Valentine’s Macaron Heart Cake
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Valentine’s Day is coming up, and I wanted to make something special. Heart-shaped macarons are always a big hit around this time, and they are fun to make. But this time, I made Valentine’s Macaron Heart Cake and filled it with dark chocolate ganache and raspberry confit. I also made a printable template for you that you can download and use. This cake may look complicated, but it is easy to make. You can watch a video on my YouTube Channel.
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Dessert
- Texture, shape, and taste. All this is just screaming Valentine’s Day. Check Heart Shaped Macarons or Brownies.
- The perfect dessert to be made a day or two ahead of time, like No Bake Cheesecake.
- Color and fillings can be changed for your taste. Try also the Macaron Tower.
- If you want “wow” dessert, then this is it, like my Christmas Wreath Macarons.
How to Make This Recipe
Step One. Make dark chocolate ganache. The full recipe and video are already on my blog and YouTube Channel. If you are not a big fan of dark chocolate, you can make any of your favorite ganaches or buttercreams to fill the cake. I have many recipes for ganaches, and they all can work for this cake.
Step Two. Make raspberry confit. I love to use confit for macarons or cake. However, confit can be replaced with your favorite jam or caramel.
Step Three. Download and print the template. I recommend doing this step before making macaron shells.
How to Pipe Macaron Heart Cake
Step Four. Bake macaron heart-shaped shells. I used my basic French meringue recipe for the shells. If you like to use Italian meringue, see detailed instructions in a separate post. I also have an online video lesson on how to make macaron shells using the No Rest method. The recipe in the lesson has less sugar than my basic French meringue recipe. You can check that too. However, the method and meringue you are using for regular macaron shells, use that to make Valentine’s Macaron Heart Cake. I have a video on how to make Rosette Macaron shells. The same rules will apply to make this cake. One part of the macaronage needs to be undermined, and the other part regular (should flow like “lava” from the spatula). If you never made textured macarons, watch my videos on my YouTube Channel.
How to Assemble
Step Five. Assemble the cake. This is the best part and should be done a day or two before you enjoy this cake. When you have baked shells, place the ganache into a pastry bag with a round tip. In the bag with raspberry confit, cut a little tip, and it is ready for filling. Place a round heart with the flat side up on the countertop and pipe the ganache. In the center of the ganache pipe, confit. Sandwich cake with a rosette heart and press lightly. Place the cake into an airtight container and refrigerate. Macaron cake needs to ” mature” before you can enjoy it. This Valentine’s Macaron Heart Cake is the perfect dessert that can be and should be made ahead of time for Valentine’s Day.
Expert Tips
- Use the template to pipe macaron shells.
- The color can be changed to pink or your favorite. Purple or white will also work great.
- Confit can be substituted with jam or nuts.
- You can make both shells using a round tip and regular macaronage if making rosettes looks complicated for you.
- The top can be decorated with sprinkles.
Recipe FAQs
Store Valentine’s Heart Macaron Cake in an airtight container for 2-3 days.
Yes, you can also freeze this cake for a few months. Defrost the cake by moving it from the freezer to the fridge; I do that overnight.
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If you use my template and make this Valentine’s Macaron Heart Cake, please tag me on social media and make sure to leave a rating down below. I would love to see your creations!
Recipe
Valentine’s Macaron Heart Cake
Equipment
- 1 stand mixer or electric hand mixer
- 1 spatula
- 1 small saucepan
- 1 immersion blender
- 1 1M wilton pipping tip
- 1 round piping tip
- 2 pastry bags
Ingredients
Dark Chocolate Ganache
- 200 gr heavy cream
- 20 gr glucose syrup
- 200 gr dark chocolate
- 40 gr unsalted butter
- 2 gr salt
Raspberry Confit
- 45 gr white granulated sugar
- 5 gr pectin NH
- 150 gr raspberry purée
- 1 gr citric acid
Macaron Shells
- 100 gr egg whites room temperature (from 3 large eggs)
- 100 gr white granulated sugar (1/2 cup)
- 125 gr almond flour (1 cup)
- 150 gr powdered sugar (1 1/4 cup)
- red food coloring
Instructions
How to Make Dark Chocolate Ganache
- Semi-melt dark chocolate in the microwave or using the double boiler method.
- In the small saucepan over medium heat, warm up heavy cream and glucose syrup. Do not boil!
- Add a warm mixture of the cream to melted chocolate in 3 parts, mixing with the spatula all the time.
- Add butter and emulsify with an immersion blender.
- Transfer the ganache to a flat container and cover it with the plastic wrap " to contact."
- Leave the ganache on the countertop to stabilize. Usually, it takes about one hour.
How to Make Raspberry Confit
- Mix sugar and pectin in a small bowl or cup.
- In the small saucepan over medium heat, warm up raspberry puree.
- Drizzle the sugar mixture over the puree and mix with the whisk or spatula.
- Bring confit to the boil while mixing all the time.
- After boiling, confit for 20-30 seconds, and turn off heat. Add citric acid and mix again.
- Transfer the confit into a pastry bag and leave flat on the countertop to cool. Then refrigerate until use.
How to Make Macaron Shells
- Download and print the template.
- 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 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. Half of the undermixed macaronage is placed into a pippin bag with 1M Wilton pipping tip.
- Continue folding the other half of the macaronage when macaronage drips down from the spatula “like lava,” and transfer it into a pastry bag with a round tip.
- Place the template under the baking mat and pipe using a bag with a round tip.
- Remove the template and place the mat on a baking tray. Top the tray, and remove bobbles with the toothpick if needed.
- Place the template under the baking mat and pipe rosettes with another bag that has a 1M piping tip. Do not top the tray after. Just remove the template.
- 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. If your oven has a "convection bake "setting, use that. 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.