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    Home » Cookie » Ube Macarons

    Ube Macarons

    September 27, 2021 by Catherine Zhang 8 Comments

    Jump to Recipe·Print Recipe

    Crisp and slightly chewy macaron shells filled with a light and creamy ube buttercream. These purple yam flavoured macarons are a mix between Filipino and French cuisine!

    Jump to:
    • What is Ube?
    • How to use ube in desserts?
    • Tips to Perfecting Macarons
    • Let's get baking!
    • Ube Macarons

    I'm back again with another ube flavoured dessert, and this time we're making macarons! With the growing popularity of ube all around the world, this macaron is the perfect representation of Asian and European fusion!

    What is Ube?

    If you aren't familiar with ube, it is a purple root vegetable originating in the Philippines. It has a sweet, slightly nutty, vanilla-y taste and is commonly used in desserts.

    Ube is often confused with taro and purple sweet potato. Taro is not as vibrant in colour and sweetness, and is used more often in savoury dishes. On the other hand purple sweet potato has a more intense purple colour and sweetness. If you can't find ube, purple sweet potato is often a great alternative.

    Ube French macarons with light and fluffy ube buttercream
    Ube French macarons with light and fluffy ube buttercream

    How to use ube in desserts?

    There are a couple of different ways to incorporate ube into your desserts. At the Asian grocery store you will find ube in several different forms: fresh, powdered, frozen, grated, jam and extract. Fresh, powdered, frozen and grated ube are all ube in their natural form. Unlike ube jam and extract these need to be prepared before used in desserts.

    The most common method to use ube in desserts is to prepare a jam, aka ube halaya. This is essentially ube, various milks/creams and sugar cooked together to form a thick, sweet jam. You can make this yourself at home with fresh or frozen ube, or you can find it pre-made in jars.

    As there is often a lot of work that goes into making desserts I don't find the need to make it myself- so store bought ube halaya works for me!

    The other most common form of ube used in desserts is ube extract, a super concentrated little bottle of ube flavour. A couple of drops will transform your batter or cream into an explosion of fragrant, bright purple ube. This is by far the easiest way to incorporate ube as it won't impact the texture of your baked goods as mashed ube would, while giving you as much flavour as you could possibly want!

    Ube French macarons with light and fluffy ube buttercream

    Tips to Perfecting Macarons

    Throughout my macaron posts on this blog I have covered a lot of different topics. This time I'll be covering the ingredients needed to create perfect macarons and which ones are best.

    For other topics see...

    • Crucial points when making macarons: Perfect macarons with salted milk tea caramel
    • Frequently asked macaron questions and trouble shooting tips: Earl grey macarons
    • Colouring macarons: Carrot cake macarons
    • Creating character macarons: Tiktok frog macarons
    • Creating macaron designs: Carrot cake macarons

    If you are looking for a definitive guide to help you master your macarons I have an ebook which outlines the steps to make French and Italian macarons in detail. It includes photographic steps as well as a guide to the best ingredients and equipment needed to create that perfect macaron!

    It also includes 6 exclusive recipes with detailed instructions to impress 😉

    Purchase How to Perfect Macarons Ebook

    Click here to check out my ebook
    Ube French macarons with light and fluffy ube buttercream

    Let's get baking!

    If I was describe the flavour of ube it almost reminds me of vanilla, it's sweet, slightly nutty and absolutely delicious. Paired with a light and creamy buttercream this is to die for.

    I hope you can find all the resources you need to create the perfect ube macarons here!

    If you make this recipe make sure to leave me a comment and rating down below, I would love to hear how it went.

    Also don't forget to tag me on instagram @catherine.justdessertsau and hashtag #cattycakes so I can see and share your desserts!

    Follow me on facebook, pinterest, youtube and tiktok for more of my baking creations and updates! Until next time... happy caking!

    Print

    Ube Macarons

    Ube French macarons with light and fluffy ube buttercream
    Print Recipe

    Crisp and slightly chewy macaron shells filled with a light and creamy ube buttercream. These purple yam flavoured macarons are a mix between Filipino and French cuisine! 

    • Author: Catherine Zhang
    • Prep Time: 20 minutes
    • Cook Time: 15 minutes
    • Total Time: 35 minutes
    • Yield: 12 macarons 1x
    • Category: Cookie
    • Method: Intermediate
    • Cuisine: French, Filipino

    Ingredients

    Scale

    Macaron Shells

    • 50 g Almond meal
    • 45 g Icing sugar
    • 37 g Egg whites
    • 37 g White sugar
    • ¼ tsp Ube extract
    • Purple powdered or gel food colouring

    Ube Buttercream

    • 100g Unsalted butter, room temperature
    • 65g Cream cheese, room temperature
    • 50g Ube halaya (If you can't find any feel free to use ½ tsp ube extract and 20g icing sugar instead)
    • ¼ tsp Ube extract

    Instructions

    Macaron Shells

    1. In a medium sized bowl sieve the almond meal and powdered sugar together
    2. If there are large chunks of almond meal remaining in the sieve dispose of them
    3. In a large clean bowl add the egg whites, and using an electric mixer beat until foamy
    4. Slowly add the sugar and beat until stiff peaks
    5. Fold the sieved almond meal and powdered sugar into the meringue in 2 additions, scraping around the bowl and down the centre
    6. Continue until you notice that the lines that form when the batter falls back into the bowl slowly start to disappear
    7. Transfer to a piping bag fitted with a round tip and pipe out 1.5inch circles
    8. Allow to dry for 1-2 hours, or until the surface is matte and dry
    9. Bake in a preheated oven at 140°C for 13-15 minutes (I find that it's usually done at 13, but it depends on your oven so make sure to check! If you give your macarons a wiggle they shouldn't be moving, that's when they're ready)
    10. Remove from oven and let cool

    Ube Buttercream

    1. Whisk butter, cream cheese and ube halaya together until light and fluffy
    2. Add ube extract and mix until well combined
    3. Transfer to a piping bag fitted with a round tip
    4. Match similar sized macaron shells with each other
    5. On the flat side of one shell pipe a large dollop of buttercream
    6. Top with a matching shell
    7. Place in airtight container in the fridge for a day to mature (gives deeper flavour and chewy texture!)

    Keywords: ube, yam, purple, sweet potato, root vegetable, buttercream, macaron, french macaron, egg whites, meringue

    Did you make this recipe?

    Share a photo, tag me @catherine.justdessertsau and hashtag #cattycakes

    I cannot wait to see what you make!

    Related Recipes

    Ube chiffon cake with light ube whipped cream icing
    Ube Cake
    Filipino purple sweet potato ube yam ice cream
    Ube Ice-Cream
    Matcha French macarons with a white chocolate green tea ganache
    Matcha Macarons
    « Blueberry Bars
    Chocolate Loaf Cake »

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Maryam

      March 01, 2022 at 6:41 am

      Hi thank for this beautiful recipe I was wondering can I freeze it
      ?
      Thank u

      Reply
      • Catherine Zhang

        March 17, 2022 at 9:43 am

        Hi Maryam, yes! Macarons freeze beautifully, simply freeze and thaw when you're ready to eat.

        Reply
    2. Chloe

      March 30, 2022 at 4:46 am

      Hi, can I use almond flour instead of almond meal?

      Thank you!

      Reply
      • Catherine Zhang

        April 03, 2022 at 8:54 am

        Yes they are the same thing 🥰

        Reply
    3. kelly

      April 04, 2022 at 3:28 pm

      How many macarons can this recipe make?

      Reply
      • Catherine Zhang

        May 16, 2022 at 1:42 pm

        This makes 12 macarons 🥰

        Reply
    4. Olivia

      April 20, 2022 at 10:07 pm

      Hi! I was wondering what brand you use for your ube extract?

      Reply
      • Catherine Zhang

        May 16, 2022 at 1:21 pm

        I use the butterfly brand 🙂

        Reply

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    About me!

    Hi, I'm Catherine!

    My name is Catherine, a food blogger and dessert lover. If I look familiar you may have seen me on NETFLIX's Zumbo’s Just Desserts S2!

    As an Australian-Chinese pastry chef and recipe developer I share recipes and tips on desserts inspired by amazing flavours, fresh produce and of course my Asian background.

    Learn more about me! →

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