Strawberry Buttercream filled Macarons

I've already professed my love for all things petit and girly.  Combine that with my love for sweets and baking and what do you get?  

French Macarons of course!

I love making ( and eating!) these delightful treats.  

I am by no means an expert on making them.  The first time I attempted to make macarons (I blogged about it here) everything went perfectly.  I was wondering why people made it seem so difficult!  The second time I made Macarons, I answered my own question.  I ended up throwing the whole batch away because my "pretties" crushed as soon as I pulled them out of the oven.  The third time I made macarons I paid careful attention to the instructions.  Fail.  Again.  What was wrong this time?  They burnt!  I was determined to try again, and while I won't say it was 100% perfect, I'm content with the outcome.

This time, I made sure not to overstroke the mixture when I combined my almond meal to the egg whites and I set my timer to a mere 5 minutes( instead of the 8 minutes the recipe calls for).  And it's a good thing I did!  The bottoms were already beginning to crisp!  

While many of the macaron halves turned out well, a lot were crushed in the process of peeling them off of the wax paper.  I read on Tartlette that if this happens, add a few drops of water to the pan, under the wax paper.  The moisture will help release the macarons from the paper.

If you'd like to try making your own, I used this recipe by Martha Stewart.
Have you ever tried to make Macarons?  Any secret tips?