Bear Macarons

image of a cute teddy bear macaron being held up to show it's details

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5 from 1 rating

These adorable bear macarons are made with chocolate shells and filled with silky-smooth dark chocolate ganache.

Prep Time20

Cook Time20

Additional Time1 30

Total Time2 10

Course: Macarons

Cuisine: French

Servings: 30 macarons

Calories: 151kcal

Author: Chelsey White

Ingredients

Dark Chocolate Ganache

120 g heavy whipping cream, room temperature 1/2 cup
120 g 63% dark chocolate or chocolate chips like Guittard or Ghirardelli 2/3 cup
30 g unsalted butter 2 Tbsp
20 g light corn syrup 1 Tbsp - optional
1/4 tsp fine salt

Chocolate Macarons

110 g aged egg whites - about 4 large egg whites
1/4 tsp cream of tartar - optional
110 g granulated sugar 1/2 cup + 2 tsp
126 g superfine almond flour - blanched 1 cup + 2 Tbsp
126 g powdered sugar 1 cup
14 g dark or Dutch-processed cocoa powder 2 Tbsp

Royal Icing Decorations

65 g powdered sugar 1/2 cup
5 g meringue powder 1 1/2 tsp
8 g vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste 2 tsp
4 g water 1 tsp
Additional water to bring to a flooding consistency
Black gel food coloring

Additional Filling

1/2 cup Nutella - optional

Equipment

Kitchen scale
Stand Mixer or Electric Mixer
2 Large, flat baking sheets
2 Silpat Mats or parchment paper
1 Large Piping Bag 18-inch - for the shells
4 Small Piping Bags 12-inch - for the royal icing and the fillings
Small Round Piping Tip roughly 1 cm - like a Wilton 10

Instructions

Dark Chocolate Ganache

The chocolate ganache filling needs about 2 hours to set, so I recommend making it first! If you're in a rush it can also be chilled in the fridge for 30 minutes to help it come to room temperature more quickly. It can also be made up to a month in advance and stored in the fridge.
Pour 120g heavy cream into a heat-proof bowl and heat in 15-second intervals in the microwave until it just begins to bubble and steam (this usually takes me about 45-60 seconds). If you don't have a microwave, heat the cream over medium-high heat in a saucepan until it starts to bubble and steam.
Add 120g of 63% dark chocolate and 30g of unsalted butter to the steaming heavy cream. Make sure all the chocolate is submerged beneath the cream. Let the mixture sit for a couple of minutes.
Use an immersion blender or a spoon to mix the ganache until the mixture has come together and is smooth. Then mix in 20g of corn syrup (optional - but this gives the ganache a shiny look and smoother texture) and 1/4 tsp fine salt.
Press a piece of plastic wrap flush against the ganache to prevent a skin from forming. Set the bowl aside to let the ganache come to room temperature and thicken.

Chocolate Teddy Bear Macaron Shells

Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicon mats. Print out 2 copies of this template and place them under the silicone mat or parchment paper on your pans. Set aside.
Pour 110g of aged egg whites into the bowl of a stand mixer with a whisk and mix on medium speed until the surface of the egg whites is covered in small bubbles. Add in a pinch of cream of tartar and continue to mix until it reaches the soft peak stage where you can see the whisk leaving faint tracks in the egg whites.
Gradually add 110g of granulated sugar into the eggs and mix on a medium speed for 30 seconds. Increase the mixing speed to a medium-high speed. Keep mixing until stiff, glossy peaks form.
Sift 126g superfine almond flour, 126g powdered sugar, and 14g of dark cocoa powder into the meringue, then 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 the batter slightly less than you normally would mix macaron batter. You want the thick ribbon of batter to break as it runs off the spatula when it's lifted. It's important not to overmix the batter so that the shells will keep their shape.
Pour the batter into a large piping bag fit with a small round piping tip (like a Wilton 10).
Pipe bear-shaped macarons onto the prepared baking sheets following the template. I recommend piping the face first and letting the batter sit for 15 minutes to form a skin before piping on the ears to give the ears more definition. Use a scribe to help settle the batter in any spots where it isn't smooth and pop any visible air bubbles in the shells.
Let the macarons rest for an additional 30 minutes or until the ears form a skin. The macarons should look matte once the skin has formed. While the macarons rest, preheat the oven to 315 F / 157 C. Remove the template from the pan before baking the macarons.
Bake one tray of macarons at a time on the middle rack of your oven for 19-21 minutes and rotate the pan halfway through to help them bake evenly. I find that chocolate shells always take a couple of minutes longer to bake than my regular shells.
Remove the pan from the oven and let the macarons cool fully on the pan, then gently remove them from the Silpat mat.

Royal Icing

Whisk together 65g (1/2 cup) powdered sugar and 5g (1 1/2 tsp) meringue powder in a small bowl.
Mix in 8g (2 tsp) of vanilla extract and 4g (1 tsp) of water. The mixture should be super thick/chunky. Add additional water, 2g (1/2 tsp) at a time, until the icing reaches a thick flood consistency. It should be a light tan color naturally thanks to the vanilla extract. To test the consistency, the icing should be able to run off the whisk in a thick stream, and you should be able to draw a figure 8 with the run-off icing. It should settle back into the bowl of icing in about 8 seconds.
Once the icing is thinned to this stage, pour half of it into a small piping bag, and seal the top with a rubberband or clip. It won't look like a lot of icing, but a little goes a long way when it comes to decorating these shells. Set aside.
Add a generous squirt of black gel food coloring to the remaining icing and mix until it's uniformly colored. Pour the black icing into a small piping bag, and seal the top with a rubber band or clip. Set aside.

Decorating and Filling These Teddy Bear Macarons

Pair up the macaron shells, then cut a very small hole at the base of the tan and black royal icing bags (1/8th of an inch). You can always cut a bigger hole, but you can't make it smaller once it's cut!!
Use the tan royal icing to pipe on the bear's muzzle and ears. Then use the black royal icing to pipe on the eyes and nose like in the pictures above. Let the shells sit for about 30 minutes to allow the royal icing to harden before assembling the macarons.
Then place the room-temperature ganache in a small piping bag fitted with a small round piping tip (like a Wilton 10). It should be thick enough to scoop into the piping bag and hold its shape. If the ganache is too thick to pipe with, submerge the piping bag in a bowl of warm water to make it easier to pipe.
Pipe a ring of chocolate ganache on one macaron shell, and dollops of ganache on the ears. This step is optional, but I like to place the Nutella in a small piping bag and fill the centers with it. If you want to skip the Nutella, you can use any other type of filling (peanut butter or jam would be delicious!) or just fill these fully with the ganache. Gently press a second shell on top of the ganache to create a sandwich. Repeat with the remaining macarons.
Place the finished macarons in the fridge in an airtight container to mature overnight. When you're ready to enjoy them, let them sit at room temperature for 10-20 minutes and enjoy!

Video

Notes

Recipe Yield:

This recipe makes about 60 macaron shells, which can be used to make 30 macarons. You can double or triple this recipe to make more macarons if needed.

The yield and bake time can vary based on how large you pipe your shells. I piped these shells following this template, so they're about the size of a standard macaron.

Tips for Making the Best Chocolate Bear Macarons

I like to use good quality, 63% dark chocolate to make the ganache, but if you find chocolate that's a few percentages higher or lower, that should work great too.

Measure the ingredients in grams with a kitchen scale! You really need to be precise with this recipe. Your macarons will turn out best if the ingredients are weighed.
Separate your own egg whites and age them if possible! Do not use egg whites from a carton.
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!
Print out my bear macaron template to help you pipe consistently sized macaron shells.
Rest the macarons for 30 minutes before they're baked to allow them to develop a skin.
Let the filled macarons mature in the fridge overnight! This softens them (in a good way) and allows the flavors to develop.
If your macarons don't turn out, please check out my macaron troubleshooting guide for help!

Making These Bear Macarons in Advance & Storage Tips

These macarons need to mature for a few hours or overnight in the fridge in an airtight container before being eaten. This gives them time to develop the best texture and flavor.

Filled macarons can be stored in the fridge for up to 2 weeks in an airtight container or for up to a month in the freezer.

You can also freeze unfilled macaron shells for up to a month in an airtight container.

The ganache can be made ahead of time too or save any leftovers! It can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a month, or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

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