Macarons

Just sharing with you what my dd likes. Have been baking these every Sunday for the past few Sundays. She cannot get enough of them.I have tried a few different ways of making them. The easiest way I find (to me, that is) to do it is simply to whip up the egg whites till semi stiff, after which you add the sugar and whip till you get stiff peaks. Then fold the almond and icing sugar to this and put into a piping bag and pipe onto a baking tray which has been lined with parchment paper. Tried leaving for 1/2 hour for skin to form and tried baking straight away. Either way "feet" still formed, so now I take the easy way and bake straight away.


Ingredients:
125 gms almond powder/meal
225 gms icing sugar (sifted)
110 gms egg white (approximately 3 eggs)
30 gms caster sugar

Method:
1. Line baking tray with parchment paper.
2. Beat egg white till almost stiff and add caster sugar. Beat till you get semi stiff peaks.
3. Fold in sifted icing sugar and almond powder to the beaten egg whites.
4. Put egg white mixture into a piping bag and pipe onto the prepared baking tray. Pipe into circles of around 1 1/2 to 2 inches.
5. Bake at 160 deg C for about 15 mins.
6. Once done, remove from oven and peel off parchment sheet and leave to cool.
7. When the macarons are cool, add in filling of choice and sandwich together.

Note: if base is still quite soft after 15 mins, turn off oven and leave macarons in oven and the bottoms will firm up.

The other thing that she likes is Eaton Mess. This is a very easy dessert to make. Whip some cream in a mixing bowl, then crush some store bought meringue. Lastly add chopped strawberries or raspberries. Voila! I know it looks a mess (hence the name) but it tastes absolutely delicious.