Salted Caramel Macarons
Salted caramel macarons with delicate French meringue shells and a thick, pipeable caramel filling made with mascarpone. A Paris-style recipe with expert tips for perfect texture and flavour.The macaron recipe makes 70 shells (35 macarons) using the French meringue technique without a candy thermometer.
Equipment
- Electric whisk or stand mixer with whisk attachment
- flat baking sheets lined with baking parchment
- Piping bag reusable silicone (40cm/16')
- plain tip (8-10mm/¾-½')
- 2 large mixing bowls (super clean for whites - not trace of oil or egg yolk)
Ingredients
French Macaron Shells
- 100 g (3½oz) egg whites organic (2-3 days old, at room temperature)
- 65 g (2½oz) caster sugar (superfine)
- 120 g (4½oz) ground almonds (fine almond flour) sifted
- 180 g (6oz) icing sugar (powdered sugar) sifted
- pinch caramel powdered colouring (brown/yellow) OPTIONAL
Salted Caramel Filling
- 100 g (4oz) whipping/heavy cream warmed
- 1 x 2g sheet or 1 tsp sheet or powdered gelatine
- 100 g (3.5oz) granulated sugar
- 60 g (2.5oz) unsalted butter
- ½ teaspoon sea salt fleur de sel, Maldon flakes or celtic salt
- 150 g (5.5oz) Mascarpone (see NOTES below)
Instructions
To make the Macaron Shells
- Line 3 flat baking sheets with perfectly flat parchment paper and set aside.
- Sift the finely ground almonds with the icing sugar into a large mixing bowl using a medium sieve. Discard any large, coarse almond pieces. Mix both well together. Set aside.
- Whisk the egg whites in a separate bowl (or in the bowl of a stand mixer) on medium speed until they start to foam, then add a little caster sugar. Continue to whisk and increase speed gradually to high as you add the rest of the caster sugar. If using, add a tiny pinch of powdered caramel colouring. Whisk to glossy stiff peaks.
- Fold the beaten egg whites into the dry ingredients using the large, flexible spatula. Mix well. The batter will be a bit thick and clumpy at this point.
- Using a plastic scraper or still with the spatula, work to a smooth mixture (macaronnage). Press down well on the sides or bottom of the bowl, going back and forward to press out the air bubbles from the mixture.
- Lift the spatula regularly and drop the batter. As soon as you have a smooth brilliant mixture that drops like a ribbon (or 'lava'), stop! Too much mixing results in flat macarons with cracked tops; under-mixing results in dull, bumpy shells.
- Transfer the batter using the spatula to the piping bag fitted with a plain tip. Pipe out 3cm (1¼ inch) rounds. Press the tip right down on the paper then finish off with a flourish to obtain a nice round. Leave a good space between each as they spread out.
- Leave for about 30 minutes to air. They are ready to bake when they are hard to the touch. If not, air for slightly longer. This is a good time to make the filling.Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 170°C/300°F (155°C fan/gas 3).
- Bake for 10-12 minutes, one tray at a time, low to centre oven. After 3 minutes, the feet start to form (do the macaron dance!)After 8 minutes, do my 'wobble' test: touch the top of a macaron and gently move your finger side to side. Depending on how much it moves, cook for 2-4 minutes longer until firm.
- When ready, leave on the baking tray until completely cool. Remove them all carefully (they should peel off easily). Marry up the shells in pairs according to size, one row flat side up, another down to prepare for the caramel filling.
Thick Salted Caramel Macaron Filling
- Soak the gelatine for 10 minutes in cold water.
- Warm the cream in a separate pan or a few seconds in the microwave.
- Measure out the sugar in a medium saucepan. Put on medium to high heat, without stirring, until a golden, syrupy caramel forms. Shake the pan to dissolve all the sugar when it starts to change colour. Be careful that it doesn't colour too much (i.e. it can burn quickly - and there's nothing worse than bitter burnt caramel, so keep your eye on it!). This should take no more than 10 minutes in total. Turn down the heat and add the butter and warmed cream together.
- Take off the heat and stir the caramel with a wooden spoon.
- Add the gelatine (squeezed of excess water) and stir. Leave to cool for 15 minutes on the counter.
- Add the salt and whisk in the mascarpone vigorously (or use an electric whisk) until smooth.
- Chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
- Transfer the salted caramel filling to a piping bag, pipe on a little filling to each macaron couple, topping off with the other macaron shell to assemble.Store in an airtight box and refrigerate for at least 24 hours before eating.
Notes
Storage: Once filled, refrigerate in an airtight container for at least 24 hours to allow the filling to soften the shells. Best eaten the next day and keeps up to 5 days. Remove from the fridge 15 minutes before serving.
Best eaten next day and can keep for up to 5 days. Remove from the fridge 15 minutes before eating to enjoy at their best.
Mascarpone gives this filling its smooth texture. If unavailable, you can substitute full-fat cream cheese — but the flavour will be slightly tangier.
This recipe is adapted from my cookbooks Mad About Macarons (2010) and Teatime in Paris (2015).
These macarons are gluten-free. See more gluten free recipes.
Nutrition
Calories: 101kcalCarbohydrates: 11gProtein: 2gFat: 6gSaturated Fat: 3gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.1gMonounsaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0.1gCholesterol: 11mgSodium: 42mgPotassium: 8mgFiber: 0.4gSugar: 10gVitamin A: 145IUVitamin C: 0.02mgCalcium: 16mgIron: 0.1mg
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