what to do if my macaron batter is too thick

A comprehensive macaron troubleshooting guide with photos, possible causes and how to avoid the most common macaron issues!

Since 2012, I've made thousands of macarons in my home kitchen with many trials and errors, also as picture-perfect macarons! And yeah, I've had pretty much every problem imaginable!!

In the procedure, I've gained lots of tips and tricks to solve those frustrating problems and, well-nigh importantly, how to avert them in the first place.

Recall, sometimes, macarons neglect for no apparent reason and leave us scratching our heads.

Only I encourage you to never give up on macarons. The joy of watching your macarons grow those ruffled feet and pulling out perfectly round macarons with shiny smooth tops is simply priceless.

I swear, every single time, when I see my macarons through the oven door puffing upward and baking perfectly, I can't assistance simply do a lilliputian happy trip the light fantastic toe in my kitchen! Pure joy, I'yard telling ya!

• What'south a perfect macaron?
• Macaron Troubleshooting Video
• Visual Macaron Troubleshooting Guide
• Tip
• Tip
• Tip
• Tip

What'southward a perfect macaron?

Perfect macaron is very subjective. To me, a perfect macaron has the following characteristics:

• Smooth shells
• Ruffles feet
• Total within

Macaron Troubleshooting Video

Watch How to Make This Beneath!

Visual Macaron Troubleshooting Guide

Ok, let's discuss each of the virtually common macaron issues, their causes and how to set up or prevent them!

Uneven, grainy macarons with nipples

Possible causes:

• Besides coarse almond flour
• Dry ingredients weren't sifted
• Batter was nether-mixed

how to set up grainy shells with nipples:

1. Make sure to use fine basis almond flour.
2. Don't skip sifting the dry ingredients! Toss big almond pieces left in the sifter. You shouldn't have more than than 1/ii tablespoon of almond $.25.
3. Under-mixed batter as well causes grainy shells with nipples. When mixed right, the nipples should melt back into the batter subsequently tapping the piped shells on the counter.

Tip

Never utilise wet fingers to push the nipples downward. Instead, use a toothpick to encourage the batter even out.

Cracked shells

Possible causes:

• Besides much air in the trounce
• Loftier humidity
• Shells weren't rested
• Weak meringue
• High oven temperature, or hot spots in the oven

HOW TO Set cracked macarons:

1. Be sure to tap the blistering sheet right after piping macaron shells. And utilise a toothpick to pop large air pockets visible on the surface.
2. When it's likewise humid, the shells don't develop good peel, which leads to the adjacent indicate.
3. When the shells haven't rested long plenty to develop skin on superlative, steam releases from anywhere cause macarons to crack on elevation.
4. Take your fourth dimension to make overnice and sturdy meringue, peculiarly when you're making French meringue. Sentinel my video on French Meringue 101 to acquire all the tips to make the most stable French meringue.
5. Too hot oven tin besides cause cracks in macaron shells. Make certain to go an oven thermometer to double bank check the temperature inside the oven without relying on what oven says.

Erupted shells

Possible cause:

• Touched the shells with wet finger to push down a pointy nipple

How to preclude erupted volcano macarons:

Never touch your unbaked macaron shells with moisture fingers to button downwards pointy stop. Instead tap the baking canvass well. And if the pointy finish doesn't melt into the batter, you tin can either baking them every bit is, or scrape the batter back into a basin and mix for a niggling more until the concoction is at correct consistency.

Too crispy interior

Possible cause:

• Shells were over-baked

How to set up likewise crispy shells:

If yous over-baked your macaron shells and now they're super crispy throughout, don't fret! 2 easy fixes:

1. Utilize wet fillings, like jams, caramel sauce, or lemon curd in the center.
2. Simply brush on milk on the bottom of the shells before pipage a filling of choice.

Tip

Mature filled macarons for 24 hours. The shells will absorb the moisture from filling and macarons should soften nicely.

Apartment shells, spread out too much

Possible cause:

• Batter was over-mixed

Over-mixed concoction is too loose and the shells don't hold its shape well, instead it spreads out too much.

How to prevent flat, spread out macarons:

Once macaron batter is over-mixed and it'southward too runny, there's no way to salve it. So it's important to preclude this from happening.

Make sure to bank check the batter often for the correct consistency. Information technology should slowly run off the spatula into a ribbon, and the edges should cook back into the batter within about 10 seconds.

Hollow shells

Possible cause:

• Issue with meringue
• Over-mixed batter
• Improper piping technique
• Too high oven temperature
• Under-baked macaron shells

How to set hollow macaron shells:

Hollow macarons are then common, and I personally battled with this issue for a long time. Now, I consistently get full, meaty macarons directly from the oven.

Since it'southward a complex upshot, I dedicated a dissever post on how to fix hollow macarons.

Watch How to Make This Below!

No feet

Potential causes:

• Batter is also wet
• Humid weather
• Weak meringue
• Batter was over-mixed
• Shells weren't rested earlier baking
• Shells were rested for too long, weakening the meringue structure
• Too low oven temperature

How to prevent no feet macarons:

1. When the batter is too moisture, macarons don't develop those ruffled feet. The most common causes for wet concoction: excess liquids, like extracts, lemon/lime juice, liquid food coloring, too much gel food coloring, etc.
2. In some cases, especially in humid climates, crumbling egg whites might be beneficial. During crumbling, egg whites loose some of its moisture.
3. When the meringue isn't whipped to stiff peaks, information technology doesn't have stiff enough construction to lift macarons. Lookout man my French Meringue 101 video for visual cues for proper meringue.
4. When macaron batter is over-mixed, there's not much air bubbling left to give the shells elevator during baking. Therefore, they come out flat without anxiety.
5. Also, if macarons weren't rested to form a peel before baking, it could cause no feet macarons. And if the shells were rested for likewise long, information technology tin likewise negatively affect the concoction, considering meringue loses its stability when sabbatum for likewise long. Keep checking the shells every fifteen minutes and put them in the oven as presently equally they don't stick to your fingers.
6. If the oven is not hot plenty, macarons won't rising as air bubbles in the meringue need heat to aggrandize to lift the shells, creating that pretty feet at the base.

Tip

Make sure to get an oven thermometer to double cheque the temperature inside the oven without relying on what oven says.

Bulging feet

Potential causes:

• Too high oven temperature
• Silicone mat

how to preclude bulging feet:

Some may notice it ugly when the ruffled feet extends out of the macaron shells. I'm non a huge fan, only it'due south non the worst!

• This happens when the oven is a bit too hot, causing the macarons to rise too loftier and then collapse slightly, making the feet bulge out.
• And another reason is silicone mat might be the culprit. I certainly happens to me with thick silicone mats, but I know some people have gorgeous macarons with silicone mats.

Soft, wrinkly shells

Possible causes:

• Too much liquid (moisture) in the batter
• Meringue is under-beaten
• Oily almond flour

How to forbid soft, wrinkly shells:

Excess moisture and/or fat is the #1 cause for soft, wrinkly shells. And there're number of culprits for excess moisture/fat in the batter:

1. Adding liquid extracts, juices or liquid food coloring
2. Calculation cocoa powder, freeze-dried fruits, etc.
3. Nether-mixed meringue also contains too much wet
4. Oily almond flour, or almond flour that has been opened for too long

Cocoa powder contains fat which could potentially cause soft, brownie-like macaron shells. And freeze-stale fruits absorb moisture from the air fast and could cause soft, wrinkly shells besides.

Tip

Store opened almond flour in an airtight container in a cool identify.

T o o Thick concoction

Typically, when you lot add dry ingredients into meringue, it starts out pretty thick and that'southward totally normal. As you fold the batter, it thins out and gets runnier.

In rare occasions, the batter never loosens and information technology stays thick.

Possible causes:

• Improper ratio of dry and wet ingredients
• Oily almond flour
• As well much cocoa powder or freeze-stale fruits
• Overbeaten meringue

how to fix and forbid thick batter issue:

1. Be sure to weigh the ingredients carefully. I strongly recommend weighing all the ingredients, including egg whites, with a kitchen calibration.
2. Oily almond flour could cause thick concoction. Make certain to employ fresh almond flour and avoid processing information technology in a food processor.
3. Also much cocoa powder or freeze-dried fruits can throw the ratio of dry and wet ingredients.
4. When meringue is over-beaten, information technology gets dry, throwing off the ratio as well.

Blotchy shells

I don't have a photo of this issue, but basically information technology looks like greasy stains on the shells.

Possible causes:

• Oily almond flour
• Concoction sat out for too long earlier piping

how to foreclose blotchy macarons:

1. Use fresh almond flour that's not oily. To exam, squeeze some almond flour in your hand and encounter if it holds its shape. If it holds its shape similar moisture sand, then it's too oily.
2. Make sure to pipe the shells correct away, especially with French meringue batter.

Lopsided shells

Possible causes:

• Uneven air circulation in the oven/ Hot spots
• Convection setting (fan forced) may have too potent fan
• Improper piping technique
• Shells were dried for too long

how to prevent lopsided macarons:

Primary culprit for lopsided shells is poor air circulation. This could be due to uneven heat distribution and hot spots in the oven, convection settings with besides strong fan. Hither're a few things y'all tin do in this example:

1. Flip the blistering sail upside downward before piping macarons, so that in that location'due south no edges around the sheet to block any heat circulation.
2. Broil macarons one sheet at a time.
3. Turn the baking sheet effectually half way through blistering.
4. If possible, bake on conventional setting, estrus coming from top and bottom.

The side by side reason for lopsided macarons is improper piping technique. Pay close attending to following:

1. Hold the pipe bag with macaron batter straight at ninety° and squeeze the concoction from the top to one spot until the desired size reaches. Picket my macaron video for better illustration.
2. Pipage the shells at least half an inch apart to give the shells enough room for air circulation.

And lastly, don't dry your macarons for also long. Too thick skin may crusade lopsided macarons.

Concaved (Inverted) shells or Stuck To Parchment

Possible causes:

• Low oven temp/ low heat from bottom
• Under-broiled shells
• Not cooling the macarons before removing from parchment paper

How to prevent concaved, or stuck macarons:

1. Make sure your oven is hot plenty. Most of the fourth dimension, ovens need good thirty-45 minutes to preheat properly. Even if it beeps when it'southward preheated, I highly recommend double checking with an oven thermometer.
2. Exist certain to check the macarons for doneness before taking them out. To test for doneness, gently touch the elevation of ane macaron with your index finger and try wiggle it. If it wobbles side to side, they're not ready. keep baking for another minute or and then. The cooked shells should wiggle e'er and so slightly and firm to touch. When in dubiousness, melt a bit longer. In my opinion, it's meliorate to over-bake them than under-bake them.
3. Brand sure to absurd the macarons on the baking sheet for at least 10 minutes before removing from parchment newspaper/silicone mat.

Whew, are you still with me? Thank you!!! I promise this macaron troubleshooting guide answers your questions and helps you to perfect your macaron skills.

And if there is anything I haven't covered, delight leave me a comment beneath. I'd like us, macaron-lovers, connect and hash out various problems we face baking macarons. Let's go the discussion started.

This post was originally published on December 21st, 2015, and final updated on February 16th, 2021.

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Source: https://www.sweetandsavorybyshinee.com/french-macaron-troubleshooting-guide/

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