These gingerbread macarons are shaped like little gingerbread men and filled with a molasses, gingerbread frosting for the cutest Christmas macarons! Decorated with a simple royal icing, they're basically just classic gingerbread cookies in macaron form!
I'll walk you through how to make homemade French macarons and give you all my tips and tricks for success!
You might also enjoy these peppermint chocolate macarons or these chai spice macarons!
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Ingredient Notes
You just need a few simple ingredients to make these gingerbread 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.
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!
Molasses - This is one of the key ingredients for classic gingerbread so I add it to the filling to help give extra gingerbread flavor. Just be sure to use unsulphered molasses (do NOT use blackstrap molasses). The brand you're most likely to see at the grocery store is Grandma's Molasses, you can usually find it with the honey!
Gingerbread Spice - Gingerbread contains a delicious spice blend of ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and cloves. I use my homemade gingerbread spice mix in these macarons but you can use whatever blend of spices you prefer! Pumpkin pie spice plus a little extra ginger is a great alternative.
Christmas Sprinkles - I like to garnish the gingerbread macarons with royal icing and red and green holiday sprinkles or sanding sugar!
The complete list of ingredients and amounts is located in the recipe card below.
Special Equipment
- 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. My oven tends to run hot, so I usually end up having it set to about 290.
- Silicone mats - I typically use silicone macaron mats with printed circles on them. But for these gingerbread men macarons, I use plain silicone mats so that it's easier to see the template underneath!
- Gingerbread man macaron template - If you prefer to free hand, good for you (I'm jealous)! But if you're like me, you need a template to follow! I created a printable PDF that you can use as a guide underneath the parchment paper!
- French star piping tip (optional for filling)
How to Make French Macarons
Sift together almond flour, powdered sugar, gingerbread spice, and cocoa powder 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.
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.
I like to pipe half gingerbread men and half regular circles, but you can do either/or!
Line a large baking sheet with a silicone mat or parchment paper. Place the gingerbread man macaron template underneath.
Scoop batter into a large piping bag fitted with a large round tip. Hold the piping bag perpendicular to the silicone mat, then pipe a small circle for the head and pipe the arms and legs by dragging the tip from the ends to the center of the template.
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.
If using the templates, gently slide them out from underneath the parchment paper after you're done piping the gingerbread men shaped macarons.
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.
Match up your shells before filling, and then turn one side over.
Use the royal icing and sprinkles to decorate the gingerbread men however you want! Then pipe the gingerbread frosting in the center and top with the decorated shell.
Put the assembled gingerbread 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 Decorating Tips
To make the macarons look like gingerbread ben, I like to use a simple royal icing and sprinkles. But you could use melted chocolate or a cookie marker instead!
With the icing like to place it in a piping bag fitted with a small size 3 decorating tip! Then I use several simple lines and top with sprinkles for buttons. They only take a few minutes and look great!
Simple Royal Icing
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoons meringue powder
- 2-3 teaspoons water
Meringue powder is a super important component in royal icing! It helps keep the icing stable and it makes it dry super quickly! It's honestly the best secret ingredient that I keep in my kitchen at all times! You can find it on amazon or craft stores for just a couple dollars and it lasts forever!
All you have to do is mix together the powdered sugar and meringue powder and add in water 1 teaspoon at a time until your desired consistency is reached. For these cookies I used icing that was pretty thick and would just barely fall of a spoon (think super thick honey).
Recipe FAQ's
Macarons are finicky, but they are not impossible! It just takes a little patience. It's important to follow the directions carefully but if your first batch doesn't turn out, just keep practicing! I recommend starting out with just the simple round macarons before attempting the gingerbread men!
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 gingerbread filling and decorations!
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 macaron batter until it starts to flow like lava and then stopping.
Gingerbread is made with molasses, brown sugar, and warming spices like ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. It has a slightly spicy flavor that makes it perfect for the winter holidays! So to get that flavor in the macarons, we use a combination of gingerbread spice and molasses!
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
Gingerbread Man 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
- 110 grams almond flour, sifted
- 200 grams powdered sugar, sifted
- 1 teaspoon gingerbread spice
- 1 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder, optional for color
Filling
- 113 grams unsalted butter
- 240 grams powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons gingerbread spice
- 40 grams molasses
Royal Icing
- 60 grams powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon meringue powder
- 2-3 teaspoons water, as needed
- red and green sprinkles
Instructions
Macarons
- Sift together almond flour, powdered sugar, gingerbread spice, and cocoa powder 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.
- 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.
- I like to pipe half gingerbread men and half regular circles, but you can do either/or!
- Line a large baking sheet with a silicone mat or parchment paper. Place the gingerbread man macaron template underneath.
- Scoop batter into a large piping bag fitted with a large round tip. Hold the piping bag perpendicular to the silicone mat, then pipe a small circle for the head and pipe the arms and legs by dragging the tip from the ends to the center of the template.
- 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.
- If using the templates, gently slide them out from underneath the parchment paper after you're done piping the gingerbread men shaped macarons.
- 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.
Filling
- Using a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the softened butter, powdered sugar, and gingerbread spice until smooth.
- Slowly add in the molasses until fully combined. Beat the buttercream for 3-4 minutes on high speed until light and fluffy.
Royal Icing
- In a small bowl, mix together the powdered sugar meringue powder. Slowly drizzle in the water a little bit at a time until the icing flows slightly but still holds its shape.
- Then transfer to a piping bag fitted with a small round tip.
- Match up your shells before filling, and then turn one side over.
- Use the royal icing and sprinkles to decorate the gingerbread men however you want! Then pipe the gingerbread frosting in the center and top with the decorated shell.
- Put the assembled gingerbread 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.
Larissa T says
I'm still new to making macarons so some of the gingerbread men look a little funny lol but the flavor was amazing and they had feet!