Perfect Chocolate Macarons

Make the macaron shells

1. Put the almond and icing sugar in a food processor and blitz, in short bursts, to a fine powder. Sift into a large bowl and discard any bits that don't go through the sieve. Add the cocoa powder and sift once more for perfectly smooth macaron shells. Weigh your dry ingredients – they should be 400g (14oz). If you discard a lot while sifting you will need to compensate.
2. Add half the egg whites (75g) into the bowl and mix vigorously together with a spatula until you have a smooth paste.
3. Put the caster sugar and remaining egg whites in the bowl of your stand mixer. Place the bowl over a saucepan of barely simmering water (do not allow the bottom of the bowl to come to contact with the water). Heat the egg whites, stirring with a wire whisk, until the sugar dissolves. Dip a finger to test whether the sugar has dissolved.
4. Fill the bowl to your stand mixer and whisk on high speed until you have a glossy stiff meringue that forms peaks. Add the vanilla if using.
5. Add a third to the meringue to the bowl with the almond paste and mix it together to loosen. Fold the remaining meringue, in a circular motion, scraping the bottom and sides of the bowl. Mix until the batter drops slowly off your spatula and flows slowly like molten lava. Take care not to over mix your batter.
6. Line three cookie sheets with baking parchment or ideally use Silpat Macaron mats. Transfer the batter into a piping bag with plain round nozzle (Wilton 1A). Hold the bag at a ninety degree angle over the mat and pipe the macarons using the template, using a quick circular motion as you stop squeezing the bag.
7. Carefully but forcefully knock the trays against the counter a few times to release any air bubbles. If the macarons have little 'peaks' pat them down with a clean, wet finger. Leave the macarons to dry until the shells lose their shine and become touch dry.
8. Preheat the oven to 150C / 300F. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the macarons have a smooth, dry top and are firm to the touch. Allow the macarons to dry for at least 10 minutes before peeling off the mat.

Fill the macarons

1. Put the chocolate chips, cream, honey and Baileys in a bowl. Microwave for 30 seconds then stir until chocolate melts. Leave the ganache to cool down (or pop it in the fridge) before using.
2. Pipe the chocolate on half of the shells, allowing space for it to expand and sandwich them gently together.

Decorate the macaron shells (optional)

1. Thin any remaining ganache with a little cream until it flows smoothly. Drizzle over the macarons and sprinkle with salt, chocolate sprinkles or any other decorations. Store the filled macarons in an airtight container and consume within a few days.