If I knew you were coming I'd have baked a cake...

I spent my weekend at home, at a first birthday party for my next door neighbours little girl Rosalie.
Birthday parties for little girls require cake, but not wanting to make cupcakes or a victoria sponge, as I knew what my sister and mum would have made I decided to go with macaroons.
Somewhere between a meringue and a biscuit Macaroons are quick to make, but hard to perfect (and I am by no means claiming to have perfected them!) They lend themselves to customisation in terms of flavour and colour and like cupcakes that went before them they are rapidly becoming the new thing to bake fabulous batches of.
For Rosalie I made Rose and Lemon flavoured. The recipe I used was based on this one from Delicious Magazine, with a few additions and alterations of my own.

Rose and Lemon Macaroons

Ingredients
175g icing sugar
125g powdered almonds (finer than ground almonds, usually available in ethnic supermarkets, if you can't find these put ground almonds in a blender and wizz for 30 seconds)
3 large free-range egg whites
50g caster sugar
1/4 tsp Rose essence
1/4 teaspoon red food colouring

For the filling
150g butter, softened
75g icing sugar
zest and juice of half a lemon

In a bowl, whisk the egg whites with a pinch of salt to soft peaks, then gradually whisk in the caster sugar until thick and glossy. Then add 1/4 teaspoon of rose extract and 1/4 teaspoon of red food colouring.

Fold half the powdered almonds and icing sugar into the meringue and mix well. Add the remaining half, making sure you use a spatula to cut and fold the mixture until it is shiny and has a thick, ribbon-like consistency as it falls from the spatula. Spoon into a piping bag fitted with a 1cm plain nozzle.

Line 2 baking sheets with baking paper. Pipe small rounds of the macaroon mixture, about 3cm across, onto the baking sheets. Give the baking sheets a sharp tap on the work surface to ensure a good ‘foot’. Leave to stand at room temperature for 10-15 minutes to form a slight skin. This is important – you should be able to touch them lightly without any mixture sticking to your finger.

Whilst the macaroons are standing heat the oven to 150 degrees centigrade. This will take about as long as it takes the macaroons to set. I usually cook mine for about 12 minutes, try to avoid opening the oven door as this will cause the tops of the macaroons to crack excessively.

Whilst the macaroons are cooking you can make the filling. In a bowl, beat the butter until light and fluffy, then beat in the icing sugar. Add to this the zest and juice of half a lemon. You might need to add a bit more icing sugar (maybe a tablespoon) to make the butter cream thick again. Use to sandwich pairs of macaroons together.

As you can see mine are a bit cracked and uneven but I think it adds to the home made feel of them! They really aren't hard to make and turning up at a party with cakes in tow is always appreciated! Macaroons look lovely presented in a box in rows, or just do as I did, whack them all in a tin and wait for them to be demolished by scores of hungry hands!