Perfectly delicious and packed with amazing gingerbread flavor, these Gingerbread Macaron have the best cream cheese buttercream filling.  The combination of flavors and cute Sprinkle Pop decorations make these irresistible!  This post is sponsored on behalf of #ChristmasCookiesWeek. The generous sponsors, YumGoggle, Sprinkle Pop, Silpat and Adams Extracts have provided us with products for recipe creation and a giveaway for our readers. As always, all opinions are my own.

I’m addicted to gingerbread.  There!  I’m just going to come right out and say it.  No keeping secrets from y’all!!  Seriously.  I do, though.  They’re my favorite cookie in the whole world!  I love gingerbread bread, muffins, cakes; you name it.  If it has gingerbread spice in it I will love it.

Last year I made these adorable gingerbread cookies.  I know.  They’re nekkid.  I’m not a huge decorator.  However, I will be stepping up with that this year.  I just hope they work out.  Anyway, they were so good!  I think I ate them all.  Every.last.one.  I’m glad the hubs isn’t a fan of them so I could just devour them without remorse.

Now, this is my second attempt at making gingerbread macaron.  I tried my hand at them MANY years ago.  Wow.  It’s been five.  FIVE years!  Can you believe it?  While they were tasty, they just didn’t look too pretty.  And they didn’t have the gingerbread spice mix I received from Raw Spice Bar.

You see, when I opened that package up and took one sniff I knew I wanted to make macaron with it.  It has THE most intoxicating gingerbread spice aroma.  I couldn’t even have imagined something that smelled as wonderful as that.  It made me almost want to just eat it with a spoon, but I knew that wouldn’t be too good.

So, I waited.  Impatiently I might add. 

I waited until it was time to make some holiday cookies.  The excitement of baking these gingerbread macaron was too much for me to handle.  However, there was one thing I didn’t take into consideration and I was almost deflated when I figured it out.

I didn’t take unto consideration the oils in the spice mix.  Oils and meringue don’t go well together.  I didn’t think about that when I used the liquid food coloring.  The gel would have been a better way to go, but I had a recipe for brown with drops of food coloring and not gel.  How do you do drops with gel?  Or don’t you?

Anyway, the combination of the liquid food dye AND the oils in the spice mix made the shells spread way thinner than I anticipated.  Which made the cookies bigger than anticipated.  I think almost everyone who ate one commented on how big they were.  I had to explain that the oils and food dye… blah blah blah.  “Oh!  Didn’t know that.”  How would you?  You don’t bake macaron! 

Even though they spread bigger than I anticipated, they still had those perfect pied, that crispy outside, and the chewy middle.  To top it all off, the cream cheese buttercream filling was the best I had ever made!  I need to make sure and repeat that recipe when I make the carrot cake macaron for Easter.  Those are still in the works.

These gingerbread macaron have the most intoxication aroma.

They made my work bag smell amazing.  They made my office smell amazing which made them irresistible for people to stop by and try.  The sweet shell packed with gingerbread flavor is the perfect vessel for the sweet and slightly tart cream cheese buttercream.  I really outdid myself on those cookies.  I might have to make them again this year.   That’s how good they really are!

Of course, it also helps that they’re decorated with such cute little snowmen sprinkles on top.  And such a festive roll in Sprinkle Pops Oh Snow Cute sprinkle mix.  The combination of the blue, red, silver, and white sprinkles matched perfectly with the towel I have!  I mean, I couldn’t have picked out a better combination.  The towel wasn’t even in my mind when I requested these sprinkles.  But, they look perfect together, don’t you think?

I have to confess that I’m not a huge sprinkle person.  I have a ton of them that I haven’t even used.  However, when these came in the mail from Sprinkle Pop, I was hooked!  There are so many different sizes and decorations in this mix.  It has large and small balls of red, blue, white, and silver.  There are silver bars that I can’t wait to use on the snowflake cookies you’ll see later.

And how can anyone resist those adorable little snowmen sprinkles?

The colors didn’t bleed or fade like those other sprinkles in my pantry.  Maybe that’s why I’m not a huge sprinkles fan; they bleed and fade.  They tasted delicious and not funky; like those others.  You can start to see why I’m not a sprinkles fan, right?  And you can also see why I’m becoming a huge Sprinkle Pop fan!

They have such festive mixes for the holiday season.  You can get a mix of a bunch of types of sprinkles. It is fun digging around in those and separate out the elements you want to use.  Or you can purchase confetti like these little gingerbread men.  ADORBS!  They have trees, snowflakes, candy canes, and holly confetti.  It really was difficult to try to pic two for my holiday baking, but I did settle on the Oh Snow Cute and the Winter Wonderland mix.

I do have to be careful, though because I’m sure the hubs wouldn’t appreciate me adding more sprinkles to the pantry.  I may have to toss those others and replace them with more Sprinkle Pop mixes.  The next batch I’m ordering are the glitter stars.  Imagine those on some New Year’s Eve macaron.  Too fancy, right?

So, true story.  I shared these with a dude on the bus I ride when I get off the train.  He said they were awesome.  The rest I brought to work vanished.  However, I still had a small amount that I was saving for the photo shoot.

Fast forward 4 days.  The same dude asked me about the cookies I had the previous week.  It just so happened that I had the rest of them with me.  I gave him one and the other dude a cookie that we ride the bus with.  He admitted they were fabulous, too.

Win win in my book!

One of them is a foodie, too.  He has skills in the kitchen and has made macaron himself.  For me, that’s a total win!!  Because my hubs and co-workers, while they could have had macaron at some point, they’re not the greatest judge of the quality of my macaron.  You know what I mean?  They’re slightly biased and might not have branched out to more sophisticated cooking.

Of course, everyone commented on how festive the colors and sprinkles were on these macaron.  I mean, just look at them!  You can’t help but smile and feel happy at seeing those snowmen sprinkles on these macaron.  And the colors of those sprinkles!  I don’t see how anyone can’t be in the spirit after seeing these cookies.  They’re just so stinking festive!

And how can you resist that cuteness?  Those little snowmen are just perfect sitting on top of these macaron.  You can almost smell the gingerbread and taste the hot chocolate served up after a cold day playing in the snow.  Because that’s what we all love about snow, right?  Playing in it and then coming home to delicious hot chocolate and cookies.

I hope you visit the Sprinkle Pop website to find these cute sprinkles and any others that inspire you!  To stay up to date on all their new products and ideas on decorating your delicious desserts with them, follow them on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest.

Gingerbread Macaron

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Additional Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes

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Ingredients

• 4 ounces almond meal
• 7 ounces powdered sugar
• 1 tablespoon German gingerbread spice
• 4 ounces egg whites, room temperature
• Pinch cream of tartar
• 45 grams granulated sugar
• 4 ounces cream cheese
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 3 to 4 cups powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 – 2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream

Instructions

For the macaron:

1. Pulse the 7 ounces powdered sugar and 4 ounces almond flour together in a food processor to form a fine powder. Sift three times into a large mixing bowl. Set aside.
2. Place the egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer (or large, metal mixing bowl). Sprinkle the cream of tartar over the eggs and hand mix the two together with the whisk attachment for the stand mixer (or hand mixer). Fasten the whisk attachment and beat the mixture on medium speed until foamy. Slowly add the granulated sugar and continue to beat on medium speed until soft peaks form. Increase the speed to high and beat until stiff peaks form.
3. Add 1/3 of the almond mixture into the meringue. Continue folding and adding the almond mixture until all of it is incorporated into the meringue and the mixture should drip slowly off the spatula; like lava flowing. (Think conditioner dripping out of a bottle. That works for me.) The mixture will have a sheen to it when it’s ready to pipe.
4. Transfer the batter to large piping bags fitted with a 1/2 inch tip and pipe 1 1/3 inch rounds onto a silpat covered baking sheet. There are several different templates out there. Two that I like are here and here.
5. Preheat oven to 325.
6. You’re going to LOVE this next part! Once all the batter has been piped or your sheets are full, grab the edges of the pan, secure the silpat with your thumbs (or any extra batter) and rap the pans on the counter. That’s right! You heard me! Bang them on the counter!! This releases any remaining air bubbles in the meringue. Continue rapping the sheets, turning occasionally, until no more air bubbles surface. Allow the macaron to rest on the counter at least 30 minutes or more depending on the humidity level of your kitchen.
7. Once they’ve rested and the tops are no longer sticky to the touch, bake at 325 for 7 to 9 minutes. Rotate the pans front to back and top to bottom and bake an additional 7 to 9 minutes. Do the wiggle test to see if the meringue is cooked; carefully grab the top of the shell and if it moves easily from side to side when wiggled. This indicates that the meringue isn’t completely cooked. Continue to cook in 2 to 3 minutes intervals until they no longer wiggle.
8. Remove from heat and allow to cool completely before filling.
9. For the buttercream:
10. Place the cream cheese and butter in the bowl of a stand mixer (or large mixing bowl). Beat until creamed together and then add the vanilla extract. Slowly add the powdered sugar one cup at a time until thicker than desired. Add 1 to 2 tablespoons of the heavy whipping cream until the desired consistency is reached.
11. Pipe buttercream on one shell and top with a shell of matching size. Pour sprinkles in a bowl and roll the macaron in the sprinkles to decorate.

Notes

To achieve the brown color, I used 35 drops red food coloring, 40 drops yellow food coloring, 40 drops green food coloring, 5 drops blue food coloring.

#ChristmasCookiesWeek Monday Recipes

• Ach Tannebaum’ Iced Sugar Cookies by Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Brown Sugar Ornament Cookies by Jolene’s Recipe Journal
• Butter Pecan Nuggets by Grumpy’s Honeybunch
• Chocolate Candy Cane Kiss Cookies by Soulfully Made
• Chocolate Crinkle Cookies by Everyday Eileen
• Chocolate Dipped Peppermint Cookies by Tip Garden
• Chocolate Espresso Brown Sugar Cookies by Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice
• Chocolate Snowball Cookies by Hardly A Goddess
• Chocolate-Cherry Snowballs by Red Cottage Chronicles
• Christmas Macarons by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Christmas Rosette Sugar Cookies by Love and Confections
• Christmas Sprinkle Pudding Cookies by Jonesin’ For Taste
• Classic Spritz by Books n’ Cooks
• Dark Chocolate Coffee Crinkle Cookies by Daily Dish Recipes
• Frostbite Cookies by Cooking With Carlee
• Gingerbread Macaron by A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures
• Hot Chocolate Cookies by Family Around The Table
• Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Skillet Cookie by Caroline’s Cooking
• Oatmeal Rolled Sugar Cookies by House of Nash Eats
• Peanut Butter Cutout Cookies by Bear & Bug Eats
• Peppermint Cookie Dough Truffles by Cindy’s Recipes and Writings
• Peppermint Meltaways by Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks
• Peppermint Pizzelles by Girl Abroad
• Peppermint Thins by Palatable Pastime
• Pistachio Cranberry Macaron by Yumgoggle
• Sour Cream Decorated Cookies by The Freshman Cook
• Spiced Chocolate Molasses Cookies by Karen’s Kitchen Stories
• Vegan Frosted Sugar Cookie Bars by The Baking Fairy
• Chocolate Dipped Gingerbread Shortbread by Kate’s Recipe Box
• White Chocolate Gingerbread Blondies by The Redhead Baker
• Whoville Cookies by Strawberry Blondie Kitchen

Thank you to Ellen at Family Around the Table and Christie at A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures for hosting #ChristmasCookiesWeek.

Prize Package #1:

From Adams Extracts comes a selection of baking delights including their prize-winning pound cake mix, pure vanilla extract, pure peppermint extract, double strength pure vanilla extract, pound cake flavor extract and vanilla cinnamon sugar.

Adams traces its beginnings back to Battle Creek, Michigan, when John A. Adams began making and selling his Green Plant Sarsaparilla extract, Adamur, in 1888. In 1905, he moved his family to Beeville, TX. At the time, most vanilla was sold to pharmacies and was often labeled “Do not bake or freeze.”

John A. Adams, whose imagination was stirred by his wife’s yearning for a flavoring that wouldn’t bake or freeze out, announced that he could produce a better vanilla than the one his wife was currently using. Working with just $6.71 worth of materials on top of an old icebox, John A. Adams discovered the formula he wanted.

Prize Package #2:

YumGoggle is giving away a variety of holiday and Christmas cookie cutters. The winner of this prize package will receive a sleigh, large ornament and two cookie cutter sets. The first is a mug/ sweater set called Ugly Sweater Specialty Cookie Cutter Set and the second is a Santa/ reindeer set called North Pole Specialty Cookie Cutter Set. Each set includes 2 cookie cutters, 2 templates, 2 instruction cars and 4 bonus templates.

The YumGoggle gallery features food photography from contributors around the world. If you’re looking for a recipe, chances are you’ll find it on YumGoggle. The photos not only whet your appetite but you can easily find the recipes by clicking the photo.

Prize Package #3:

The winner of this Sprinkle Pop prize package will get their choice of 3 sprinkle varieties, at $35.00 value. Winner will be contacted by or need to contact Sprinkle Pop for fulfillment.

Sprinkle Pop offers trendy sprinkle mixes that you won’t find anywhere else. Fun fact: Over 50% of their sprinkle mixes are dyed in house, making each experience one of a kind. Sprinkle Pop also creates one of a kind confetti shapes that are unique to their mixes. Make every occasion a festive one with these fun sprinkle creations.

Prize Package #4:

One winner will receive an 11 5/8 inch x 16 1/2 inch Silpat® baking mat which is perfect for all of your cookie baking throughout the year. Reduces the need for parchment and is reusable.

The original silicone baking mat made from a dedicated silicone with reinforced fiberglass mesh. Nothing sticks to Silpat® which means you’ll spend less time cleaning and more time enjoying your baking creations. Silpat® replaces the need for butter, grease, oils, and sprays.

• Multi-purpose non-stick silicone baking and pastry.
• No cooking sprays, oils or parchment paper needed.
• Not to be used as a cutting surface.
• Can be used in the oven, microwave and freezer.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclaimer: Thank you #ChristmasCookiesWeek sponsors: Adams Extract, Sprinkle Pop, YumGoggle and Silpat for providing the prizes free of charge. The #ChristmasCookiesWeek giveaway is open to U.S. residents, age 18 & up. All entries for the winner will be checked and verified. By entering you give the right to use your name and likeness. The number of entries received determines the odds of winning.

Four (4) winners will be selected at random from entries received. The prize packages will be fulfilled by and sent directly from the giveaway sponsors. #ChristmasCookiesWeek bloggers are not responsible for the fulfillment or delivery of the prize packages. Bloggers hosting this giveaway and their immediate family members in their household are not eligible to enter or win the giveaway. No purchase necessary. Void where prohibited by law. This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter or any other social channel mentioned in the #ChristmasCookiesWeek posts or entry.

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