Recipe: pink champagne macarons

We buy the most delicious macarons at LaDurée in Paris. If you’re craving that decadent delicacy now, but don’t have a trip to Paris on the agenda, you’ll have to get to work yourself. Set aside some time, because the perfect macaron isn’t easy – but it is divine.

What is the difficult part of making a macaron? To begin with: the foot. The best macarons have risen slightly after the top has already become smooth, so they have a beautiful ridged edge on the bottom. The second challenge: folding the almond flour into the egg whites. Fold gently, so no lumps form while keeping the egg whites light and airy. The final point: the oven. A few degrees too hot and your macarons will discolour; a few degrees too cold and they won’t cook through. Are you feeling zen? That’s the right mindset for taking on this French challenge – and remember: practice makes perfect.

• Start with the macarons. Beat the egg whites until foamy. Then add the sugar and continue beating until firm. Add the rose water and food colouring and beat for a little longer. Then sift the almond flour over the batter and gently fold it in with a spatula.
• Place a sheet of baking paper on a baking tray. Pipe circles of meringue onto it. All the circles need to be the same size to get beautiful macarons, so draw circles on the baking paper before you begin – champagne-flute size is ideal.
• Set the baking tray aside for twenty minutes. The macarons will dry out slightly, so you’ll get a lovely foot and a smooth macaron later.
• Preheat the oven to 140 degrees. Bake the macarons for 20 minutes until cooked through. The macarons are done when you can easily lift them off the baking paper.
• Cook a jam with the raspberries, champagne and jam sugar. Let it cool and put it in a piping bag.
• Make the buttercream by whipping the softened butter with icing sugar, food colouring and rose water. Put this in a piping bag as well.
• Pipe a dollop of champagne jam into the centre of a cooled macaron. Using the other piping bag, pipe a circle of buttercream around it, not too close to the edge. Carefully press another macaron on top. Make stacks like this with all the macarons.
• Macarons will keep for 3 days in the refrigerator.

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