Red Wine Macarons
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These Red Wine Macarons are filled with dark chocolate ganache and red wine. Red wine gives a fruity flavor to the ganache and makes this filling very rich and tasty. You must try this recipe. You will be impressed!
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Ganache is smooth and tastes delicious. Check also Dark or Milk Chocolate Ganache.
- You can freeze assembled macarons with this filling. Great for making ahead-of-time desserts or holidays. Check also my Mulled Wine Macarons.
- Ganache stabilizes fast and does not require a long time wait before assembling macarons.
Ingredients Note
- Red Wine: Use your favorite red wine. Cabernet or Merlot will work for this recipe.
- Dark chocolate: Use good quality chocolate. I used Callebaut 54.5%
- Butter: Unsalted butter, this is for ganache texture. Must be room temperature, but not too soft.
How to Make This Recipe
- Make macaron shells. I used my basic French meringue recipe. To color macaron shells I used Purple water-soluble food coloring.
- Make red wine ganache.
- Assemble macarons.
Measure dark chocolate by weight using a kitchen scale. Warm up red wine. Do not boil! Pour warm wine into ganache. Let’s set for a minute or so. Emulsify with an immersion blender. Add unsalted butter and emulsify again. Ganache should be silky and shiny. Transfer the ganache into a glass container and cover it with plastic wrap “to contact.” Let the ganache set at room temperature or in the fridge. This is dark chocolate ganache, and it will stabilize faster than white chocolate.
Tip from Marina: ganache with dark chocolate setting very fast. As soon as the ganache holds shape you can fill macarons.
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How to Assemble Macarons
Transfer red wine ganache into a pastry bag with your favorite pipping tip. I used an Ateco 845. Pair similar-sized macaron shells. Pipe Red Wine ganache on one shell and gently top with another shell. Make sure the ganache is not coming out from the sides of the shell. Do not judge macarons by how they taste immediately after assembling. Macarons need to mature in the fridge before they are ready to eat. Maturing time is 12-24 hours. After maturing, macarons absorb some of the moisture from their filling and have that perfect chewy texture. Maturing is a very important step. Do not skip it!
Expert Tips
- Measure all ingredients by weight using a kitchen scale.
- Get all ingredients and tools ready before baking.
- Use good quality chocolate.
Recipe FAQs
Store macarons in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days.
This Red Wine ganache is good for freezing. Freeze fills macarons in an air-tight container for up to 6 months. To defrost macarons you need to take them out of the freezer and put them into the fridge in the same container for a few hours or overnight. Do not microwave macarons to speed up defrosting time! This does not work with macarons.
There are many reasons for that. The most common are unstable meringue, incorrect folding technique, or wrong oven temperature.
This happens if the batter is overmixed. Check the consistency of the batter every 2-3 folds. The overmixed batter runs off the spatula very fast.
If the ganache is too firm, I would recommend microwaving it for 10 seconds to soften it. And then to stir the ganache for piping consistency.
If you make these Red Wine Macarons, please tag me on social media and make sure to leave a rating down below. I would love to see your creations!
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Recipe
Red Wine Macarons
Equipment
- 1 immersion blender
- 1 small sauce pan
- 1 stand mixer or electric hand mixer
- 1 spatula
- 2 pastry bag
- 2 baking sheet pan
- 2 baking mat
Ingredients
Red Wine Ganache
- 226 gr dark chocolate 8oz
- 125 ml red wine
- 28 gr unsalted butter room temperature
Macaron shells
- 125 gr almond flour (1 cup)
- 150 gr powdered sugar (1 1/4 cup)
- 100 gr egg whites room temperature (from 3 large eggs)
- 100 gr white granulated sugar (1/2 cup)
Instructions
How to Make Red Wine Ganache
- Prepare dark chocolate, and cut with the knife if needed.
- Warm up red wine. Do not boil!
- Pour warm wine into ganache. Let's set for a minute or so.
- Emulsify with an immersion blender.
- Add unsalted butter and emulsify again. Ganache should be silky and shiny.
- Transfer the ganache into a glass container and cover it with plastic wrap “to contact.”
- Let the ganache set at room temperature or in the fridge. Check for pipping consistency by pressing with the fingers.
How to Make Macaron Shells
- In the mixing bowl, sift together almond flour and powdered sugar. Set aside.
- In the mixing bowl of a stand mixer add room-temperature egg whites and start whisking on low speed. Start adding sugar one tablespoon at a time. Add red or purple food coloring. Increase speed to medium-high and whip until stiff picks. This will take 10-15 minutes.
- Add dry ingredients and start folding the butter when macaronage drips down from the spatula “like lava,” transfer it into a pastry bag with a round tip.
- Pipe macaron shells on the baking mat.
- Top baking sheet pan with pipped macaron shells a few times. Let shells rest on the countertop until no batter sticks to your finger when you touch them.
- Bake macaron shells in the preheated oven to 275o F (134o C) for 12-14 minutes. Oven temperature and baking time may vary, depending on your oven.
- Remove baked macaron shells from the oven and let it cool on the baking mat with a baking sheet pan. When shells are cooled, completely remove them from the baking mat and pair them with similar sizes.
How to Assemble Red Wine Macarons
- Transfer red wine ganache into a pastry bag with your favorite pipping tip.
- Pipe red wine ganache on one shell and gently top with another shell. Make sure the ganache is not coming out from the sides of the shell.
- Transfer macarons into an airtight container and let them mature in the fridge for 12-24 hours.