Lime Coconut Macaroons

Let me note…this is about as green as I am going to get. There isn’t any Irish in me……and I don’t like green beer..lol!

The recipe was inspired by one in the current issue of Bon Appetit. I tried two variations of it, and found my version was considerably better in texture. I think most of it was the type of coconut used. The original recipe called for coconut shavings (coconut chips), which are large pieces of coconut. For me, this has all the texture of bark shavings when not used properly. While still tasty, they were a bit too chewy for my liking, it was too big for my liking. So I made a second batch, and tweaked it to my style. Those were perfect. The recipe had merit, although by the time I got done it was my own. And that is OK. I look at it as inspiration. It got me creative!

Note – these do contain egg whites, where as my last ones I published were vegan. There are many types of macaroons, this is a lighter version, in that they are airier. The egg is partly why.

In the photo above, the original version is in the far left row, using Bob’s Red Mill Flaked Coconut Unsweetened. The middle and right rows were made with shredded coconut. Trader Joe’s is carrying a lightly sweetened shredded coconut, which if you can get, stock up! It is nice in taste and texture, not like the nasty sweetened coconut sold in grocery stores. (Why so? Well, the secret to why the big brand name coconut being unnaturally moist is a nice helping of Propylene Glycol (Preserves Freshness), and Sodium Metabisulfite (Retains Coconut Whiteness) and another company adds cornstarch as well. You know how you need your coconut to be extra-white, right? Anyhow, use what you have on hand. As long as it doesn’t have ol’ PG in it that is.

Do weigh out your coconut, it is important. The original recipe said if you used the name-brand-sweetened coconut (the type with Glycol added) to use 14 ounces. I used 7 ounces of the Trader Joe’s, and 7 ounces of the Bob’s Red Mill flakes in the first batch. Both were the right amount.

Lime Coconut Macaroons

Ingredients:

• 2 large egg whites
• ¼ cup coconut sugar
• 1 Tbsp lime zest (see below)
• ¼ tsp fine sea salt
• 7 ounces shredded coconut, unsweetened or lightly sweetened, all-natural

Directions:

Line two baking sheets with parchment paper, place oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven, preheat oven to 325°.

Use a Microplane zester to zest about 2 limes (preferably organic and rinsed well). Save limes to juice for other projects.

Whisk egg whites and sugar in a large mixing bowl until just frothy (it can be hard to tell with the caramel color of the sugar, stop and you can see it is frothy when it settles).

Add in lime zest and salt, whisk in. Fold in coconut.

Drop rounded Tablespoons of coconut on the parchment paper.

Bake for 8 minutes, then flip the trays, bake for another 10 to 14 minutes, until golden brown.

Remove and let cool on baking sheets. Once cool, transfer to an airtight container for storage.

Yield:

We got 24 with the large chips, 18 with shredded coconut.

Notes:

Don’t eat until fully cooled. In fact, they taste better the next day. They get a sticky, lightly sweet mellowing.

~Sarah

PS: Exciting news: a giveaway will be starting tomorrow! Want a sneak peek?