Salted Caramel Macarons (French Meringue Recipe)

Hello hello hello everyone! Sorry for the very late posts. I have not posted in 6 months, wow. But you all still follow me :') So sweet. haha I have been very busy with my own business, well not really a business but selling to friends and clients. I figured I should share my very delicious salted caramel recipe that I got from Flick Your Food but I edited a tiny bit. Many people enjoy this macaron if they are caramel lovers, however this isn't one of my favorites because I'm not a fan of really sweet things. This recipe I warn you is a TAD too sweet for me, but it's very decadent. It also takes a while to make this macaron because of the filling. But it's worth it. Also I edited the recipe so that you can make only a dozen so you don't waste too much ingredients!:)

Salted Caramel Macarons (makes about 12 completed macarons or 24 macaron shells)

Ingredients:
-70g almond flour
-60g powdered sugar
-52g egg whites (doesn't need to be aged)
-52g granulated sugar
-brown food coloring
pinch of salt

Materials:
-Hand mixer/stand mixer
-Piping bags/tips (#12 Wilton)
-Silpat/parchment (I prefer Silpat)
-Aluminum baking half sheets (Nordic Ware/Costco/Smart and Final)
-Rubber spatula
-Bowls

1. Sift almond flour, salt, and powdered sugar together into a large bowl. Set aside.
2. Weigh out your egg whites, and put it in a large bowl (either stand mixer or not).
3. Beat your egg whites until frothy, and slowly add in the granulated sugar.
4. Once sugar dissolves, beat at medium high speed until thick and glossy. It should look a bit droopy but that's fine because when you turn the bowl over, it doesn't come out.
5. Add in 1/3 of your almond powdered sugar mixture and mix until just combined. Add in the rest in small additions and then fold like you normally would (shown in my videos) until thick but still flowing in consistency (like magma).
6. Put it in a piping bag and pipe out 1-1.75 inch circles on a baking sheet lined with parchment or Silpat. Then rap the trays on the table until they are flattened to get rid of air bubbles. Only pipe one tray at a time because you can only bake one tray at a time. If you let them dry too long, they get lopsided.
7. Now is a good time to preheat your oven to 300 F (150 C).
8. Let the macarons dry (with a fan or not) for about 15-20 minutes. When it's almost time to bake them, you can pipe out your next tray.
9. Bake the macarons in the middle rack of your oven for 15 minutes.
10. Let cool for about 10 minutes. Repeat these steps until batter is finished.

Homemade Salted Caramel Buttercream Filling (makes a lot, so freeze the rest)

Ingredients:

-100g granulated sugar

-70g heavy whipping cream

-3g sea salt

-200g butter (2 sticks)

1. In a heavy saucepan, heat the sugar without stirring on medium-low heat until it melts and becomes caramelized and liquid(top picture^). Careful not to overcook the caramel or it will burn and taste extremely bitter. The color should be a deep golden brown like the picture, should take a few minutes.

2. Heat the heavy whipping cream in the microwave for about 30-45 seconds until warm. Then pour it slowly into the caramel. This will bubble a lot at first but keep whisking it until it is smooth.
3. Add in your sea salt and 1 stick of butter and heat until butter is all combined.

4. There may be a few hard sugar pieces that you can't get out, but that's okay, it's just like creme brulee. Put this in the fridge or freezer (I do freezer for a few hours) until it is firm.

5. Once it is firm and room temperature, beat it with an electric mixer until even more firm.
6. Add in your softened 1 stick of butter (pop it in the microwave for 9 seconds) and beat until it becomes a buttercream consistency.

7. Sandwich similar sized shells together with a bit of the buttercream and let the macarons mature in the fridge in an airtight container for at least a few hours, 24 hours is best.

This caramel is very buttery and decadent and sweet, but it is so so good. Your saucepan that you made it in will probably be a bit burnt but just boil some water in it again before cleaning to make your job a bit easier. 

Enjoy :3