Raspberry and white chocolate macaroons

MAKES 20 MACAROONS For the macaroons • 100g ground almonds • 100g icing sugar • 100g caster sugar • 4 egg whites • 1½tbsp water • Pink food colouring • A few drops of raspberry essence For the white chocolate filling • 110g good-quality white chocolate • 55g butter • 3tbsp milk • 170g icing sugar First make the white chocolate filling. Melt the white chocolate and butter in a bowl over a pan of simmering water. Stir occasionally. Once melted, add icing sugar and milk to form a smooth paste. Leave to cool. Next, make the macaroons. Preheat the oven to 150°C and line a baking tray with greaseproof paper. Sieve the icing sugar and ground almonds into a large bowl and mix. Add two egg whites, essence and colouring and mix to form a thick paste. Heat sugar and water gently in a pan until the sugar dissolves and then boil until you have a shiny, clear syrup. In a separate bowl whisk the remaining egg whites until they form soft peaks. Add the sugar syrup gradually until the whites are thick and glossy. Gently fold into the almond and icing sugar mix. Fill a piping bag with the mix and carefully pipe 40 small blobs on to the pre-prepared baking tray. Bear in mind that each blob is one half of a macaroon, so don’t be tempted to make them too big. Gently tap the baking sheet a few times to remove any air bubbles from the mixture. Leave to dry for 20 minutes or until a smooth, shiny skin forms. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes with the oven door slightly open. Slide on to a wire rack to cool. Once cool, pipe a layer of white chocolate filling on to the rougher side of one macaroon half. Then top with another half. Repeat until you have a full set of macaroons.