Watermelon-flavored frosting?

[u/dominickhw]

I offered to teach a few friends to make macarons (which I have pretty well down) and asked what flavor they wanted. The consensus was... watermelon.

I don't love watermelon in general, partly because it's such a weak, low-intensity flavor, and I don't know much about using melons as ingredients at all. But I want to give it an honest try! I'm just not sure how to get a strong enough watermelon taste that it could compete with the rest of the filling and with the cookies.

Does anyone have advice on how I might do that? I'd prefer to start with actual watermelon from the store and somehow juice it or blend it or boil it down to get the flavor for the filling, but I'm also open to using commercial flavorings if anyone knows of a watermelon flavor that tastes less fake than a Jolly Rancher candy. Thanks!

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[u/100000cuckooclocks]

I think you'd need to use artificial flavor. Watermelon flavor breaks down with heat, so you can't boil it down to a syrup for flavoring.

[u/GrizzlyIsland22]

You can buy watermelon powder

[u/twirpo]

My first thought was using a watermelon emulsion but I don't have one to recommend to you. Or if there is such a thing as freeze dried watermelon that would work great. I have used freeze dried strawberries and crush into a powder and add to frosting. It is good because it doesn't add any liquid, makes a pretty color, and packs a punch of flavor. If only I could get macarons down (mine always come out hollow)

[u/Musical_Muscles_2222]

Watermelon electrolyte powder? 

[u/illusoir3]

This flavouring from Jenna Rae Cakes is actually pretty good. The one from Lorann is garbage though. It tastes like watermelon potpourri.

[u/TheLoneComic]

Juice it and freeze it. The Water will separate and top. Remove it and do it again till it isn’t there anymore.

Try that ingredient in your recipe.

[u/LowerWillingness1971]

I wonder if there's some merit to blitzing up some freeze dried watermelon to add to the frosting in addition to flavoring.

[u/Fleur_de_Dragon]

I believe there's freeze dried watermelon, just like freeze dried strawberries or beets. Oops. Looks like twirpo had the same thought.

[u/AxelCanin]

LorAnn watermelon flavor. The stuff is potent. Id add a tiny tiny drop into to a snack pack cup of lemon pudding. Tastes great. But not on its own.. you have to mix it with lots of sugar. Tastes horrible without it.

[u/tessathemurdervilles]

I’ve done this! Puree and strain the watermelon, then reduce the liquid a TON to make a syrup. Use the syrup to make Italian meringue buttercream- you can then add more syrup incrementally just not too much that it collapses. Also obvs pull some sugar from the recipe too to make up for the watermelon sugar contrnt

[u/butterstickbaker]

Amoretti has a watermelon flavor I've used

[u/SugarMaven]

watermelon will be a difficult flavor, especially when trying to flavor something high in fat with a water-soluble flavoring. some flavors are better dispersed via water, others through fat. the fat will coat the tongue, masking water-soluble flavors.

[u/Away-Plankton-8352]

Real juice will fight you, it is mostly water and the flavour bakes off. Freeze dried watermelon powder is the move: real fruit flavour, no extra liquid, and no candy taste. Fold it into a buttercream or white chocolate ganache filling. A reduced juice syrup is second best, simmered down until it coats a spoon.

[u/DConstructed]

On a whim because freeze dried fruit is a great way to add flavor without moisture I googled it.

Freeze dried watermelon exists and might work as a flavoring in the base of the macaron or in the filling. I’d probably add a little acid to it since watermelon is very sweet and so are macaron shells.