What’s Cooking – Chocolate Macaroons

Half Term has started so we have a little helper in the house 🙂 With news all about the storm hitting us today we decided to cancel our plans of outdoor activities and decided to have a lazy day at home. With Mark still at home what better thing can you do than to make some yummy treats. So whilst I had a lazy day working upstairs, typing on my little keyboard and trying to catch up with all outstanding tasks, Mark and E. decided to get their baking on. First creation of the day – Chocolate Macaroons… I am saying first as there are the beginnings of some donuts raising in a bowl already…

My lovely treat at lunch time – Chocolate Macaroons

Ingredients:

• 100g plain dark chocolate (or milk chocolate if you prefer)
• 130g ground almonds
• 130g caster sugar
• 1/4tsp almond essence
• 2tbps drinking chocolate (use cocoa powder if you used milk chocolate)
• 3 medium egg whites
• 1tbsp icing sugar

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180C.
2. Lightly oil several baking sheets and then line them with baking paper.
3. Melt the chocolate (ideally in a heatproof bowl over a pan with warm water), yes it takes an age but stir until smooth, then let it cool slightly whilst you get on with phase 2.
4. Place the ground almond in a large mixing bowl and add the sugar, almond essence, drinking chocolate (or cocoa powder) and whisk to combine. You will be done when the mixture looks like breadcrumbs and the colours are evenly distributed, and of course no lumps.
5. Whisk the 3 egg whites until stiff peaks form.
6. Add the melted chocolate to your dry ingredients and stir briefly, add the egg white foam and combine gently with a large metal spoon. Use the motion of around the edge and over the top till combined.
7. Wet you hands and shape the dough into small balls that are about 2 bites big and place them on your prepared baking sheets.
8. Flatten then slightly with the back of a wet metal spoon and brush with a little water.
9. Sprinkle the icing sugar over the biscuits and pop them in the oven for 10-15 minutes or until just firm. Time will cause the following changes. After 10 minutes you will get a soft biscuit that is chewy, after the 15 minutes you will get a crisp exterior and chewy middle. So remove from the oven according with the biscuit you prefer.
10. Let them cool on the tray for 10 minutes.
11. Using a fish slice, carefully lift the macaroons off the baking paper and transfer to a wire rack to cool a little more.
12. Serve warm with a little extra icing sugar on the top. Goes great with a latte (cheat and boil some milk and add instant coffee, a pinch of coco powder and a dash of cream).

Enjoy!