Traditional Almond Macaroons

These delicious, chewy, macaroons are the traditional teatime treat!  Perfect for dairy and gluten-free diets, they are a great way of using up left-over egg whites, and are one of the main constituents of my Classic Sherry Trifle, as well as a great accompaniment to a creamy mousse.    So quick and easy to make, I usually do a batch or so when making other things, as there always seem to be egg whites begging to be used!   They are delicious fresh, but can be stored in an airtight tin for ages without becoming sad.  They can be made on rice paper, but I prefer parchment.

Traditional Almond Macaroons

Traditional Almond Macaroons

1 egg white

3 ½ oz/100g caster sugar

2oz/50g ground almonds

½ tsp almond essence

flaked almonds

small quantity egg white for glazing

  

Line 1-2 baking sheets with silicone paper/parchment (it has to be non-stick: I learned this the hard way!), and preheat the oven to 180 deg C.

Whisk the egg white until stiff, and fold in the ground almonds, caster sugar and almond essence.   Put dessertspoonfuls of mixture onto the paper, allowing room to spread (about 6 per tray).   Drop a few flaked almonds on each, then use the pastry brush dipped in egg white to simultaneously glaze the macaroons, press them down and make the almonds stick.   (The Good Housekeeping cookbook says you can pipe the mixture, but I prefer the rustic look).   

Bake for about 10-15 minutes until just beginning to colour.  When you take them out they will be squidgy, but leave them and they will stiffen.