Coconut Macaroons

Crispy on the edges, soft and chewy on the inside, these coconut macaroons are a texture lover’s dream.

I serendipitously came across a recipe for coconut macaroons in Food & Wine Magazine in 2011, right around the time I learned I needed to cut gluten from my diet. I got to keep my precious tortilla chips and guacamole which was huge, but bread, pasta, crackers, cake, cookies and pie – as I knew them – became a thing of the past overnight. It was a sweet surprise to learn something so indulgent (yet simple) was fair game. There are actually tons of flourless desserts out there. And thanks to a large and ever growing army of fellow gluten free home cooks, bloggers and authors, the resources and recipes for baking with alternative flours keep getting better and better.

To clarify, not all coconut macaroons are gluten free. In fact, most of the ones I have seen in store bakeries contain wheat flour. Fear not, this is your recipe whether you love, hate or are intolerant of gluten. They have a deeply satisfying soft, chewy, crunchy thing going on. They take about 10 minutes to make from start to oven and you may already have the ingredients hiding in your pantry.

“The macaroons turned out perfectly this weekend!”

-E.T.

This recipe is at the same time finicky and forgiving. On more than one occasion I have received a frantic text with a photo of sad, weepy macaroons right out of the oven. “What happened?!?!” I’ve been there too. It’s very sad. After dozens (and dozens) of batches, here are my tips and tricks for coconut macaroon success:

COCONUT:

• Use “flaked” as opposed to “shredded” coconut. My very scientific reasoning: the texture seems to work better for this recipe.

SWEETENED CONDENSED MILK (the forgiving part):

• The recipe calls for a 14-ounce can of sweetened condensed milk (which is about 1 1/4 cups). I recommend making the recipe as written the first time. If you find the mixture is too liquidy or that the macaroons are spreading too much during baking, you can cut it by a couple of tablespoons the next time. Find your sweet spot. I’ve gotten by using as little as 3/4 cup which is just enough to barely coat all of the coconut and it will add some richness and a hint of crispy chewy contrast. For maximum sticky sweet chewiness, the more the better.

EGGS (the finicky part):

• Bring the eggs to room temperature before whipping. Set them out about 30 minutes ahead of time.
• Make sure your bowl and whisk or beaters are super clean and free of any grease or residue.
• Take care when separating the eggs and avoid getting any yolk in the whites.
• Whip egg whites in a deep bowl (glass or metal is preferred to plastic) on medium and then high speed. Many macaroon recipes call for whipping the egg whites with salt but after some research and experimenting, I got a better result with cream of tartar. If you don’t have cream of tartar go ahead and substitute salt.
• Beat the egg whites until firm peaks form. Firm peaks stand straight up when the beaters are lifted. If the peaks collapse over, keep going but be careful not to over-beat.

FOLDING (also finicky):

• Gently fold the whipped egg whites into the coconut mixture. Do not stir! The point of whipping egg whites is to incorporate air and create volume which you do not want to deflate.

SCOOPING:

• A disher or “mini ice cream scoop” is the easiest way to portion the macaroons. I use a #50 disher which holds just over a tablespoon. Use a couple of spoons to scoop and shape the mixture if you don’t have a disher.
• Space the macaroons about an inch apart on the baking sheet.

BAKING:

• Bake for 12 minutes, then rotate the pans from top to bottom and front to back. Bake for an additional 10 to 15 minutes, checking for color. They should be golden around the edges and on top.
• Transfer baking sheets to racks and let macaroons cool before serving.

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