Hazelnut Macarons

1. Line three large cookie sheets with parchment paper. On a fourth sheet of parchment paper, use a permanent marker to draw 1 1/2-inch circles, 1 inch apart, to create a pattern. Set aside.

2. Fill a 2-qt. saucepan with 1 1/2 inches water. Bring to boiling over medium-high. Reduce heat to medium-low to maintain a gentle simmer. For meringue, in the metal bowl of a stand mixer combine the 3 egg whites, the granulated sugar, salt, and cream of tartar. Place bowl over simmering water, making sure water does not touch bottom of bowl. Cook 8 to 10 minutes or until sugar is dissolved (about 150°F), stirring constantly with a rubber or silicon spatula.

3. Return bowl to stand mixer. Using the whisk attachment, beat egg white mixture on high 8 to 10 minutes or until stiff peaks form (tips stand straight) and bowl is cool to the touch. Add hazelnut liqueur the last 1 minute of beating.

4. Meanwhile, using a coarse-mesh sieve, sift together powdered sugar, almond flour, and ground hazelnuts into a large bowl. Discard any larger pieces (up to 1 Tbsp. total) that remain in sieve. Add the 2 egg whites to flour mixture; stir with a spatula until a thick paste forms. The mixture may seem crumbly at first, but will come together after mixing.

5. Fold and press one-third of the meringue into almond-hazelnut paste. Repeat, folding and pressing in remaining meringue by thirds. Batter will be thick at first, but will loosen as you fold. Pressing the mixture during folding helps to release air bubbles. Continue folding until batter falls off the spatula in a thick ribbon and you can draw a figure 8. Batter should be loose enough that it does not hold its shape but stiff enough that you can still see the figure 8 after about 10 seconds. (It is better to slightly undermix than to overmix.)

6. Fit a pastry bag with a 1/4-inch round tip. Fill bag two-thirds full with batter.

7. For each batch, slide parchment pattern under the plain parchment sheet on a cookie sheet. Pipe batter onto parchment, stopping just before batter reaches the outline of circle. Firmly tap cookie sheet five to 10 times on the counter to release air bubbles. Using a toothpick or the tip of a sharp knife, pop any remaining bubbles that come to the surface. Slide out parchment pattern; repeat with remaining prepared cookie sheets. Let stand 15 minutes or until tops are dry to the touch.

8. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 325°F. Bake macarons, one sheet at a time, 10 to 12 minutes. Tops of cookies should be firm and not slide when gently touched. Immediately slide parchment paper off cookie sheet onto the counter; allow macarons to cool completely.

9. Prepare Hazelnut Buttercream Filling. Spread filling onto bottoms of half of the macarons, using about 1 1/2 tsp. for each. Top with remaining macarons, bottom sides down. Refrigerate up to 5 days or freeze up to 2 months.

Hazelnut Buttercream Filling

1. In an extra-large bowl beat butter with a mixer on medium 1 to 2 minutes or until creamy. Beat in 1/2 cup of the powdered sugar. Beat in cream and salt on low until combined. Gradually beat in the remaining 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar just until combined. Beat on medium 5 minutes or until light and fluffy, scraping bowl as needed. Beat in hazelnut liqueur on high 1 minute more. If desired, beat in chocolate hazelnut spread.

*Tip

For ground hazelnuts, place 6 oz. hazelnuts in a food processor. Pulse to make a fine powder. Sift ground hazelnuts through a coarse-mesh sieve and measure 3/4 cup.