SALTED CARAMEL BUTTER POPCORN MACARON

The are AH-MAZE-INGLY finger licking good. Sweet and salty, crispy and chewy little pieces of cloud heaven. The macaron shell is quite an easy one in comparison to some. Not too much technique, just getting your egg whites whipped to the right point, not too runny and not too stiff. weighing out all your ingredients and sifting them a couple of times. A correct oven temperature is paramount and making sure you turn the timer on is just about all the skill you need to make these beauties. This recipe makes approximately 35 macaroons

SALTED CARAMEL

300 grams caster sugar
60 grams glucose
120 grams water
220 grams cream
5 grams gelatin leaves
125 grams butter
2 grams salt

Get two saucepans on the heat. In one place the cream and bring just to the boil. In the other place sugar, glucose and water and cook until a caramel colour. Deglaze with the cream and stir in the gelatin leaves. Cool to around 50 degrees celsius and blitz in the butter.

SALTED BUTTER CREAM

200 grams butter
100 grams salted caramel

After you have blitzed in the butter for the salted caramel, remove 100 grams and blitz in 200 grams of butter.

POPCORN

Pop a handful of popcorn in a large knob of butter and a pinch of salt. Once popped crumble the popcorn into small pieces.

MACARON

140 grams egg white
70 grams caster sugar
230 grams icing sugar
120 grams almond meal
2 grams salt

Preheat oven to 150 degrees celsius. Whip egg whites and sugar until stiff and then continue to whip for 2 minutes. Sift icing sugar and almond meal twice discarding any bits that do not pass through the sieve. Fold into egg white with a metal spoon in as little folds as possible aim for less than 20. Place mixture into piping bag and pipe onto trays lined with baking paper and bang the tray down on the bench a couple of times. Sprinkle with popcorn and let them sit for 10 minutes before baking them in preheated oven for 10-15 minutes.

ASSEMBLY

Match up the macaron shells so that both top and bottom are even sizes. On one side spread the salted caramel buttercream and make a well in the center with a butter knife. Fill the well with salted caramel and then place the lid on top with a bit of a twist to ensure that it is stuck on well. Store in the fridge and serve at room temperature and the most important thing ENJOY!

Make sure you fold the sifted almond meal and icing sugar in well with minimal strokes

Sprinkle crushed popcorn on top of the piped macaroons

Allow the piped macarons to sit for 5-10 minutes before placing them in the oven.

I am often asked how I find time to cook and bake with a toddler. The answer is I get him involved, from weighing and tipping in to stirring and spooning out to playing with the dished. He loves it and I can't step foot into the kitchen without being asked  'chair over?'

The baked macarons. Allow to stand on the tray for 5-10 minutes after baking to allow to set adequately. 

Fill the macarons. This time instead of piping the filling I used a butter knife to spread the buttercream and then carved out a hole in the middle and filled it with salted caramel. The texture combination is amazing and the butter cream stops the caramel from oozing out everywhere. If you put them in the fridge the caramel goes all chewy and delicious, or at room temperature it is the perfect oozing consistency.

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