Chocolate macaroons

Macaroons- very fashionable and so yummy!  They can be tricky to make but if you follow few basic rules- guaranteed to turn out right.  Find 'How to make perfect macaroons?' HERE.  Good luck!

Ingredients:

For the macaroons:

• 75g of ground almonds
• 115g icing sugar
• 2 large egg whites
• 50g caster sugar
• 2tbsp cocoa powder

For the filling:

• 150ml double cream
• 100g dark chocolate

Ground almonds, cocoa powder and icing sugar place in a food processor and process for few seconds. Sift into a bowl.  You can skip this step, if you don't have a food processor, however your macaroons will not be as smooth in texture.

Whisk the egg whites until soft peaks, then whisk in caster sugar  to make a meringue.

Fold in the almond mixture (i always do it three times, adding third of the mixture at a time).  Fold the mixture until shiny and thick.

Pour the batter into a piping bag and pipe 32 small rounds.  Tap the baking sheet onto a work surface to get rid of any air bubbles.

Leave the macaroons in the room temperature for about 30min to let the macaroons form a 'skin'.

Bake in the pre-heated oven at 160 C for 10-15 mins, then leave to cool. 

To make the chocolate cream, warm double cream in a small pan and pour over chocolate chunks, whisk until the chocolate has melted. Leave in a fridge until set.
Sandwich the macaroons together with chocolate cream.

This recipe makes 16 macaroons.

Enjoy!