If meringues are the showstopping bride of the dessert trolly, then macaroons are her cute pastel coloured flowergirls.

Or at least they’re supposed to be. Instead of being cute 6-year olds in pastel dresses my macaroons turned out more like *that* teenage cousin you feel obliged to have as a bridesmaid (you know the one, yes, her with the bad complexion and grumpy teen attitude).

But I think I’ve stretched that metaphor to death far enough so back to the cooking…

I really fancied making macaroons, mostly because they look SO pretty (see the photo that seduced me below). Plus they’re basically made from icing sugar, egg white and ground almonds, so what’s not to love there?

What’s not to love is the enormous amount of effort and stress that went into making them, followed by disappointment when they didn’t really work out!

My mum always says ‘it’ll taste just as nice even if it isn’t pretty’ (although I’m not sure she’s right). Theo, who’s just turned 7, loved them although he would happily sit and spoon sugar into his mouth so I can’t say he’s the most discerning taster.

I’ll probably possibly try to make these again when I have more time and patience. But in the meantime if you fancy trying them yourselves I used this recipe here. Have you made macaroons? Any tips?