Cinnamon Apple Macarons with Salted Caramel

Hi everyone! I’m Kelly from Life Made Sweeter and I’m so excited to be guest posting here today as part of Mandy’s new contributor team. I love sharing family favorite recipes as well as whipping up sweet treats with fun and creative flavor combinations. Fall is my favorite time of year for baking and today, I am sharing these Cinnamon Apple Macarons that have all the classic flavors of fall in these delectable sweet treats.

• Up to 5 days before making macarons, separate the egg whites, cover and store in the refrigerator. The morning of making macarons, set them out on the counter to come to room temperature.
• Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone mat – if using a template, slide underneath parchment paper before piping. Set aside.
• Sift almond flour into a large bowl.  Sift the icing sugar and cinnamon powder into the same bowl. Set aside.
• With a stand mixer or hand mixer, whisk egg whites at medium speed until the egg whites begin to foam. Slowly sprinkle in superfine sugar.  Slowly increase speed to medium-high and beat until a firm meringue forms with stiff glossy peaks.
• Beat in the vanilla extract and a drop of pink food coloring.
• Using a rubber spatula, gently fold the almond flour mixture into the egg whites.  Only fold the batter in one direction by sliding the spatula into the center of the batter, then lifting it up and letting the batter fall back onto itself. It generally takes about 40-45 strokes to work the batter, but this number isn’t as important as how the batter looks.  The batter is ready to pipe when it has a smooth, shiny surface and flows like lava in one large ribbon off the spatula.
• An easy way to tell if the batter is done, use a rubber spatula to lift and drop the batter onto itself – if the ribbon gradually disappears into the batter within 30 seconds, it is ready.  If not, keep folding a bit longer.
• Transfer mixture to a pastry bag with a plain round tip. (I used the No. 12 Wilton tip).
• Pipe rounds onto prepared baking sheets following the templates if using them, leaving space between the macarons to allow batter to spread.
• Once all macarons have been piped, pick up baking sheet with both hands and tap it firmly on counter several times. This will remove any air bubbles.
• Let macarons sit out on counter for about an hour, depending on humidity levels. The macarons are ready to bake when tops are no longer sticky to touch. Gently slide or remove paper templates from underneath before baking.
• While you are waiting, preheat oven to 300 F.  When macarons are dry to the touch, lower the oven temperature to 295 F and bake *both trays at same time (*if your oven has room, otherwise bake one at a time) for 12-14 minutes, rotating trays once. Let macarons cool completely on parchment paper before removing.

*Meanwhile make the Cinnamon Buttercream Frosting For the Cinnamon Buttercream Frosting:

• In the bowl of an electric stand mixer or with your hand mixer, cream butter on medium high speed for about 3 to 4 minutes.  Add vanilla extract and cinnamon. Mix until combined, scraping down the sides as needed.
• Increase speed to medium, and beat until smooth and well combined for another 2 minutes.  Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
• Prepare a piping bag and fill with frosting.

To Assemble:

• Match same-sized macaron shells.  Pipe frosting on the bottom shell and with a small spoon, pour ¼ teaspoon of salted caramel.
• Sandwich the filling with another macaron shell. Repeat for all other macarons.
• Drizzle macarons with salted caramel sauce if desired.