These cookie butter macarons have a lightly cinnamon spiced French macaron shell and are filled with a fluffy cookie butter buttercream frosting and a dollop of biscoff cookie butter! They might be my most indulgent macaron flavor yet! While speculoos cookies are perfect for the winter holidays, I also love them all year long.
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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What is Cookie Butter?
Cookie butter is a spiced spread, with a creamy peanut butter like texture, made from ground up speculoos cookies (pronounced "speck-you-lows").
So wait, what are speculoos cookies? They're little crispy spice cookies that are a staple winter treat across Europe! They're similar to American gingerbread cookies, just a little crunchier. The most famous speculoos cookies are the Belgian Lotus Biscoff cookies, but you can find a ton of different varieties! But what every version has in common is a crispy cookie flavored with brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, cloves, and ginger.
You can use cookie butter in pretty much all the same ways you would use nut butter. Spread on toast, in cookies, on oatmeal, or just right out of the jar with a spoon!
The OG cookie butter is Lotus Biscoff Butter made from the infamous Biscoff cookies, but Trader Joe's has their own speculoos cookie butter that's just as good (TJ's also has lots of different fun flavors of cookie butter)!
If you love cookie butter, you might also like these cookie butter cupcakes or these biscoff butter cookies!
Ingredient Notes
You only need a few ingredients to make these biscoff cookie butter 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 using Bob's Red Mill for my almond flour because it's super fine. 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.
Cinnamon - I just add a tiny bit of ground cinnamon to the macaron shells to add a light spice flavor to the cookie butter macarons but you can leave it out if you prefer.
Vanilla Bean Paste - It's important to use vanilla bean paste instead of vanilla extract because we don't want to add any extra liquid to the macaron batter. It also has a more pronounced vanilla flavor so you don't need as much!
Biscoff Cookies - I love the classic Lotus Biscoff cookies, but any speculoos cookies will do the trick!
Cookie Butter - The OG Lotus Biscoff cookie butter is the best if you can find it (major retailers like Walmart and Target usually carry it), but I also love Trader Joe's speculoos cookie butter! You can also make your own speculoos cookie butter if you prefer.
The complete list of ingredients and amounts is located in the recipe card below.
Special Equipment
Macarons can be tough so setting yourself up for success is key!
- Kitchen scale - Macarons are incredibly finicky, so weighing all your ingredients is super important!
- Sturdy baking sheet - You want to use a super sturdy baking sheet that won't warp and conducts heat evenly! These Cuisinart baking sheets are my favorite for macarons!
- 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.
- Silicone macaron mats - You can pipe your cookie butter macarons on parchment paper, but I highly recommend silicone mats! I love these macaron mats that have small circles printed on them. The guide is super helpful for making sure all your macarons are the same size!
- French star piping tip (optional for filling)
How to Make French Macarons
Sift together almond flour, powdered sugar, and cinnamon 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. Then add in the vanilla bean paste and 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 5 before banging out the excess air, and photo 6 afterwards.]
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 cinnamon macarons cool completely on the baking sheet before removing them. They should easily peel off when fully cooled.
Match up your shells before filling, and then turn one side over.
To dust with cinnamon, use a piece of paper to cover half of the top of the macarons and then gently dust with cinnamon (you can also dust the entire top).
Pipe the cookie butter buttercream around the edge of the macaron shell. Then add a small scoop of biscoff cookie butter in the center (about ½ teaspoon). Sprinkle with crushed biscoff cookies if desired.
Put the assembled cookie butter 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!]
Recipe FAQ's
Cookie butter is made from Speculoos cookies, which are spiced cookies that taste similar to gingerbread. So cookie better has a sweet, slightly spiced flavor with a texture like peanut butter!
Macarons get a bad rap, but once you get the hang of it they're pretty easy! 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 macaron recipe because even small changes can negatively affect the recipe. But you can make to the cookie butter filling if desired!
The majority of macaron issues can be traced to either oven temperature or improper mixing. 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
Biscoff Cookie Butter Macarons
Special Equipment
Ingredients
Macarons
- 100 grams egg whites, room temperature
- ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
- 60 grams granulated sugar
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla bean paste, optional
- 110 grams almond flour, sifted
- 200 grams powdered sugar, sifted
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Cookie Butter Buttercream
- 57 grams unsalted butter, room temperature
- 57 grams biscoff cookie butter
- 180 grams powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons heavy cream, or milk
Garnish
- 57 grams biscoff cookie butter
- biscoff cookie crumbs
- cinnamon
Instructions
Macarons
- Sift together almond flour, powdered sugar, and cinnamon 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. Then add in the vanilla bean paste and 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.
- 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 cinnamon macarons cool completely on the baking sheet before removing them. They should easily peel off when fully cooled.
- Match up your shells before filling, and then turn one side over.
- To dust with cinnamon, use a piece of paper to cover half of the top of the macarons and then gently dust with cinnamon (you can also dust the entire top).
Cookie Butter Buttercream
- In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the softened butter and cookie butter until smooth and creamy. Then add in the powdered sugar and continue to beat until combined.
- Mix in the cream and beat the buttercream on high for 3-4 minutes until super light and fluffy.
- Pipe the cookie butter buttercream around the edge of the macaron shell. Then add a small scoop of biscoff cookie butter in the center (about ½ teaspoon). Sprinkle with crushed biscoff cookies if desired.
- Put the assembled cookie butter 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.
Amy says
How do you get your shells to be beautifully flat across the top? especially using cream of tartar? I love the look of flatter shells but mine usually have a very slightly rounded top.
Kyleigh Sage says
That typically comes down to the thickness of your macaron batter. If it's slightly too thick, the macarons won't spread as much and will be slightly domed (which isn't bad!). So maybe try doing 2 more passes around the bowl when mixing next time. However, slightly too thick batter is always going to yield better results than slightly too thin -- so I'd rather have a slightly rounded top than risk the batter being too thin and not rising properly.
Lindsay says
Can you freeze the assembled cookies? Will they taste as good once thawed ?
Kyleigh Sage says
They freeze pretty well! I wouldn't dust anything on top though because that will get weird in the freezer. Frozen macarons never taste quite as good as fresh, but it's pretty close! You can freeze them in an airtight container for up to 2 months, you just want to be sure to thaw them all the way to room temperature before eating for the best texture.
Jane Tabourot says
Hi Kyleigh,
I was concerned about the amount of powdered sugar as well. I haven't seen an update and 200 grams seems like a lot. How many grams of powdered sugar should there be in the recipe?
Kyleigh Sage says
Her question was about the buttercream which has been updated! 200g is the correct amount for the macaron shells!
Amy says
Hi! These were a hit on Christmas! As I was measuring out the powdered sugar it seemed like a ton. My buttercream was pretty thick and paste like so I added quite a bit of cream. Maybe I didn’t add enough because the buttercream was drying/crusting up as I was filing them. Other than that I loved these! I also used your similar baileys filling and that only called for 180g of powdered sugar and worked great for me. Just curious about the different ratios and maybe I would have better luck to scale back on some PS in this recipe?
Kyleigh Sage says
Oh my gosh that is a typo, so sorry about that! I'll update that right now! So glad they still turned out well!
Amy says
Oh good I’m glad I commented! 😉 I had a feeling.
Amy says
I made these fun macarons. They were delicious!
C says
These were absolutely amazing! I used this recipe to make macarons for the very first time and I can’t believe how well they turned out! I’ve always heard how difficult macarons can be to make and these steps really helped guide me! And the combo of cookie butter and buttercream with the macaron shell? Perfection!
Jacqui says
Anything Bischoff sounds perfect!
Erica Leigh says
These look delicious, I might have to try making these.