Hello Kitty Macarons Anyone?

A whole new level for macarons. 

I recently received a really interesting order for a bridal shower. One of the bridesmaids heard that I made really nice macarons. She was really interested in surprising the bride with something small and cute. After contacting me, we discussed the possibilities of macarons. She told me that the theme of the party was based on Hello Kitty. I'm not entirely a fan of Hello Kitty but I do understand the appeal it holds for girls of all ages. After some time to brainstorm, I remembered seeing Hello Kitty shaped macarons somewhere on the web. After some googling, I came across this blog post from I Heart Baking. The next day, I set out to recreate those small cute kitty macarons

For the design, normal macarons shapes were piped, then I dragged each ear out individually with a toothpick. Before the batter could dry, I stuck on the small bow ties made with sprinkles on about half of the batch. The other half, I left them bow tie-less because I wanted to add a small flower instead, one of the variations frequently seen on Hello Kitty. To recreate the flowers, I used fondant to cut out the shapes, and centered a small sugar pearl for a full "flower" effect. For the noses, I first started using yellow-colored white chocolate, but eventually used small rounded yellow sprinkles because I thought the color was much brighter and more visible (notice in the pictures below). I do actually prefer the shape that piped chocolate can make so I'll have to keep a look out for brightly colored yellow chocolate or candy melts instead. Lastly, the eyes and whiskers were drawn on with black food pen. I considered using dark chocolate to pipe out the eyes and whiskers because my food pen was working very well, but decided against it. I don't think I have much control over my piping bag just yet, though I really think I should learn to.

(Strawberries & Cream Hello Kitty Macaron, 

nose piped with Chocolate)

These Hello Kitty macarons were filled with two different fillings. One (above) is a strawberries & cream filling and the other (below) is filled with an eggless cookie dough filling. Both fillings seemed to fit the whole idea of Hello Kitty because this character seemed like such a childhood memory. The strawberries & cream filling reminds me of strawberry ice cream while the cookie dough has always been considered a nostalgic flavor (Ben & Jerry's cookie dough ice cream omg).

(Cookie Dough Hello Kitty macaron, 

nose made with sprinkles)

Honestly, these macarons grew on me. It's kind of weird how the longer you stare at them, the cuter they actually become. I prefer the ones made with the fondant flower but the bow-tie ones are the most classic. Perhaps I can try using Jumbo hearts to shape them instead because the ones I used seemed a bit small compared to the face. 

So, I sent these samples over to the bridesmaid who ordered them and she was completely ecstatic about them. She told me that she and all her friends loved them, which made me super happy I have to admit. 

I can't wait to hear what the bride thinks of these macarons when her bridal shower happens in a week!

Love, 
Natalie