For the salted caramel filling: In a small saucepan, bring the heavy cream to a boil. Remove from the heat, cover, and set aside.
In a medium saucepan, add the sugar and water and melt the sugar completely over medium heat. Once the sugar is melted and smooth, increase the heat to high and boil the sugar, without stirring but gently swirling the pan occasionally, until the mixture is a nice golden caramel color. Remove from the heat. Gradually whisk in the butter, being very careful when adding it so the boiling sugar doesn't splash on your hands. Pour the heavy cream into the caramel mixture in a small stream, whisking continually.
Clip a candy thermometer to the side of the saucepan and return to medium-high heat. Boil until the mixture reaches 226°F (108°C). Pour into a shallow heatproof dish and let cool for 5 to 10 minutes. Cover with plastic wrap, pressing it directly onto the surface of the filling, and refrigerate until completely cold, at least 2 hours.Transfer the filling to a pastry bag fitted with a round tip and set aside until ready to assemble the macarons.
For the macaron shells: *Return the egg whites to room temperature at least an hour before making the macarons shells.*
In the bowl of a food processor, add the powdered sugar, almond flour, and pecans, and process until the mixture is thoroughly incorporated, 30 seconds to a minute. Sift the mixture through a fine-mesh strainer to make sure no lumps or bigger bits of nuts are left.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, or in a large stainless steel mixing bowl if using a hand mixer, whisk the egg whites on medium/high speed until frothy. Add a tablespoon of the granulated sugar, continue whisking at medium-low speed, then add the remaining sugar slowly. Increase the speed medium-high and whisk until the egg whites are bright white and create stiff peaks. At low speed, mix in a few drops of brown gel food coloring, to your liking.
Add the almond and powdered sugar mixture to the egg whites and, using a spatula, gently fold in the dry ingredients: slide your spatula all the way to the bottom of the bowl and come back up to the top. Do this about 6 times to incorporate the dry ingredients, then keep folding for a total of about 14 strokes until no pockets of dry ingredients remain and the mixture drops from the side of the spatula in a slow, lazy ribbon. Start testing the ribbon stage early to avoid overfolding.
Stack two baking sheets and line the top sheet with parchment paper. If you're not using parchment paper sheets, cut out the parchment paper so it fits precisely over the bottom of the sheet to make sure the macarons will lay flat. Slide macaron templates under the parchment paper, if using.
Transfer the macaron batter to a pastry bag fitted with a ½-inch (1.25-cm) round tip. Pipe 1 ½-inch (3.8-cm) rounds of batter, evenly spaced but still close to one another as they will not expand much.
Carefully slide the macaron templates off the baking sheets, if you used them. Using a small fine-mesh strainer, lightly sprinkle gold shimmer dust over the shells. Let the shells rest on the baking sheets for 20 to 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 275°F (135°C) with a rack set to the middle position. Bake each sheet of macaron shells for 13 to 16 minutes, or until the shells are firm on their feet when you lightly tap on them with the tip of a finger.
Let the shells cool completely to room temperature before assembling them, about an hour.
To assemble the macarons: Pair same sized shells together and set side by side on a work surface. Pipe some salted caramel filling over half of the shells. Close the macarons, gently pressing the second shells over the filling.
STORAGE: Store the assembled Salted Caramel French Macarons in an airtight container and refrigerate overnight before indulging.French macarons will keep, refrigerated, for up to 3 days. You can also freeze assembled macarons in an airtight container for up to 1 month.
SERVING: Always bring these Salted Caramel French Macarons back to room temperature before serving.
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