These birthday cake macarons taste just like a slice of your favorite vanilla cake. They also look just as fun as they taste.

Making These Birthday Cake Macarons with the French Method

There are a few different ways macarons are made. French macarons are considered easier to make while the Italian and Swiss methods use a few more steps but are more structurally sound.

French macarons also require less equipment. While I love Italian macarons, I like to keep things simple and used the French method for this recipe.

Equipment You’ll Need to Make These Birthday Cake Macarons

I’ve made quite a few batches of macarons, and they definitely turn out best when the ingredients are weighed, and the macarons are baked on a silpat mat.

These are the tools I like to use when I make these macarons:

• Kitchen scale
• Stand Mixer or Electric Mixer
• Large piping bag
• Round piping tip
• Large, flat baking sheets
• Silpat Mats (or parchment paper)

Making Birthday Cake Macarons: Step-by-Step Process

While the recipe below is quite detailed, I find visual cues to be super helpful!

Below are some photos and a video tutorial of the process to help guide you through this recipe for French birthday cake macarons.

Step #1: Prep the Ingredients and Equipment

After weighing your ingredients, wipe down your mixing bowl and whisk attachment with a bit of vinegar or lemon juice to remove any residual grease.

This helps the meringue whip up better!

Step #2: Make the French Meringue

Next, it’s time to make the French meringue!

Whisk the room temperature egg whites on a medium-low speed until the surface is covered in small bubbles.

Add in a pinch of cream of tartar and continue to mix until the whisk begins to leave tracks.

Gradually add the granulated sugar and mix on a medium speed for 30 seconds. Increase the mixing speed to a medium high speed.

Mix until stiff peaks form like in the photo below. Keep a close eye on your mixer to avoid over mixing the meringue.

Step #3: Sift and Fold the Dry Ingredients into the Meringue

Sift the superfine almond flour and powdered sugar into the meringue, then add in a squirt of pink gel food coloring.

Fold the ingredients together with a rubber spatula.

Use a circular motion that sweeps around the edge of the bowl and then pull through the bottom of the bowl to make sure everything is getting mixed together.

Fold until a thick ribbon of batter runs off the spatula when it is lifted.

You should be able to draw a few figure 8’s with the batter running off your spatula in a continuous stream once it is the right consistency.

Step #4: Pipe the Macaron Shells

Fill a large piping bag with the macaron batter and pipe 1 1/4-inch rounds onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing them about 1 inch apart.

Firmly bang or drop your pans on the counter a few times to bring any trapped air bubbles to the surface and pop them with a toothpick. This can help you avoid hollow or cracked shells.

Top the piped macaron shells with nonpareil sprinkles while they’re still wet.

Step #5: Rest the Piped Macarons

Next let the macarons rest for 30 minutes until they form a skin.

They should be mostly dry to the touch and look matte once they’re ready to be baked. While the shells rest preheat the oven.

Step #6: Bake the Macarons

Bake one tray of macarons at a time and place the tray in the middle rack of your oven.

Bake time can vary based on the size of macarons you pipe and your oven, so adjust the bake time as needed.

Let the macarons cool fully on the pan then gently remove them from the silpat mat.

Step #7: Assembling These Birthday Cake Macarons

The final step is to pair up the macaron shells and pipe a small dab of sprinkle buttercream on one macaron shell. Gently top it with a second shell.

Then place the finished macarons in the fridge to mature overnight and bring them to room temperature the next day then enjoy!

Troubleshooting Birthday Cake Macarons

While I’d love to think everyone’s first batch of these birthday cake macarons will turn out perfectly, my own experience has taught me that’s not how things usually go.

Macarons are incredibly temperamental, and it might take a few tries to get them just right. If you run into any issues, check out my macaron troubleshooting guide!

Choosing The Right Filling for Your Birthday Cake Macarons

Almost all the flavor in a macaron comes from its filling. The shell gives the macarons an incredible texture, but the filling is what determines its flavor.

I have a big sweet tooth, so I like to add a bit of almond extract and some nonpareil sprinkles to my cream cheese buttercream.

It might sound like an odd combination but I promise once you mix in the sprinkles, it tastes just like a delicious birthday cake.

If you don’t want your macarons to be super sweet, I recommend using a 1/4 batch of my hybrid buttercream or Swiss meringue frosting as your frosting base.

You can also add sprinkles to my white chocolate ganache macaron filling.

Recipe Yield

This recipe makes about 36 macaron shells, which can be used to make 18 macarons. You can double or triple this recipe to make more macarons if needed.

The yield and bake time will also vary based on the size of macarons you pipe. I pipe my shells with a diameter of about 1 1/4 inches.

Tips for Making the Best Birthday Cake Macarons

• Wipe your mixing bowl and whisk with lemon juice or vinegar to remove any traces of grease before making your meringue. It will help your egg whites whip up better!
• Separate your own eggs and age them if possible. Do not use egg whites from a carton.
• Measure your ingredients in grams with a kitchen scale! You really need to be precise with this recipe and your macarons will turn out best if the ingredients are weighed.
• Carefully read through the directions before making these macarons. There are quite a few steps and it’s good to know your game plan before you start!
• Use a macaron mat or print out a template to help you pipe consistently sized macarons.
• Let your macarons mature! Letting them rest overnight while they are filled softens them (in a good way) and allows the flavors to develop.
• If your first batch of macarons doesn’t turn out, please check out my macaron troubleshooting guide.

Making These Birthday Cake Macarons in Advance & Storage Tips

• You need to let French macarons mature for a few hours or overnight in the fridge before eating them. This gives them their best texture and taste.
• Store filled macarons at room temperature for up to 2 days in an airtight container.
• Refrigerate filled macarons for up to 5 days in an airtight container.
• Freeze filled macarons for up to a month in an airtight container.
• Unfilled macaron shells can be frozen for up to a month in an airtight container.
• Make your filling ahead of time too or save any leftover filling! It can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week or in the freezer for up to a month.

Let Me Know What You Think!

If you try this recipe for birthday cake macarons, I’d love to hear what you think of it! Please leave a rating and comment below.

Tag me @chelsweets and use #chelsweets on social media so that I can see your amazing creations!

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