salted caramel vanilla macarons

makes 30 shells (15 assembled macarons)

shells

105 g egg whites

1/8th tsp cream of tartar

105 g sugar

137 g almond flour

125 g powdered sugar

1. add egg whites to the bowl of a stand mixer with a whisk attachment

2. turn mixer to medium speed and mix until egg whites are foamy

3. add cream of tartar and continue mixing until egg whites start to turn white with smaller bubbles

4. while mixing, slowly pour in sugar

5. turn mixer to high speed and whip egg whites to very stiff peaks

6. in a separate bowl, whisk together almond flour and powdered sugar

7. sift mixture into egg white mixture, ½ at a time, mixing in between using a silicone spatula

8. mix until batter falls off spatula in long ribbon

9. transfer batter to piping bag with round tip

10. pipe 2” circles onto lined baking tray. a silicone liner with macaron lines printed on it is very helpful at this point, but parchment paper works as well

11. tap tray on table several times to release air bubbles in macarons

12. set shells aside for about an hour, until the top of each shell feels dry to the touch

13. preheat oven to 300°

14. bake shell for 20 minutes. turn the tray 180° after the first 10 minutes

15. remove from tray and allow to cool completely before filling

vanilla buttercream

¼ cup softened, unsalted butter

½ cup powdered sugar

½ tsp vanilla extract

1. add butter and powdered sugar to bowl of stand mixer with paddle attachment

2. on a low speed, mix until combined

3. add vanilla extract

4. turn mixer to medium-high and whip until light and fluffy

5. transfer to piping bag

6. pipe circles of buttercream around edge of half of macaron shells

salted caramel sauce

½ cup sugar

¼ cup water

¼ cup butter

¼ cup heavy cream

¼ tsp vanilla

flaky sea salt to taste

1. in a small saucepan, combine sugar and water over medium heat until sugar dissolves

2. add butter and allow to melt

3. stir to combine

4. allow mixture to come to a boil. do not stir

5. continue boiling until mixture reaches a dark golden color

6. remove from heat

7. quickly mix in cream, vanilla, and salt

8. allow to cool completely

9. transfer to piping bag

10. pipe small amount onto center of each shell, with caramel sauce held in the center by buttercream.

11. sandwich macaron shells together. for best flavor and texture, place macarons in an airtight container, refrigerate overnight, and allow to come to room temperature before serving.