Coconut Macaroons – Heaven’s Cookie

Seriously! If there are cookies served in Heaven (how could there not be, right?) – these will be them.  Not only do they come close to being the best thing I’ve ever eaten but they have no butter or oil and only use egg whites so besides a little sugar, they are probably one of the healthier cookies out there.  I only recently became acquainted with coconut macaroons on a summer trip to Denver.  I loved them so much and could not stay away from the little stash my sister-in-law had.  When I returned home, I immediately went on a search for the perfect coconut macaroon.  It only took one shot and I found it.  These are incredibly easy to make and will leave you oooing and awwing with every single bite.  They are slightly crispy on the bottoms and around the very outer layer and just seriously pure chewy heaven on the inside.   I now ensure that I buy coconut every single time I go to the store (in the bulk section)  because these have become a permanent fixture in my cookie jar.   There is one major problem with this recipe, it only makes 12-14 cookies.  Feel free to octuple it 🙂 Enough said.

Of course I always give credit where credit is due… However, my printer was out of ink when I discovered this wonderful recipe, so I had to hand-write it, and now I cannot find it online again for the life of me. I apologize to the macaroon genius who created this beautiful masterpiece.

Ingredients:

3 egg whites

1 cup sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp almond extract

2 1/2 cups sweetened coconut flakes

1/2 cup flour

Directions:

In a double boiler, mix egg whites, sugar and salt.  If you do not own a double boiler like me, use a bowl that will fit into a small sauce pan without touching the bottom.  Add about 1/2 inch of water to the bottom of the pan.  The bowl should not touch the water.

 

Cook over simmering water, stirring constantly until it is  thoroughly heated and sugar is dissolved.  Remove from heat.  Stir in almond extract.  Add coconut and flour.  Stir until incorporated.  Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour (or if you are like me and can not stop shoving the dough in your mouth and are afraid it won’t last an hour, just stick it in the freezer until it is cool (15-20 minutes), stirring occasionally.

Heat oven to 325. Line cookie sheet with parchment paper.  I know this is an item that not everyone has in your kitchen.  Don’t substitute wax paper.  Wax paper is not meant for being heated so the wax will melt off and burn and smoke.  If you don’t have parchment and don’t see a trip to the grocery store in your near future, line your baking sheet with foil and grease the foil.  It may change the outcome of your cookie slightly but at least you won’t be scraping chunks of cookie stuck onto your baking sheet. Drop dough by 2 heaping Tablespoons or use your medium-sized cookie scoop for the perfect size and shape.  Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown on the bottom.

Cool 5 minutes or at least long enough to not singe your tongue because 5 minutes will seem like an eternity.

Serve in a cardboard box shoved way to the back of your pantry where no one else can find it 😉 OR you could double the batch and at least let one other person in on your secret stash.