Salted Caramel Macarons
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These Salted Caramel Macarons are made with homemade caramel. This recipe is easy to make and tastes much better than store-bought. If you are looking for caramel that holds its shape and has an amazing texture, then this only recipe you need. You will be impressed with the texture and taste!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- This is a very stable caramel that is holding its shape. Try American Buttercream or Laduree Dark Chocolate Ganache.
- Delicious taste. Try Swiss Meringue Buttercream or Brown Butter Buttercream.
- Made with simple ingredients and tastes delicious.
Ingredients
- Sugar: White granulated sugar and powdered sugar.
- Flour: Almond flour. Make sure you are using almond flour and not almond meal.
- Egg: Egg whites at room temperature. I do not age egg whites.
- Food Coloring: Gel food coloring. I use Chefmaster Buckeye Brown.
- Cream: Heavy cream. Do not substitute with milk of half and half.
- Butter: Unsalted butter. You can also use salted butter.
- Glucose Syrup: Can be replaced with inverted sugar.
- Gelatin: I used Knox gelatin.
- Water: Cold water.
- Salt: I used flaky sea salt.
How to Make This Recipe
- Bake macaron shells. I used my Easy Macarons Recipe. You can also make Chocolate Macarons or Hazelnut Macaron Shells. I also have an online video lesson on how to make macaron shells using the No Rest method.
- Make Caramel. This caramel can be made a few days ahead. Make sure to keep it in the fridge.
- Fill Macaron shells with Salted Caramel.
How to Make Salted Caramel
You need to bloom the gelatin first. That means mixing powdered gelatin and cold water in a small bowl and letting it soak for 20-30 minutes. After that, set the gelatin mass aside in a cold place or put it in the fridge until use.
In the medium-sized saucepan, add granulated sugar and turn the heat up to medium. Start melting sugar. Do not stir! Sugar should be completely dissolved and have a beautiful amber color.
Tip from Marina: I like to use a light-colored saucepan to make caramel. This way is easy to see the color of caramel and not to burn it.
In the meantime, in the small saucepan, add heavy cream and glucose syrup. Warm up over low heat. Do not boil!
When the sugar has fully dissolved and there are no clumps left, start pouring warm heavy cream with glucose syrup into it in 3-4 parts.
Mix with the wooden spoon and take off the heat. Please be very careful when pouring warm cream into melted sugar. The mixture will be very hot! It is important to wear heat-proof gloves.
Add the gelatin mass to the mixture and mix well with a wooden spoon.
Strain the mixture through a sieve and let it cool down.
Cut unsalted butter into small pieces. Add butter a few pieces at a time and mix well until you get a smooth caramel. Then add flaky sea salt and mix again with the spatula.
Transfer caramel into a pastry bag.
How to Store Salted Caramel
Transfer the caramel into a piping bag and let it set in the refrigerator for 6-8 hours or overnight. You can also transfer caramel into a bowl or flat container and cover it with plastic wrap “to contact”. Keep caramel in the fridge until ready to fill macarons.
How to Make Macaron Shells
Add egg whites into a clean mixing bowl of a stand mixer. Pour sugar into a few parts.
Add gel food coloring to the French meringue.
Start folding the batter until it flows fast from the spatula. Do not overmix!
Pipe macaron shells on the prepared baking mat.
Pipe salted caramel on one flat side of the macaron shell.
Sandwich a macaron with another macaron shell and press lightly.
Place assembled macarons into an airtight container and refrigerate for 12-24 hours. Macarons need to “mature” before you can enjoy them.
Recipe FAQs
Store Salted Caramel Macarons in an air-tight container for 2-3 days.
No, I would not recommend freezing macarons with salted caramel filling.Â
The problem can be gelatin. Make sure you are using 220 bloom gelatin.
Yes, you can flavor caramel with spices or vanilla.
My Latest Video
If you make these Salted Caramel Macarons, please tag me on social media and make sure to leave a rating down below. I would love to see your creations!
Recipe
Salted Caramel Macarons
Equipment
- 1 stand mixer or electric hand mixer
- 1 saucepan
- 1 spatula
- 1 Fine mesh sieve
Ingredients
Salted Caramel
- 275 ml heavy creamÂ
- 280 gr granulated sugar
- 224 gr unsalted butter
- 20 gr glucose syrup
- 7 gr gelatin (1 Knox pack)
- 42 gr cold water
- 3 gr flaky sea saltÂ
Macaron Shells
- 140 gr almond flour
- 125 gr powdered sugar
- 100 gr egg whites room temperature (from 3 large eggs)
- 105 gr white granulated sugar
- 1 g gel food coloring
Instructions
How to Make Salted Caramel
- Mix gelatin and cold water in the small bowl and leave it to soak. Set aside in a cold place or put in the refrigerator.
- In the medium-sized saucepan, add granulated sugar and turn the heat up to medium. Start melting sugar. Do not stir!Â
- In the small saucepan, add heavy cream and glucose syrup. Warm up over low heat. Do not boil!
- When sugar has fully dissolved and there are no clumps left, start pouring warm heavy cream into it in 3 -4 parts. Mix with the wooden spoon and take off the heat. Please be very careful when pouring warm cream into melted sugar. The mixture will be very hot! It is important to wear heat-proof gloves.
- Add gelatin mass into the mixture and mix well with the wooden spoon.Â
- Strain the mixture through a sieve and let it cool down.
- Cut unsalted butter into small pieces. Add butter and mix well until you get a smooth caramel.Â
- Add flaky sea salt and mix again.Â
- Transfer into a piping bag and let it set in the refrigerator for 6-8 hours or overnight.Â
How to Make Salted Caramel Macarons
- Get all ingredients and tools ready. Line two baking sheet pans with a baking mat. Place the piping bag with a round tip into a tall pitcher or bag holder.
- Add egg whites to a clean and dry mixing bowl of a stand mixer. Whisk on low speed until foam forms. Then start adding sugar in a few parts. You can add food coloring at this stage or later.
- After that, change the speed in the mixer to medium and set up the timer for 15 minutes.Â
- Meanwhile, in the other mixing bowl, sift together almond flour and powdered sugar.
- Add food coloring and whip again for about 30 seconds. You can add a few more drops of gel food coloring if you like for deeper shades, if you like.
- Add sifted dry ingredients to the French meringue and fold the batter using a spatula. Do not overfold! Check the batter every 5 folds.Â
- The batter is ready when it flows fast from the spatula. You need to have "lava consistency"
- Transfer the batter to the piping bag with a round tip.Â
- Pipe macaron shells on the prepared baking mats. Hold the piping bag straight and apply pressure when you start piping, then stop when you reach the desired size of the macaron shell.Â
- Lightly tap the baking tray to remove air bubbles. Use a toothpick or a baking needle to remove the bubbles from the piped macaron shells.Â
- Let macaron shells rest (dry) on the countertop for about 15-30 minutes.Â
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 300°F (150 °C).
- Bake macaron shells in a preheated oven for 14-16 minutes. Baking time and temperature may be different, depending on your oven.Â
- Remove the baking tray from the oven and let the macaron shells cool to room temperature before removing them from the mat.Â
- Pair macaron shells of similar sizes before filling them.
Hello! I’ve just wanted to let you know that I made this macarons with this filling and they were amazing! Finally I found a recipe with a perfect consistency. Thank you!!
Greetings from Uruguay 🙂
Thank you so much for sharing!
Hello! Can I just omit the glucose in the recipe?
You can replace glucose syrup with heavy cream.
can we use agar agar instead of gelatin?
No, agar agar will not work for this recipe.
Thank you for recipe Marina. Can I use light corn syrup instead?
Yes, light corn syrup will work.
Hi! Can I substitute invert syrup for the glucose?
Yes, you can.
so this look fantastic, so with gelatin it wont melt right_? And what’s the use of glucose syrup, is it for the texture?
Thank you! Gelatine helps to hold shape of caramel when you fill macarons. Caramel will not be runny. Glucose syrup used to prevent crystallization. Let me know how you like this recipe. Woould love to see your creations!