• Once you’ve piped a full tray, firmly bang the tray on the counter a few times to pop any air bubbles and smooth out shells. Pop any remaining large bubbles with a toothpick. Repeat with the second tray.
• Begin preheating your oven to 300 degrees, using an oven thermometer ensure accurate temperature readings.
• Set aside shells to dry until they form a skin and are no longer tacky to the touch. Once you can gently run a finger over your shells, they are ready to bake. Use a fan to speed up the process, rotating the tray every few minutes to ensure even drying. This usually takes at least 16-20 minutes for me even with a fan.
• Once shells are dry, and the oven has fully preheated to 300, place one tray in the center of the middle rack of the oven. Bake for 18 minutes.
• Quickly open door to check the shell’s doneness by gently pressing on the side just above the feet to see if it’s firm. If it moves at all, rotate the tray and bake for another 2 minutes.
• Check shells by performing the same test, pressing on the side. If they are still unstable, bake for one more minute, and check again. Repeat until shells are firm and do not budge.
• Allow shells to cool completely, and the carefully remove from silicone mat or parchment paper by gently peeling them off.

Blackberry Filling

• Place blackberries, sugar, lemon zest, and lemon juice in a small saucepan and cook over medium heat until the berries have broken down. Mash and stir with a wooden spatula as you go.
• Once berries have thoroughly broken down, taste to see if additional sugar needs to be added. Add 1 teaspoon more if desired.
• In a small bowl, stir cornstarch and water together until completely combined.
• Add cornstarch slurry to the berries while stirring, and continue to stir.
• Bring mixture to a low simmer while stirring frequently. Be sure to fully scrape the bottom and sides of your pan as you go. Continue to cook until the filling has thickened.
• Remove filling from heat. Place in the fridge to chill.

Lavender Royal Icing

• In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine royal icing mix, water, and lavender extract.
• Whip for approximately 5 minutes on medium speed. You want the icing to be thick and firm enough to hold it's shape, but not so stiff it's too difficult to pipe.
• If the consistency is too thick, and a small amount of water to thin it out. Whip to combine, and check again. Repeat until you’ve reached the desired consistency.
• Place 2/3 of the royal icing in a small bowl, and 1/3 in another bowl.
• Color the 2/3 portion with 3 drops of violet gel food coloring, and load into a new plastic piping bag.
• Color the 1/3 portion with 1 drop of true brown gel food coloring, and one drop of emerald green gel food coloring, and load into a new plastic piping bag. Set aside.

Lavender Royal Icing Decoration

• Before decorating, match up each shell with another shell of equal size. Lay them next to each other with one shell facing up and one shell facing down. You’ll only need to decorate the top shell in each pair.
• Cut a small corner of each piping bag off to begin.
• With the green, pipe one taller curved stem slightly off center, and then a shorter curved stem next to it.
• Using the purple, pipe small dots along the stem in an organic way, tapering the shape out towards the top a little. Leave a little bit of space between the dots along the stem so you can still see some of the green. See photos for reference.
• Allow the lavender design to dry before assembling, or just be cautious to not smudge the design as you put the macarons together.

Assembly

• Wait to fill macarons until both the lavender ganache and the blackberry filling are no longer warm and have set. Using a piping bag with a round piping tip (Wilton #12 or #10 size), pipe a border of lavender ganache on one shell in each pair.
• Fill the center of the lavender ganache border with the blackberry filling. A quick way to do this is to place the filling in a ziploc bag, and then cut off a corner of the bag and use it to pipe the filling.
• Gently sandwich the matched shell on top to complete your macaron.
• Refrigerate in an airtight container for 24 hours to allow the macarons to “mature” and fully develop their flavor and texture. Eat within 3-4 days. Enjoy!

Notes

*For detailed instructions on Oven Drying, read through my post on How to Oven Dry Macarons and Skip the Resting Process at the link below

https://thewhitewhisk.com/how-to-oven-dry-macarons-and-skip-the-resting-process/

Brief summary of Oven Drying Steps (Use an oven thermometer to monitor temperature)

1. Preheat oven to 275 F
2. Prepare and pipe macaron batter.
3. Place first tray of macarons directly into the oven, and prop the door open with a wooden spoon.
4. Bake for 6-7 minutes with door propped open, or until macarons have begun to form feet.
5. Close the oven door. If oven fluctuates up to 300 F on it’s own, don’t manually raise the temp. If oven does not fluctuate high enough, raise the temperature so it reaches 300F.
6. Bake for 11-12 additional minutes, and then check to see if macarons are done baking by gently pressing the side of the shell. If it’s firm, it’s done. If it wiggles, rotate the tray and bake for an additional two minutes.
7. Check shells for doneness, and if needed bake in 1 minute intervals until shells are finished baking and are no longer wiggly when pressed.

Keyword berry, blackberry, decorated, Floral, French Macarons, fruity, lavender, purple, royal icing, Spring

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