Last weekend my dear blogger pal, Samantha, hosted a Food Bloggers of Canada meetup potluck at her lovely home and these hand painted macarons were my little contribution. I didn’t have a specific theme in mind when I started and everything just kind of came together after I picked up some delicious duck and apricot pâté from Oyama on Granville Island. The idea was to make a savoury macaron – something I don’t often encounter. Inside each of these pink beauties is a dab of duck apricot pate with a ring of rose buttercream around it. Hence, the eventual application of a rose motif finished with a bit of gold foil for good measure. Because, you know, gold is best on … everything. 🙂

I think these would be great for a spring or summer wedding theme. The hand painting is a little bit more work but does make a powerful impact. It definitely creates that “wow” factor moment for guests when they arrive at their table to find a piece of dacadent edible art as part of the table setting. But you don’t necessarily need to throw a wedding to enjoy these roses. An Instagram friend mentioned that these roses reminded her of Beauty and the Beast and I can see this as part of a pretty Belle themed tea party too.

I hope you enjoy the tutorial.

Xoxo,

Mimi

Soft Pink Hand Painted Rose Macarons

A beautiful project for a wedding, shower or party.

Servings: 12

Author: Mimi

Ingredients

Ingredients for Soft Pink Macaron Shells

65 grams almond flour
65 grams icing sugar
50 grams egg whites (aged for min. of 24 hours)
45 grams castor/granulated sugar
1/8 tsp cream of tartar
1 drop pink gel color (I used Deep Pink by Americolor)

Supplies for Painting Roses

Few drops of "Light" Pink Gel Colour (I used Deep Pink by Americolor)
Few drops of "Dark" Pink Gel Color (I used Mauve by Americolor)
Few drops of Red Gel Color (I used Super Red by Americolor)
Few drops of Green Gel Color (I used Leaf Green by Americolor)
Fine tip brush

Instructions

Follow my Best Macaron Recipe on how to make the light pink shells.
Fill, assemble and chill the macarons before decorating.
Put a drop of each gel color on a clean plate. Use a little at a time since it will dry up.
Dip a fine paint brush into the light pink colour. Paint a few random strokes in a circular pattern leaving some white space in between strokes. This will form the rose "bud" foundation.
Repeat previous step with the medium pink color while adding a few more strokes to the outer edge of the bud to create the "petals".
Repeat previous step with the red color.
Paint on the leaves and stem with the green gel colour.
Place macarons back into the refrigerator and let dry for 24 hours before adding gold foil and packaging.
Add gold foil. Tweezers or wooden chopsticks work really well for transferring gold fold.
Don't forget to watch the video at the bottom of this post to see the video tutorial I made as well.

Recipe Notes

Follow my Best Macaron Recipe on how to make the light pink shells.

Put a drop of each gel color on a clean plate. Use a little at a time since it will dry up.

Dip a fine paint brush into the light pink colour. Paint a few random strokes in a circular pattern leaving some white space in between strokes. This will form the rose “bud” foundation.

Repeat previous step with the medium pink color while adding a few more strokes to the outer edge of the bud to create the “petals”.

Repeat previous step with the red color.

Paint on the leaves and stem with the green gel colour.

Once painting is completed, place macarons back into the refrigerator and let dry for 24 hours before adding gold foil and packaging.

Add gold foil. Tweezers or wooden chopsticks work really well for transferring gold fold.

Notes:

Use gel colouring for best results. You can mix it with a bit of clear alcohol to lighten or thin it out a bit but I didn’t use it here. But be careful not to make it too runny. Macarons do not like moisture!
I am using the finest paint brush in the Wilton Paint Brush Set. Link below.
To preserve your beautiful work, let the paint dry up before packaging. 24 hours is best.
I like to assemble that macarons with filling and refrigerate it before I start painting. This will prevent it from melting in your hands.
Lastly, work quickly! Macarons start melting and the gel paint dries up as well.