Spooky orange macarons with Halloween coloured sprinkles and an orange and vanilla cream make a perfect gluten free treat--no tricks in sight!

Yield: 18 macarons
Prep time: 40 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes

Gluten Free Spooky Halloween Macarons

Halloween is one of those holidays characterised by candy and sweets and I play into the candy hype each and every year, opting to fill our snack basket with homemade Halloween themed goodies such as my mummy brownies and my sticky toffee pumpkin cupcakes.

This year, I wanted to make the treats a bit more bite-sized and opted for putting a spooky spin on macarons. I love to make French macarons because they are tasty and naturally gluten free. This is a treat the whole family can enjoy without the need for special flours, powders and substitutions.

To add to the Halloween whimsy, I've topped my macarons with a few pinches of Halloween themed sprinkles or 100s & 1000s and scribbled the word "Boo!" on the undersides of the macaron with an edible marker. You can, of course, decorate your macarons anyway you prefer!

Ingredients:

For the macaron shells
2 medium egg whites
35 grams caster or superfine sugar
70 grams ground almonds or almond flour
140 grams icing or confectioner's sugar
a few drops orange gel paste food colouring
Halloween themed sprinkles or 100s & 1000s
black edible pen

 
For the macaron filling
1 tub shop bought vanilla buttercream
a few shots orange flavouring

Gluten Free Spooky Halloween Macarons

Instructions:

1. Separate the egg whites and the yolks, placing the whites in a clean porcelain bowl, free of any residue. Save the yolks for another use.
2. Sift the almond flour and the icing sugar together.
3. Whisk the egg whites with the caster sugar and the orange food colouring until it is just beyond the stage of stiff peaks. 
4. Fold the dry ingredients into the whisked egg whites and spoon into a piping bag.
5. Pipe circles on a baking tray lined with silicone or parchment. Scatter pinches of sprinkles over half of the macarons.
6. Tap the tray against the counter to release any air pockets and let form a skin for about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to between 120 and 150c.
7. Bake the macarons in the oven for about 15 minutes or until cooked through.
8. Let the macarons rest before removing them from the tray. Meanwhile, mix the cream filling and the orange flavouring together, tasting along the way so as not to overdo the orange flavouring.
9. Write the word "Boo!" on the other remaining macaron shells.
10. Spread a bit of the orange flavoured cream onto one macaron shell and top with another.
11. Refrigerate overnight or at least four hours before serving.