I was really intrigued by the idea of infusing aquafaba with different flavors and I have some beautiful thyme growing in my garden this summer. These macarons combined the savory flavor of thyme with a sweet lemon filling and are a perfect light treat.
Be sure to check out my macaron troubleshooting guide for a step by step with pictures!
As always, a big thanks to Charis at Floral Frosting for the vegan macaron recipe and inspiration! Check out the aquafaba Facebook group for more recipes involving aquafaba!
Ingredients:
• 100 ml of reduced aquafaba
• 5 sprigs of thyme
• 1/4 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
• 100g granulated sugar (1/2 cup)
• 125g almond meal (1 1/4 cup)
• 65g confectioners sugar (1/2 cup)
Filling:
• 4 tbsp vegan butter
• 2 cups confectioners sugar
• zest from 1 small lemon
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
Directions:
1. Reduce 200 ml of aquafaba with thyme sprigs added in a small pan over medium heat until you have 100ml. (Make sure you’re using liquid measuring cups!) Remove thyme sprigs and refrigerate overnight.
2. With a clean bowl and beaters, begin whipping aquafaba until soft peaks form. Add the apple cider vinegar and continue whipping until the mixture can no longer move when you tilt the bowl.
3. Slowly add granulated sugar to your soft peak aquafaba, 1 tablespoon at a time and beat for at least 30 seconds after each addition. When all of the sugar is incorporated, your meringue should be stiff and glossy and hold peaks when you remove the beaters.
4. If you have a rougher texture of almond meal, sift it together with the confectioners sugar and grind up any large bits that won’t fit through you sieve in a spice grinder or food processor. If it’s fine enough to pass through a sieve, just sift the two together.
5. Pass half of the almond/confectioners sugar mixture through the sieve into the meringue. Use a flexible spatula to fold the mixture into the meringue. When there are no more large dry clumps, sift in the rest of the almond/confectioners sugar into the meringue and fold it to incorporate.
6. Once all of the almond meal is mixed and there are no large streaks of meringue or dry clumps, begin macaronnage. Push the batter against the side of the bowl to deflate and scoop from underneath.
Check every few strokes by letting a piece of batter fall off the spatula onto the remaining batter. If it melds back into the batter within 20 seconds, stop there. If it still holds its shape, give it a few more strokes.
7. Pour batter into a piping bag fitted with a round tip, with a clip above the tip. When you are ready to pipe, remove the clip and twist the open end of the piping bag shut.
8. Pipe batter onto parchment lined baking sheets from a 90° angle. Squeeze from the back of the piping bag and let the batter spread into a circle beneath the tip while holding it straight up and down. Repeat until you run out of batter (depending on how large you pipe it, this could require two trays.)
9. Tap the trays 2-3 times on the counter to loosen any bubbles and smooth out any peaks. Sprinkle half the tops with thyme leaves. Let dry for three hours, preferably with a fan blowing on the tops if you are in a humid region. You should be able to touch the top without any tackiness before baking.
10. Preheat oven to just under 215° F. When oven is preheated, place pan on TOP rack of the oven for 30 minutes. Turn oven off after 30 minutes and leave pan in the closed oven for another 30 minutes. Remove from oven and let the pan come to room temperature before removing any shells.
11. While shells are baking, beat butter until fluffy, then add confectioners sugar, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Beat until smooth and add to piping bag.
12. When the macaron shells are completely cooled, gently peel them off the parchment paper. Pipe a blob of lemon filling in the center of the shells. Top with a similar sized shell.
13. Refrigerate overnight for best texture.
Avocados and Ales 
Looks absolutely delish! 😀