These funfetti birthday cake macarons are inspired by the classic Milk Bar cake! They have a vanilla bean French macaron shell that's sprinkled with rainbow nonpareils, and are filled with super fluffy buttercream and crunchy cake crumbs!
You might also enjoy my copycat version of the famous Milk Bar birthday cake or these chewy funfetti sugar cookies!
I'll walk you through how to make homemade French macarons and give you all my tips and tricks for success!
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Ingredient Notes
You only need a few simple ingredients to make these birthday cake macarons!
Egg Whites - I've recently started "aging" my egg whites and I've found it helps with my consistency. This is absolutely not necessary, but it's super easy to do so I recommend trying it out. Weigh out 100 grams of egg whites into a small bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and poke a few holes in the top. Place in the fridge for at least 24 hours but up to 3 days. Make sure to remove the egg whites from the fridge at least an hour before baking.
Almond Flour - If you've ever seen macarons that look bumpy, it's usually because the almond flour isn't ground finely enough. I love Bob's Red Mill for my almond flour because it's usually fine enough. But if you have lumpy almond flour you can also just pulse it in a food processor for a few seconds to break it up further. Sifting your dry ingredients is also super important for ensuring smooth macarons.
Vanilla Bean Paste - I love using vanilla bean paste in macarons because it adds that delicious vanilla flavor, but not to much extra moisture. I do not recommend substituting with vanilla extract as it adds in too much moisture to the macaron batter.
Rainbow Nonpareils - You can't have birthday cake macarons without rainbow sprinkles!
The complete list of ingredients and amounts is located in the recipe card below.
Birthday Cake Crumbs
The birthday cake crumbs are the star of the show! Inspired by the Milk Bar cake crumbs, they add a delicious, flavorful crunch to these macarons!
Combine all of the ingredients in a small bowl and mix together until it begins to form small clusters.
Spread evenly on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Bake at 300°F for about 15 minutes until they are slightly crisp and dried out.
Let cool completely to room temperature. Then store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week.
How to Make French Macarons
Sift together almond flour and powdered sugar into a large bowl and set aside.
In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whisk the egg whites on medium speed until they become foamy, then add in the cream of tartar.
Turn the mixer up to medium-high and gradually add in the granulated sugar. Once all the sugar is added, turn the mixer to the highest setting and whisk on high until soft peaks form.
If desired, add in the vanilla bean paste. Then continue to whisk on high until stiff peaks form.
Using a spatula, gently fold in half of the dry ingredient mixture until fully combined. Then gently fold in the remaining dry ingredients.
Continue to gently fold the batter until it reaches a “flowing lava” consistency. You should be able to make a “figure 8” with the batter before it breaks. As soon as you reach this consistency, stop mixing! If you over-mix the batter, the macarons won’t rise properly in the oven.
Line a large baking sheet with a silicone mat or parchment paper.
Scoop batter into a large piping bag fitted with a large round tip. Hold the piping bag perpendicular to the silicone mat and pipe 1 inch rounds.
Pick up the baking sheet and drop it onto the counter 3-4 times to help bring any air bubbles to the surface of the macarons. Then use a toothpick to pop any visible air bubbles to make a smooth surface.
*The macaron batter will look like photo 6 before banging out the excess air, and photo 7 afterwards.
Sprinkle a few rainbow nonpareils on top of the piped macarons before they dry.
Let the macarons sit at room temperature for 30-40 minutes or until a skin forms on the surface. You should be able to lightly touch the surface without any batter being disturbed.
While the macarons are resting, preheat the oven to 300°F.
Bake one sheet at a time on the center rack of the oven for 13-15 minutes or when they do not move on their “feet” when touched.
Let the macarons cool completely on the baking sheet before removing them. They should easily peel off when fully cooled.
After the macarons are fully cooled, match them up and turn one side over.
Pipe the buttercream into the center of each shell and top with birthday cake crumbs.
Put the assembled birthday cake macarons in an airtight container, then place them in the fridge to mature for 12-24 hours. Store in the fridge for up to 5 days. However, for the best taste/texture, let them come up to room temperature for about an hour before eating! [Directly out of the fridge they can sometimes be super hard but at room temperature they're perfectly soft and tender!]
Macaron Tips & Tricks
Macarons can be tough so setting yourself up for success is key!
- Buy a kitchen scale if you don’t already have one! Macarons are incredibly finicky, so weighing all your ingredients is super important!
- Clean the mixing bowl and whisk attachment of your stand mixer with lemon juice or white vinegar to make sure there are no trace fats on either (if you don’t, your meringue may not form).
- Use a super sturdy baking sheet that won't warp and conducts heat evenly! These Cuisinart baking sheets are my favorite for macarons! I have 6 of them lol.
- Invest in some silicone macaron mats! They aren’t expensive and they will make your life so much easier!
- Also invest in an oven thermometer! We want our oven as close to 300 degrees as possible to make perfect macarons but just because your oven says it's 300 degrees, doesn't mean it actually is. My oven tends to run hot, so I usually end up having it set to about 290.
- Always use vanilla bean paste instead of vanilla extract! Since macaron batter is so finicky, we don’t want to add any extra liquid to the batter.
Recipe FAQ's
Macarons are finicky, but not impossible! It's important to follow the directions carefully but if your first batch doesn't turn out, just keep practicing!
Unless you have experience baking macarons, I don't recommend making any changes to the macarons. But you can make substitutions to the filling!
Almost all macaron issues can be traced to either oven temperature or improperly mixing the batter. This is why it's so important to use an oven thermometer and only mix your batter until it starts to flow like lava and then stopping.
Tips for Success!
For best results I always recommend using weight measurements (especially when baking) because it's the most accurate. Kitchen scales are super affordable and also reduce the number of dishes you have to do! However, all my recipes also include US customary measurements for convince. Use this chart to convert measurements for common ingredients!
Substitutions: In all my recipes, I've included substitutions that I know will work, but I cannot guarantee results if you substitute ingredients that I have not recommended. [For example, granulated sugar and honey are indeed both sweeteners but they have very different properties so they can not always be swapped 1:1. Using honey in a cookie recipe that calls for granulated sugar will yield a giant mess.] In the recipe card you'll find links to the specific ingredients/brands that I use.
A note on salt: I almost exclusively use Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt because it's the best all-purpose salt for cooking and baking. If you're not using kosher salt, consult this handy guide for a conversion chart! When in doubt, if you're using table salt just reduce the amount by half for baked goods. When cooking, I prefer to under-salt because you can always add more! If you've over-salted, adding a little bit of acid (like lemon juice) can help.
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Recipe Card
Birthday Cake Macarons
Special Equipment
Ingredients
Birthday Cake Crumbs
- 47 grams all purpose four
- 50 grams granulated sugar
- ⅛ teaspoon baking powder
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- ½ teaspoon vanilla bean paste, substitute vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon rainbow nonpareils
Macarons
- 100 grams egg whites, room temperature
- ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
- 60 grams granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla bean paste, optional
- 110 grams almond flour, sifted
- 200 grams powdered sugar, sifted
- rainbow nonpareils
Buttercream
- 113 grams unsalted butter, room temperature
- 180 grams powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste, substitute vanilla extract
Instructions
Birthday Cake Crumbs
- Preheat the oven to 300°F.
- Combine all of the ingredients in a small bowl and mix together until it begins to form small clusters.
- Spread evenly on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Bake at 300°F for about 15 minutes until they are slightly crisp and dried out.
- Let cool completely to room temperature. Then store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week.
Macarons
- Sift together almond flour and powdered sugar into a large bowl and set aside.
- In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whisk the egg whites on medium speed until they become foamy, then add in the cream of tartar.
- Turn the mixer up to medium-high and gradually add in the granulated sugar. Once all the sugar is added, turn the mixer to the highest setting and whisk on high until soft peaks form.
- If desired, add in the vanilla bean paste. Then continue to whisk on high until stiff peaks form.
- Using a spatula, gently fold in half of the dry ingredient mixture until fully combined. Then gently fold in the remaining dry ingredients.
- Continue to gently fold the batter until it reaches a “flowing lava” consistency. You should be able to make a “figure 8” with the batter before it breaks. As soon as you reach this consistency, stop mixing! If you over-mix the batter, the macarons won’t rise properly in the oven.
- Line a large baking sheet with a silicone mat or parchment paper.
- Scoop batter into a large piping bag fitted with a large round tip. Hold the piping bag perpendicular to the silicone mat and pipe 1 inch rounds.
- Pick up the baking sheet and drop it onto the counter 3-4 times to help bring any air bubbles to the surface of the macarons. Then use a toothpick to pop any visible air bubbles to make a smooth surface.
- Sprinkle a few rainbow nonpareils on top of the piped macarons before they dry.
- Let the macarons sit at room temperature for 30-40 minutes or until a skin forms on the surface. You should be able to lightly touch the surface without any batter being disturbed.
- While the macarons are resting, preheat the oven to 300°F.
- Bake one sheet at a time on the center rack of the oven for 13-15 minutes or when they do not move on their “feet” when touched.
- Let the macarons cool completely on the baking sheet before removing them. They should easily peel off when fully cooled.
Buttercream
- In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the softened butter and powdered sugar until smooth and creamy.
- Mix in the vanilla and beat the buttercream on high for 3-4 minutes until super light and fluffy.
- Match up your shells before piping, and then turn one side over. Fill the center with the buttercream, leaving a bit of room around the sides. Then sprinkle the cooled birthday cake crumbs over top of the buttercream, and top with the other shell.
- Put the assembled birthday cake macarons in an airtight container, then place them in the fridge to mature for 12-24 hours. Store in the fridge for up to 5 days. However, for the best taste/texture, let them come up to room temperature for about an hour before eating! [Directly out of the fridge they can sometimes be super hard but at room temperature they're perfectly soft and tender!]
Notes
Nutrition
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
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