Imagine this: a chewy yet crunchy and light chocolate hazelnut, nutella-esc cookie encompassing a thick layer of gooey salty and nutty caramel. If that doesn't convince you that you need these macarons in your life, then maybe a few photos will. But seriously, these macarons are maybe the best dessert I've ever had.
Initially when I planned on baking yesterday, I had no specific recipe in mind at all. I went to the grocery store and told myself I would let the ingredients inspire me. And inspire me they did! At the grocery store, I found powdered hazelnut, sliced almonds, and a mixture of ground hazelnuts, almonds, and sugar, called praline in France. On the back of the powdered hazelnut packet, there was a recipe for these chocolate macarons, which I will share here. No, this is not my original recipe, but I did modify it a bit to put my own twist on it. Rather than just using a plain chocolate filling like the recipe called for, I made a homemade caramel with just honey, coconut milk, coconut oil, and salt, and then I added the toasted sliced almonds and praliné. This made for a sinfully delicious caramel. Like wow. So good. These macarons would be the perfect recipe for your Christmas party to add a little french flare! |
Makes: 1 dozen macarons
Prep Time: 45 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
The ingredients:
For the Caramel (inspired by Against All Grain's Caramel recipe):
The creation:
1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
1. Begin by making the caramel sauce. Bring the honey in a sauce pan over medium heat to a boil and let cook for about 7 minutes. Continuously stir the honey. The honey is done when it begins to turn a dark brown color.
2. Remove from heat and add the salt, coconut milk, and butter. Return to heat and let it continue to cook for 12-15 minutes. The caramel should be thicker by the end and when you run a spatula through the caramel, the caramel should not immediately run to the bottom of the pan. It should be thick enough so that when you stir a spoon/spatula through the pan, the caramel slowly falls back in place.
3. Once the caramel is done, add the toasted almonds and praliné. Set the caramel aside and let cool.
4. Meanwhile, begin to melt the chocolate using a double boiler. Once the chocolate is melted, add it to the powdered hazelnuts and 80 grams of the powdered sugar. Mix well.
5. Mix the egg whites with a pinch of salt until they form peaks. Then add the remaining 45 grams of powdered sugar to the egg whites and mix well.
6. Add 1/3 of the egg whites to the chocolate hazelnut mixture, and mix well so a smooth, more liquid batter is formed. Then add another 1/3 of the egg whites, this time mixing very delicately with a spatula, making large circular motions around the dough, never cutting through it. Then add the remaining third of the egg whites, again employing the same method.
7. Using a pastry bag and pipe, form approximately 1 inch circles on a parchment lined baking sheet. Make sure to leave enough space between the macarons, because they will spread out. Alternatively, you can use a spoon, but you may not achieve as uniform of results. Let the macarons sit out for 10-15 minutes before putting them in the oven.
8. Place the baking sheet in the oven and let macarons cook for 8 minutes. Macarons are done when you can tell they can be easily peeled off of the parchment paper. Remove the parchment paper from baking sheet and let the macarons cool before peeling them off the parchment paper.
9. Once they are done cooling, you can begin the assemblage. Place a spoonful of the caramel mixture on one macaron and then top it off with another macaron.
10. Bon appétit!
Prep Time: 45 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
The ingredients:
For the Caramel (inspired by Against All Grain's Caramel recipe):
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1/2 cup coconut milk (thick, full fat coconut milk from a can)
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 tablespoon butter or palm shortening
- 1/3 cup sliced almonds, toasted
- 1/4 cup praline (a mixture of ground hazelnuts, almonds, and sugar)
- 100 grams dark chocolate (I used 55% cacao)
- 125 grams powdered sugar, divided
- 100 grams powdered hazelnuts
- 2 egg whites
- pinch of salt
The creation:
1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
1. Begin by making the caramel sauce. Bring the honey in a sauce pan over medium heat to a boil and let cook for about 7 minutes. Continuously stir the honey. The honey is done when it begins to turn a dark brown color.
2. Remove from heat and add the salt, coconut milk, and butter. Return to heat and let it continue to cook for 12-15 minutes. The caramel should be thicker by the end and when you run a spatula through the caramel, the caramel should not immediately run to the bottom of the pan. It should be thick enough so that when you stir a spoon/spatula through the pan, the caramel slowly falls back in place.
3. Once the caramel is done, add the toasted almonds and praliné. Set the caramel aside and let cool.
4. Meanwhile, begin to melt the chocolate using a double boiler. Once the chocolate is melted, add it to the powdered hazelnuts and 80 grams of the powdered sugar. Mix well.
5. Mix the egg whites with a pinch of salt until they form peaks. Then add the remaining 45 grams of powdered sugar to the egg whites and mix well.
6. Add 1/3 of the egg whites to the chocolate hazelnut mixture, and mix well so a smooth, more liquid batter is formed. Then add another 1/3 of the egg whites, this time mixing very delicately with a spatula, making large circular motions around the dough, never cutting through it. Then add the remaining third of the egg whites, again employing the same method.
7. Using a pastry bag and pipe, form approximately 1 inch circles on a parchment lined baking sheet. Make sure to leave enough space between the macarons, because they will spread out. Alternatively, you can use a spoon, but you may not achieve as uniform of results. Let the macarons sit out for 10-15 minutes before putting them in the oven.
8. Place the baking sheet in the oven and let macarons cook for 8 minutes. Macarons are done when you can tell they can be easily peeled off of the parchment paper. Remove the parchment paper from baking sheet and let the macarons cool before peeling them off the parchment paper.
9. Once they are done cooling, you can begin the assemblage. Place a spoonful of the caramel mixture on one macaron and then top it off with another macaron.
10. Bon appétit!