Aloha. Hola. Hey there. Hi. Allow us to introduce ourselves: we are Buttertooth, a collaborative team of three best friends and makers toiling away in a tiny Hawaiian kitchen. Together we cook, eat, bake, eat, photo graph, eat, write, and . . . eat; you could say we follow our passions but only as far as the dinner table.

When Sarah from Bombshell Bling invited us to participate in her Summer S’mores Saturday Series (I defy you to say that with a marshmallow in your mouth), we knew immediately what we wanted to make—French macarons. We’ve been perfecting our recipe for the famously fussy almond cookie over the course of the last year, occasionally selling them at a small coffee shop in the Honolulu Museum of Art and shipping them to our mothers when in dire need of praise. We’re glad finally to share them with you.

We endured a number of macaron mishaps along this quest for glory: our first attempt at the French meringue technique resulted in cookies more akin to pancakes than the footed, crisp wafers we associate with perfect macarons. We switched to the Italian meringue method, and that helped us find our feet. Then we noticed our cookies rose unevenly and decided to add cornstarch to the batter to offset Oahu’s humidity. Macarons are apparently like fine art in this way, preferring best cool, dry climates. . . . At long last, we had our cookie.

(These macaron horror stories are not meant to dissuade you but rather to illustrate that sometimes a little tenacity in the kitchen is all you need to overcome an obstacle. Oh. And Google helps too.)

For this s’mores macaron recipe iteration, we knew precisely what we wanted to achieve. Two of us hail from the midwest with certified campfire chops, so toasting our marshmallow filling was nonnegotiable. Then we swapped some of the ground almond from our original recipe with finely ground graham cracker and thickened our favorite ganache to simulate a chocolate bar. Voilà, as a macaron maker on the Champs-Élysées might say.

Some notes—we’ve referenced many recipes, but the one we like best is an adaptation from Love and Macarons. We don’t use a candy thermometer for the meringue, preferring to eyeball the bubbles instead, but a kitchen scale is necessary to measure your ingredients. In the kitchen, as in life, less mystery, less anxiety.

If you’ve never made macarons before, then — congratulations — you’re probably much more stable than us. But, if you too like a challenge and appreciate a cookie’s aesthetics as much as its taste, then we heartily encourage you to try this s’mores macaron recipe: all the flavors of a campsite with . . . ok, honestly, a lot more work.

S’mores Macaron Recipe

Ingredients:

Mass:

100 grams ground almond meal/flour

50 grams finely ground graham cracker (food process or use a small spice grinder)

150 grams powdered sugar

50 grams egg whites (approximately 2 eggs’ worth)

2 tsp cornstarch (for humid climates)

pinch of salt

Italian Meringue:

55 grams egg whites

35 grams sugar

120 grams sugar

40 grams water

Marshmallow Filling:

2 egg whites

2/3 cup sugar

1/2 tablespoon water

1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Ganache:

1/2 cup cream

1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Using a 1” biscuit or cookie cutter, trace circles onto a parchment template. This well help you achieve consistency when piping your cookies.

Make the cookies: sift the almond meal, graham cracker, and powdered sugar together into a large bowl. Mix in 50 grams egg whites until you achieve the texture of dough. Set aside and cover.

In the bowl of a mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat egg whites until soft peaks form. Add 35 grams sugar once egg whites bubble to stabilize the mixture. Lower the speed to stir once you see peaks to avoid over-beating at this stage.

Meanwhile, heat water on the stove over medium-high heat. Add 120 grams sugar and mix to dissolve. When mixture bubbles continuously with no still spots of water or reads 240F on a candy thermometer, remove from heat and immediately pour into egg whites. Turn mixer speed to high and continue whipping until meringue is stiff and glossy.

Next add 1/3 of the egg whites to the almond mixture. This will help loosen the dough without forcing you to deflate your meringue. After this has been incorporated, add the rest of the egg whites, taking care not to deflate (a good rule of thumb is mixing until just a scant few streaks of white remain).

Transfer the batter to a piping bag fitted with a large, round tip and pipe your cookies onto parchment or silpat mats, using your template underneath to guide your work. Drop your baking sheets a few times to pop air bubbles to rest until they are no longer shiny but matte, about 20-30 minutes. Preheat your oven to 300F.

After cookies have rested, bake for 10-13 minutes in your preheated oven. Allow to cool completely before removing from sheets.

Make the marshmallow filling:

In the metal bowl of a stand mixture, whisk together egg whites, sugar, water, and cream of tartar until combined. Place over simmering water in a large saucepan over medium. Whisk continuously for 2-3 minutes or until mixture reads 160F.

Remove from heat and add vanilla. Place under mixer fitted with whisk attachment and beat until stiff and glossy, about 5-7 minutes.

Make the ganache: Place the cream in a small saucepan over medium heat on the stove. Once hot, add chocolate and mix until smooth. Allow to cool before proceeding to next step.

Assemble the cookies: Pair shells together based on size. Using either a spatula or piping bag fitted with a small round tip, frost one shell with marshmallow and toast with a kitchen torch. Frost the opposing shell with ganache. Repeat until all cookies are filled.

Store in the refrigerator in an airtight container. Cookies are best after having been allowed to chill for several hours and will keep for up to a week.

If you feel inspired by this recipe then you may also enjoy the following recipes from our site:

Peanut Butter Cream Pie

Brown Butter Blondies with Candied Ginger

Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies