Chocolate Macarons with Caramel Cream Cheese Buttercream Frosting

When I made the Fireworks Cookies & Cream Cookies for work I had a ton of eggs leftover plus 4 oz. of cream cheese. So I decided to try making macarons again using the same method that I had used last time. For the cream cheese the only solution I could come up with was cream cheese frosting to I started looking at every cream cheese frosting recipe on my Pinterest Frostings board until I found one on Wicked Good Kitchen that only required 4 oz. of cream cheese (and for once, I stayed with the first one I found instead of saving it for consideration). Because it was a caramel frosting I decided to make chocolate macarons since caramel is one of the many things that goes deliciously with chocolate. I finally decided on a chocolate macaron recipe from Diethood.

Chocolate Macarons with Caramel Cream Cheese Buttercream Frosting

Ingredients

Chocolate Macarons (source)

• 5 egg whites, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup superfine sugar
• 1-3/4 cups almond flour
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 3 tablespoons cocoa powder

Caramel Cream Cheese Buttercream Frosting (source)

• 1 cup (2 sticks or 226 grams) butter, softened
• 4 ounces (½ 8-ounce package/113 grams) cream cheese, chilled from the fridge
• ½ cup (224 grams) homemade or prepared caramel, salted caramel sauce or dulce de leche, thick at room temperature
• 2 teaspoons (10 ml) pure vanilla extract
• 4 cups (480 grams) confectioners’ sugar, spooned in cup, leveled off & sifted

Directions

1. Line three baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside.
2. Place egg whites in mixer's bowl and mix until frothy; gradually pour in the superfine sugar, and continue to beat until mixture is glossy and stiff peaks form; set aside. (I did this at the same time I did the next three steps.)
3. Sift together the almond flour and powdered sugar into a large mixing bowl. (I ran them through my food processor first before putting them through the sifter to help get them extra fine and ground-down.)
4. With a large spoon, mix well to incorporate the almond flour and sugar.
5. Add cocoa powder and continue to mix until thoroughly combined.
6. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold in 1/4 of the egg mixture into the almond mixture.
7. Continue folding the rest of the meringue until completely incorporated.
8. Fit a piping bag with a 3/8-inch round tip and fill it with the prepared mixture.
9. Pipe the batter into small rounds onto previously prepared baking sheets.
10. Allow to dry at room temperature for 1 hour.
11. Preheat oven to 315℉.
12. Bake the macarons for 12 to 15 minutes.
13. Rotate baking sheet after 6 minutes for even baking; cookies are done when they no longer jiggle when touched on top.
14. Remove macarons from oven and transfer to a cooling rack; do not remove from baking sheets.
15. Let completely cool.
16. To make filling: Using an electric stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, or handheld mixer and large bowl, beat butter on medium speed until creamy.
17. Add cream cheese, caramel and vanilla; beat until fully incorporated (you know that trick that's become popular over the last couple years about spraying your measuring cup with anti-stick spray for sticky ingredients like caramel? Totally works). Gradually increase mixer speed to high and continue beating until light and fluffy, scraping down the sides of bowl as necessary with rubber spatula.
18. Gradually add confectioners’ sugar, beating on low speed (stir), until well combined. Beat on high speed until well combined and smooth while scraping down sides of bowl as necessary, about 2 minutes.
19. Before filling, frosting, icing and piping cakes, rebeat buttercream to ensure smoothness.

I think I made the shells too big (which I think was the case last time) because they didn't look like the pictures (although they did look like some macarons I've seen) and I didn't make that many. They were still good though. I stored them in a container in the fridge. I did end up with a lot of leftover frosting so now I have to figure out what I'm going to do with it!