I love to try new things in the kitchen, but macarons are always a little scary. The first batch I ever tried were chocolate. I piped probably two dozen macarons onto the baking sheet, put it in the oven, and what I got in the end was not was I was hoping for. The were crackly on the top, and had no 'feet!' I was pretty sad to say the least... Before putting my second batch in though, I googled why they might've turned out that way, and apparently the fans in your oven and the heights of the oven racks make a large impact. Oh, is that true. So I piped one macaron on a small cookie tray and put it about two levels higher from the middle of my oven. IT WORKED! I was so ecstatic. Now I follow exactly that whenever I make macarons. They still taste good either way, but it's nice to have 'em look pretty :)
These macarons were so good! They're very sweet, and the only popcorn in them is on the top, which surprised me, but it adds the perfect amount of flavor to earn their name. The filling was a easy caramel, but it turned out way too watery for my liking. I filled a few and it went all over them, so I figured it isn't worth the mess. I just whipped up a quick buttercream, about 4 tbsp. softened salted butter, 2 cups powdered sugar, and approx. 2-3 tbsp. milk, and whipped it up. I added the caramel and it was a good consistency for me! Thicker, which is what I like, and could hold up to the shells when you bite into them. I might've done something wrong with the caramel, so if you want to try it, go for it! Enjoy :)
Beautiful macaron feet!
Love this.
Salted Popcorn Caramel Macarons
Yield: about 20-24 sandwich cookies
Ingredients:
For the macarons:
110 grams almonds (blanched or slivered)
200 grams confectioners’ sugar
90 grams egg whites, aged at room temperature for 24 hours or 3-5 days in the refrigerator
25 grams granulated sugar
3/4 cup buttered and salted popcorn, pulsed or chopped into fine chunks
For the caramel filling:
1/2 cup sugar
1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/4 cup water
6 tablespoons heavy cream
Pinch of fleur de sel
Directions:
To make the macarons, pulse the almonds and confectioners’ sugar in the bowl of a food processor until finely ground and well blended. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the egg whites on medium-high speed until foamy. Gradually add the granulated sugar and continue beating until a smooth, shiny meringue with stiff peaks forms. Add the ground almond mixture to the bowl with the meringue and quickly but gently fold together using a wide rubber spatula until no streaks remain. You want to achieve a thick batter that ribbons or flows from the spatula when lifted.
Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper. Transfer the batter to a piping bag fitted with a plain wide round tip. Pipe into small rounds on the prepared baking sheets (each round should be about 1-1½ inches in diameter), spaced about 1 inch apart. Sprinkle the rounds lightly with the chopped popcorn pieces (leave half plain if you want them to lie flat). Let sit at room temperature for about an hour to develop a hard shell.
Preheat the oven to 280˚F. Bake for 15-20 minutes, depending on size. Transfer the pans to a wire cooling rack and let cool completely before moving the cookies.
To make the caramel filling, combine the sugar, cream of tartar and water in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat without stirring until the sugar begins to melt and turn golden at the edges. Continue cooking, swirling the pan to cover evenly, until the sugar turns golden amber. Carefully pour the cream down the side of the pan in a slow, steady stream, stirring constantly until combined. Stir in the fleur de sel. Transfer the caramel to a bowl and let cool. It will thicken as it cools.
Once the cookies are totally cooled, match them up by size. Pipe a small dollop of caramel on the flat side of one cookie of each pair. Sandwich together with the remaining cookie, pushing the caramel to the edges. Store in an airtight container.
Source: http://www.cooklikeachampionblog.com/2011/09/salted-popcorn-caramel-macarons/
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