Ah, macarons… Those gorgeous, little French cookies. They’re delicate and pretty. They’re fluffy and delicious. And they are so super cute! Aren’t they? Uuuum, no! Don’t let their cute appearance fool you. Macarons have caused more home bakers to collapse onto their kitchen floors crying in utter frustration than any other cookie! But if you’re willing to overlook that little piece of information, then yes: they are cute!
Cute and notoriously finicky…
Lucky for me, I’ve never collapsed onto my kitchen floor in utter frustration because of a bad macaron. Nope, macarons never did that to me. It happened to others, but not to me. I can honestly say that I never experienced a nervous break down after pulling a batch of macaron shells out of the oven.
So what does that mean? I’m the most gifted baker in the universe? Not really… iIt’s kind of embarrassing to admit, but when I first started making macarons about six – oh my god has it been that long?? – years ago, I was just an idiot who didn’t have a clue what a proper macaron was supposed to taste like.
There, I said it: me was idiot.
Oh yeah, hollow, tough macarons used to make me feel proud of myself. As long as they kind of looked like the real deal, with the shiny top and the cute feet, I’d be happy with them. I’m not sure if being an idiot who doesn’t know the first thing about macarons is really the best approach to take when it comes to making these babies, but it sure saved me a lot of tears! Not even undercooked macarons would disappoint me… Jeez…
Of course, when the Rocking Rebel brought home a box of real Parisian macarons (from Ladurée) it dawned on me that the macarons I had been making up until then were, um, not worthy of the name ‘macarons’. They were too dry, too tough and waaaay too chewy… But in a delicious kind of way. Luckily, by that time I had just purchased a brand new cookbook with shiny pages and the perfect macaron recipe. And that perfect macaron recipe taught me this: French style macarons are not my thing! And when I say ‘French style’, I mean macarons made with French meringue.
I’ll explain all about French meringue in my next post. For now, all you need to know is that in my kitchen, French meringue style macarons means chewy, hollow almond cookies. Not macarons. So, whenever I’m craving a proper macaron, with a thin egg shell-like crust and a fluffy center, I always whip up a batch of Italian meringue first. As my once-clean-and-shiny cookbook taught me: Italian meringue makes for the best macarons!
And what did I make last week?
Italian meringue! The most stable kind of meringue!
What a coincidence…
Actually, the fact that I had a batch of Italian meringue is exactly the reason why I decided to make macarons. Sure, I could have used the Italian meringue to make another fruit mousse or something like a lemon meringue pie, but I had my mind set on macarons. They’re yum!
Especially these salted caramel macarons! They are amazing!
I call them salted caramel macarons, but there’s really nothing particularly special about the macaron shells themselves. Well, besides the fact that they are perfect, I mean. ‘Cause the shells sure are perfect! As in: shiny on top, fluffy on the inside with a thin egg shell-like crust on the outside and cute little feet at the bottom. But the thing that really takes these perfect-but-nonetheless-quite-ordinary macaron shells to the next level is the whipped salted caramel filling!
Yeah, that’s right… Whipped. Salted. Caramel. Filling.
Yum, yum, yum…
Seriously guys, this stuff is the best! And it’s really easy to make too, which makes me love it even more.
You start by cooking up a basic caramel. A wet caramel, that is. To make a wet caramel, sugar and water are combined in a pan and heated over low heat. As the mixture heats, you stir it to help dissolve the sugar crystals into the water. The resulting syrup is then heated over medium-high heat until it comes to a boil. At this point (and temperature) the water will evaporate, leaving you with a pure sugar syrup that eventually turns into a gorgeous, golden caramel.
You can also make a dry caramel, which is made by heating sugar in a pan (without the water) until it melts and caramelizes. However, not only is this more difficult, it can also leave you with a lumpy – even crunchy? – caramel. Dissolving the sugar crystals into a little water first allows the sugar to caramelize more evenly, which means that you will end up with a smoother caramel.
It’s entirely possible to make a smooth dry caramel – for example, I made a dry caramel to top these deliciously spicy Molasses Cookies and these Caramel Apple Muffins – but doing it the ‘wet’ way is just a little easier. And because macarons are finicky enough, I didn’t want to trouble you with a difficult caramel…
Soooo, once you’re happy with the color of your caramel, you whisk in some hot cream and a fair amount of butter. You then need to cool the caramel to room temperature and chill it in the fridge or the freezer. Once the caramel has cooled, and the butter fat in the caramel has set again, you can whip it up with a mixer, like ordinary butter!
Very easy and very, very delicious.
Once you’ve whipped the caramel to a buttercream-like consistency, you fold in a little sea salt and voilà…you’re done!
So go ahead and make yourself some of these delicious, three-bite-sized cookies today!
Okay, maybe not today… But promise me you will try them! And when you do: they’re even better the next day! Just don’t make them on a rainy (or humid) day… They don’t like it!
Enjoy!
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- 150g (or ¾ cups) granulated sugar
- 60ml (or ¼ cup) water
- 60ml (or ¼ cup) egg whites, about 2 large egg whites
- 150g (or 1½ cups) ground almonds or almond meal
- 150g (or 1 cup + 3 tablespoons) powdered sugar
- 60ml (or ¼ cup) egg whites, about 2 large egg whites*
- a few drops of yellow food coloring, optional (only use gel food colorings for macarons!)
- 175g (or ¾ cup + 2 tablespoons) granulated sugar
- 60ml (or ¼ cup) water
- 120ml (or ½ cup) heavy whipping cream
- 175g (or ¾ cup + 1 teaspoon) unsalted butter, cubed
- sea salt to taste, I used about ½ teaspoon
- Please note: to make the Italian meringue, use the first three ingredients of the list of ingredients. In a medium-sized saucepan, combine the sugar and water. Heat over low heat, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Once the sugar has dissolved, turn the heat to medium-high and allow the syrup to come to a boil.
- In the meantime, add the egg whites to a medium-sized, heatproof bowl and mix (with a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment) until foamy and the whites are almost able to hold soft peaks.
- Once the syrup is boiling, clip on a candy (or sugar) thermometer.
- Cook until the syrup reaches 116°C/240°F, then take the pan off the heat and slowly drizzle the hot syrup into the bowl with the foamy egg whites, mixing continuously to prevent the eggs from scrambling. Don't pour the syrup onto the whisk, or the syrup may splatter against the sides of the bowl (or into your face!). Instead, aim for a spot close to the whisk.
- Once all the syrup has been added, keep mixing until the bottom of the bowl feels cool to the touch and the meringue has cooled down to body temperature. If you want to use food coloring (I used a drop of yellow food coloring, but I don't think it made that much of a difference), add it and mix briefly until the meringue has a uniform color.
- Line two (or three, if you have them) large baking sheets with baking parchment. I always use a tiny dollop of italian meringue to stick the parchment to the baking sheet, This way, when I start piping, the parchment stays in place. Preheat the oven to 135°C/275°F (standard oven setting).
- In a large bowl, stir together the ground almonds, powdered sugar and remaining egg whites with a rubber spatula, until a paste forms.
- Using a rubber spatula, fold one third of the meringue into the almond paste. You don't have to be too careful with it just yet; this third of meringue is used to lighten the almond paste so that the remaining meringue can easily be incorporated without losing too much volume.
- Once you've lightened the paste with one third of the meringue, carefully fold in the remaining two third of meringue.
- The mixture is probably too stiff at this point, so stir with your rubber spatula until you come to the point where a ribbon of batter takes about 30 seconds to completely sink back into the bulk of the batter. At this point, the batter won't flow out of your piping bag or all over your baking sheets, and it won't be too stiff either.
- Plop the batter into a piping bag fitted with a large open tip and pipe 1½-cm (U.S. quarter-sized) dollops onto the prepared baking sheets. If you want shells of roughly the same size, do yourself a favor and make a template first. Slide it underneath the baking parchment to make piping the shells a little easier.
- Pipe 70-76 macaron shells. You probably need more sheets of baking parchment to pipe the shells on, even if you only have two baking sheets. Once all of the shells have been piped, allow them to sit undisturbed at room temperature for about 45 minutes to 1 hour. By drying the unbaked shells like this, you make sure that a skin forms on the outside of the shells.
- Once the unbaked shells have rested, bake for 20 minutes (one baking sheet at a time), or until you can easily pull a shell off the baking parchment.
- Allow the shells to cool to room temperature before filling them. You can also store the cooled shells in an airtight container for a day to make the shells extra delicious.
- In a medium-sized saucepan (preferably a light-colored pan), combine the sugar and water. Heat over low heat, stirring with a metal spoon until the sugar has dissolved, then crank the heat up to medium-high. Allow to come to a boil.
- In the meantime, add the cream to a small saucepan and heat over low heat until the mixture reaches scalding point. Turn off the heat.
- Cook the sugar syrup until it turns into caramel. Once you're happy with the color of the caramel, take it off the heat and immediately whisk in the hot cream. The mixture will start to bubble and hiss like an angry snake (this is why the pan needs to be medium-sized) but just keep whisking and it will calm down.
- Add half the butter, one cube at a time, whisking until incorporated. Then plop the bottom of the pan in a cold water bath (fill your sink with an inch of cold water and dunk the bottom of the pan into it). Add the remaining butter and whisk until the caramel thickens (aka: cools).
- Transfer the caramel to a medium-sized bowl and place in the fridge or freezer to chill.
- Once chilled, use a mixer to whip up the caramel. Because there's a lot of butter in it, it will double in volume and lighten in color (like buttercream). Fold in sea salt flakes with a rubber spatula.
- Pair the macaron shells according to size and fill each pair with a teaspoon of the salted caramel filling.
- Store in an airtight container in the fridge, but serve at room temperature. The macarons are even better the next day!
Leah Griffin says
At what temperature do you bake the macaron shells?
The Tough Cookie says
Hi Leah! The macaron shells are baked at 135°C/275°F (standard oven setting). Thanks for asking, by the way. I completely forgot to add oven temperature! Oops… 😉
Abby says
Looks amazing !I LOVE Carmel
Priscilla says
Can you please answer whether you whipped the filling with the whisk attachment or the flat beater.
The Tough Cookie says
Whisk attachment 🙂
Julie says
Are the egg whites supposed to be whipped when mixing them with almond meal and powder sugar?
The Tough Cookie says
Hi Julie, the egg whites should be unwhipped. 🙂
Amanda says
What would happen if I slowly added in sugar instead of boiling it with water?
The Tough Cookie says
Hi Amanda, some people like to make macarons by first making a french meringue, for which granulated sugar is added to the egg whites. I’ve tried making macarons this way, but it didn’t work for me. The macarons always came out hollow and sticky, instead of soft with a shell-like crust. To end up with that perfect macaron, making a sugar syrup is crucial in my opinion 🙂
Katy says
I love macarons, the Italian method is the only method I use! After struggling with the French method, I am glad I use the Italian method, it’s been a year of baking and my macs are foolproof
The Tough Cookie says
I agree Katy! I started with the French method too, but the Italian method is just so much better. No more hollow, chewy macarons, right 😉
Dawn Sun says
Hi,the tough cookies.thank you very much for your Swiss butter cream icing recipe. Now I am trying to make the macaron following your recipe without knowing if the powdered sugar means the confections sugar or not. May you please tell me some thing about the powdered sugar in your recipe? Thank you again! Have a nice day!
The Tough Cookie says
Hi Dawn Sun, I’m so glad you like my recipe for Swiss buttercream! As far as your question goes: powdered sugar is the same as confectioner’s sugar 🙂
Sophie says
Hi Nila, I am a macarones rookie. I tried your recipe, unfortunately the macarones came out of the oven how they are not suppose to: hollow and chevy. Do you have any idea what could have gone wrong? Best, sophie
The Tough Cookie says
Hi Sophie, unfortunately there are about a million reasons why macarons might come out wrong. For hollow, chewy macarons, my bet is that you may have over-mixed the batter and undercooked the macarons. Undercooked macarons don’t have time to set and collapse once you remove them from the oven, resulting in a hollow shell with chewy bottom. Next time, try mixing less and turn the oven temperature down a bit (say, 128C), so you can bake the macarons a little longer.
Hope this helps 🙂
Amber says
Hi this might be an odd question, but would the caramel filling also work as filling for a cake?? What is the consistency like? Thanks!
The Tough Cookie says
Hi Amber, the filling is quite stiff, but it’s delicious! I bet a thin layer, maybe paired with another, lighter filling, would be great 🙂
lor says
Just happened upon your website while searching for German Buttercream recipe – love it! Perhaps mixing the whipped caramel sauce with plain pastry cream would work for a cake filling. I plan on trying it for a chocolate roll that I’m making (gluten free). Will let you know if it works.
The Tough Cookie says
Hi Ior, that chocolate caramel roll sounds amazing! Can’t wait to hear how it turned out 😉
Adelynnia says
Hi! I was wondering if there are any visual hints as to when the sugar syrup (for the macaron shells) are ready? I don’t have a candy thermometer you see and I wonder if the temperature would greatly affect the result. Thank you! Really looking forward to trying this recipe out! 🙂
The Tough Cookie says
Hi Adelynnia, unfortunately the temperature of the sugar syrup is really important! Some recipes call for cooking the syrup for a specific amount of time, while other recipes may have you guessing the viscosity of the syrup by looking at the bubbles, but I would never recommend that. If you’re serious about making macarons (they’re pretty finicky!) investing in a sugar thermometer is the way to go 🙂 They come pretty cheap these days!
lor says
I used to test the state of sugar syrup by placing a drop in cold water, and seeing if it forms a ball in the water. Once that happens you can touch the now cooled sugar ball to see if it is soft or hard, thus the soft-ball or hard-ball description. Now I use a thermometer – just easier.
Keziah says
I can’t wait to try this recipe!
This will be my first time making them so thanks for the helpful tips throughout the instructions…
Kez
The Tough Cookie says
Let me know how they turn out, Kez!
Isabelle says
Hello!
Your macarons look delicious! The French method macaron recipe that I use requires you to sift the almond meal with the powdered sugar before incorporating the meringue; do you still need to sift the powdered sugar and almond meal before mixing with the egg whites for your recipe? Thanks!
The Tough Cookie says
Hi Isabelle, I never sift anything, and I have had no problems with this recipe, or any of my other macaron recipes. But if you want to, you can certainly sift away 😉
Kiki says
I tried your salted caramel filling, it tastes delicious but it won’t set inside the macaron shells. I’m not sure what I did wrong, even after freezing it is too soft/runny for a macaron filling. Any ideas/tips please? Thanks in advance 🙂
The Tough Cookie says
Hi Kiki, that’s so weird. What you could try is to make the caramel but don’t add the butter. So just make the caramel and drizzle in the cream. After that, dunk the bottom of the caramel pan in a few inches of cold water to stop the cooking process, whisk it for a few minutes to knock most of the heat out, and transfer it to a heatproof bowl. Next, chill the caramel in the fridge until cold. In the meantime, soften the butter at room temperature and beat it until it’s nice and fluffy, then add the cold caramel one tablespoon at a time, until the filling comes together. If the filling is still too soft, place in the fridge to firm up a bit more, 20-40 minutes. Finally, fold in the sea salt flakes. I hope this works! Please let me know how the filling turns out 🙂
Rae says
Hi,
Just wanted to let everyone know that if I can learn how to make macarons from scratch with this recipe, having never even tried a macaron before, then anybody can do it!
I’ve been very popular at work with my test batches as I learnt to make them as a surprise for my boyfriend ????
The Tough Cookie says
Hi Rae, I’m so glad you like the recipe! Thanks so much for sharing 😀
Lynden says
You called for 1/4 (two large) egg whites twice in the recipe. was that a mistake? In all, how many egg whites are used for the shells, two or four?
The Tough Cookie says
Hi Lynden, it’s not a mistake! You’ll need about 4 egg whites, divided. 2 egg whites are used to make an Italian meringue, and the other 2 are used to make the almond paste. You then combine the meringue and almond paste. Hope this helps 🙂
Matt says
First of all, I wanted to say thank you for an excellent recipe! My wife and I have made macarons before and they are notoriously difficult. I appreciate the thought and attention to detail you put into this. Ours turned out great! So thank you.
Here are my two criticisms/suggestions:
1. The first step of your recipe is confusing (“Please note: to make the Italian meringue, use the first three ingredients of the list of ingredients.”) I think this sentence should be removed entirely, as the rest of the recipe functions perfectly well without it. Both my wife and I were confused by this sentence. We thought we were missing where we needed to add the second portion of egg whites, and I had to re-read the entire recipe a couple of times to figure it out.
2. (“Cook the sugar syrup until it turns into caramel. Once you’re happy with the color of the caramel…”). This could use some elaboration. I’m glad to have made caramel before and to know what you meant by this, but I can imagine that a lot of people struggle to understand what you mean by being happy with the color. This is a really dangerous step in terms of risk of over or under cooking, so why not add some detail (or pictures) about approximate cooking times and what the color should look like specifically?
Aside from these two things, I thought you did a killer job of explaining in great detail, and this recipe (while definitely not easy) was a pleasure to make.
Thanks again!
Matt
The Tough Cookie says
Thank you so much for your feedback, Matt! Writing this recipe sure wasn’t easy, as macarons can be really tricky to make. I’m glad you think I did a good job, and I’ll have another look at the recipe to see whether I can make it a bit easier to understand. I’m glad you told me there are still some confusing parts which can be changed 😉
regina says
I agree with the first part of the OP statement about the “Please note: to make the Italian meringue, use the first three ingredients of the list of ingredients.” – the first three ingredients includes two egg whites, but later in the recipe you state to mix in egg whites with the almond flour mixture, and there are two other egg whites that have been whipped. I made the shells using just the sugar and water, and left out the egg whites, and it came out correct.
These came out fantastic!!! Thank you for sharing this recipe!
The Tough Cookie says
I’m glad you like the recipe Regina! But I’ll try to make it a bit more straightforward 😉
Clarice says
Hi! Sorry what do you mean by “serves 35”? Does it mean by 35 macarons or 35 individual shells?
The Tough Cookie says
Yeah I see that’s a bit confusing, but if I remember correctly, the recipe makes 35 filled macarons 🙂
Joyful says
Thank you so much for this recipe!!! My kids actually thought I got them from laduree! I was just wondering if I can double or triple this recipe to make large batches, and if I wanted to make other colors/flavors do I use the gel food color like I use for tinting frosting? Can you share other macaron filling recipes too? Thanks again!
The Tough Cookie says
Hi joyful, I’m so glad you and your kids like the recipe 😀 You can certainly double the recipe to make larger batches, just keep in mind not to leave the unbaked shells to dry for too long. And yes, if you want to color the shells, you can use gel food coloring. You may need to experiment with the colors a bit, because the color of the plain macaron can affect how the colors come out. For example, I believe that professional bakers use red food coloring and cocoa powder to give chocolate macarons a dark brown color 😉
Sage Scott says
Hi Nila! I absolutely love this salted caramel macaron recipe, and I was wondering if there was any way you could do a pistachio variation or maybe guide me through it? Thanks!
Sage
The Tough Cookie says
Hi Sage, I’m so glad you like the recipe 😀 I’ve been thinking about doing more recipes for French macarons. I don’t think I’ll get round to it anytime soon (as I have a five-week-old baby to care for) but I’ll add pistachio macarons to my to-post list!
Sage Scott says
or chocolate
The Tough Cookie says
Will do 😉
Mandy says
I was just wondering if I can use salted butter for this recipe instead of unsalted butter?
The Tough Cookie says
Hi Mandy, nice to meet you. You can certainly use salted butter, but it makes it a bit more difficult to control the amount of salt in, and thus the taste of, the salted caramel filling. For this reason, I always opt for unsalted butter 😉
Mandy says
Excellent. It turned out wonderful but they’re already gone and I need to make more. Can I substitute Butter for Margarine?
The Tough Cookie says
I guess you can, Mandy, but the flavor will be different 🙂
Rhyan says
Hi! I was just wondering, the recipe says an Italian meringue and then the caramel filling. My question is do we combine those 2 and then put them in the shells? Or am I completely reading it wrong? Haha thanks in advance!
The Tough Cookie says
Hi Rhyan, you don’t combine the two. It can be a bit confusing, but to make the macaron shells you make an Italian meringue and an almond base, which you then fold together with a rubber spatula. The caramel filling is made with the ingredients listed under ‘caramel filling’. Nothing else. Hope this helps!
Nana says
Hello dear,
May I ask, how is the texture of the caramel fillings? Is it more fudgy and stands in room temperature? If refrigerated, would it be hard?
Thanks!
The Tough Cookie says
Hi Nana (or Lina?), the texture of the filling is like buttercream. It hardens in the fridge, but it won’t be too hard to bite into when served chilled. Hope this helps!
Andrea says
I made my first successful macarons this weekend with a recipe I got from a class, however I used your Caramel Buttercream (minus the salt) and it was the best filling I made! The flavor is fantastic, it piped perfectly, and I came back here to find a new buttercream base for future macarons (I was unhappy with the Swiss Buttercream I made). Thank you!
The Tough Cookie says
I’m so glad you like the caramel filling of these macarons Andrea! I hope you like the other buttercreams as well, although they may be a bit too soft as a macaron filling at room temperature 🙂
David says
Hi! Currently making these at the moment. When I piped them for the first time, the mixture was way too runny, I decided to give up. But I noticed the left over mixture had formed up a fair bit, so I scraped off the piped biscuits and did it again. Looking far better!
The Tough Cookie says
I’m so glad the batter firmed up, David! Macaron batter can become too runny when you accidentally overmix it (fold too much).
Stephanie says
These macarons are fantastic! They are better than any other ones I’ve had at a store or made. I will definitely be using this recipe when I make macarons again. 🙂
The Tough Cookie says
Glad you like them Stephanie! 😀
Carrie says
I tried using a silicone mat instead of parchment and they puffed up like little hills and cracked. Anyone reading…. don’t do that.
The Tough Cookie says
Thanks for the tip, Carrie!
Saffron says
Hey I love this recipe, I’ve tried it a few times and all come out really well .i’ve been asked to make some for a wedding in 2 weeks. i want to make them in advance so there’s not a big rush near the day, can these be frozen with the filling?
The Tough Cookie says
Hi Saffron, I’m so glad you like my recipe 😀 But about your question, I’m afraid I just don’t know. I’ve never frozen macarons before. I usually just eat them. But I did a little Google search for you and found this blog, ‘Love and Macarons’, by a girl named Nathalie. It says that macarons can be frozen up to three months, so I think you’re good to go. She prefers the Italian method for making macarons (like me) so I’m pretty sure these macarons would freeze beautifully, too. But, since you’re making them for a wedding, just make sure to test it with a small batch well ahead of the wedding first. Just to be safe 😉
Pam Yamahata says
First of all, I researched lots of macaroon blogs to see comments of others who have made macaroons. I got your recipe and followed it EXACTLY!!! The macaroons were not done after 20 minutes, so I left them in a little longer.
They were all stuck to the silicone, and they weren’t good! They were hard and chewy. Second, when I made the filling, I did exactly as the recipe said and cooked the sugar and water together. It never turned caramel color–the water just cooked away and all I had left was hard sugar. I through everything out.
The Tough Cookie says
Hi Pam, I’m sorry the recipe didn’t work for you. I never tried making macarons on a silicone baking mat, but one of my readers commented that macarons won’t bake properly on those. If I were you, I’d try baking them on baking parchment. As for the caramel part, it sounds like your sugar crystalized. This just happens sometimes 🙁 If you want to prevent this from happening next time, make sure that the pan and spoon you’re using are spotlessly clean. You can also add a drop of lemon juice or a little glucose to the syrup, as this prevents crystallization. For more tips about making a wet caramel, you can read through this post. Alternatively, you can try the dry method for making caramel, as there is zero chance of crystallization with that. Hope this helps 😉
Benjamin says
My macarons turned out quite well, I even did a batch without weighing and they turned out great. The only problem I had was that my shell skins were a little too thick. What can I do to make them thinner next time? Fold more? Let them sit out for a shorter time?
The Tough Cookie says
Hi Benjamin, I’ve heard that the thickness of the macaron shells is determined by the thickness of the batter, which is determined by the amount of folding you do. For thicker shells, the batter should be slightly thicker, which means less folding. So next time, try giving the macaron batter a few less folds 😉
Jade says
Hi,
Quick question, can I use liquid food coloring instead of gel or will that ruin the macarons? I can’t wait to make these!
Thanks!
The Tough Cookie says
Liquid food coloring affects the batter too much and can ruin your macarons. So if you don’t have gel food coloring, it’s best not to color the shells at all 😉
Elise says
Hello! Thank you for this recipe! I can’t wait to try it. I made macarons for the first time last week but I suppose it was the French meringue that I made. They turned out great and I thought it was perfect until you said that they aren’t supposed to be hollow and chewy on the inside! I had never tried macarons before so I didn’t know.
I want to try these to see the difference! One question though, should the egg whites be room temperature or can they be straight from the fridge?
Thanks again!
The Tough Cookie says
Hi Elise, the egg whites should be room temperature. The first time I made macarons, I also made a French meringue, and the shells turned out hollow and chewy. I really liked the taste of them, but the texture of ‘real’ macarons is sooooo much better 😀
D.H says
I’m confused, you wrote 2 egg whites twice, do you mean 4 egg whites?
The Tough Cookie says
Hi D.H! Yes, the recipe calls for 4 egg whites total, but because you use 2 to make the almond paste and 2 to make Italian meringue, I decided to call for 2 egg whites twice, so that readers wouldn’t accidentally make the paste or the meringue with all 4 egg whites. 🙂
Kai C. says
How many egg whites do we need one or two sets of two
The Tough Cookie says
Two sets of two 😉
Jessica Waterston says
Hi,
Thanks for your recipe.
Can I make the caramel filling a few days in advance and keep it in the refrigerator until I can put the cookies together?
Would I then take it out of refrig and let the caramel come to room temperature before I whip it up and fill the shells?
Thanks in advance.
The Tough Cookie says
Hi Jessica! Yes, you can make the caramel filling a few days ahead and keep it covered in the fridge until you need it. You don’t need to bring it to room temperature before whipping it up and using it to fill the macaron shells 🙂
B says
When I made the caramel filling, I was very disappointed!! The sugar initially started to dissolve in the water but then completely clumped up. It had the consistency of… well, sugar. I continued to heat it in an attempt to melt it, and it slowly melted before turning into hard, unbreakable pieces of sugar. I had to deviate from your recipe and improvise… even then the caramel did not turn out completely smooth and delicious.
What went wrong? 🙁
best,
B
The Tough Cookie says
Hi B, it sounds like your sugar syrup crystallized! That can happen when you’re making caramel, and there’s little you can do about it except making sure that the pan you’re using is spotlessly clean. I’ve written a detailed post about the different ways to make caramel, which includes a paragraph or three about crystallization, if you’re interested… Next time your sugar crystallizes, you can just add a little water (two tablespoons) to dissolve the sugar again. That way, you don’t have to throw the sugar out, but you can just use the sugar you started off with to try again. Hope this helps 🙂
Samuel says
Thanks for this brilliant recipe. I’ve tried making macarons once before using a French meringue base, they turned out to like little upside-down bowls, and were very disappointing. These, however, turned out perfectly. And the whipped caramel is a revelation! There was a little surplus so I’ve had it spread on toast with some peanut butter, which is lovely with a cup of tea. I’ll be looking for other ways to use it up.
The Tough Cookie says
I’m so glad you like the recipe Samuel! And I HAVE to try your caramel/peanut butter/toast combo. Sounds delicious! 😉
saltandserenity says
Hi Nila, if you lived closer to me, I’d be on my way over right now to give you a big hug! I just made 2 batches of these for our upcoming family passover seder dinners. They are the most perfect macarons and buttercream I have ever made. I have struggled with macarons for several years now, trying all different recipes (all french meringue!) They were always hollow and cracked.
Although I didn’t get perfect feet like yours, they were far and away the most beautiful and delicious I have ever made. Also, I got totally consistent results with both batches.
I love the buttercream recipe as well. So easy.
Thanks again!!
The Tough Cookie says
Wow, that makes me so happy, Cindy! 😀 Macarons can be so frustrating to make. There are so much recipes out there that just don’t deliver. The French method NEVER worked for me. My macarons always came out super chewy and hollow and disappointing. Until I stumbled upon this recipe! So glad it worked for you, too! Are you going to post photos of the macarons on your blog?