Description
Made from only 6 ingredients, these naturally gluten free almond butter coconut macaroons are soft and moist in the centers with extra chewy edges. We love them with chocolate and sea salt on top.
Ingredients
- 14-ounce (396g) package sweetened shredded coconut (about 5 cups)
- 1/3 cup (35g) almond flour
- 1/2 cup (128g) almond butter
- 4 large egg whites, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- optional topping: 4-ounce (113g) semi-sweet chocolate bar + sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325°F (163°C). Line large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Set aside.
- Make the macaroons: Pulse the coconut and almond flour together in a food processor or blender until the coconut is finely chopped and the two are combined, about 10-12 pulses. Add the almond butter and pulse until mixture is moistened and combined, about 10 more pulses. Set aside until the end of the next step.
- In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer with a whisk attachment, beat the egg whites, sugar, and vanilla extract together on high speed until creamy and thickened and the sugar has mostly dissolved, at least 4-5 minutes. See photo above for a visual. (Should look like thinned out marshmallow creme.) Using a silicone spatula or your mixer on medium speed, fold/beat in the coconut almond mixture until combined and the coconut is evenly moistened. Dough is wet and sticky.
- Using a medium cookie scoop or a spoon, scoop 1.5 Tablespoons of the mixture and arrange on prepared baking sheets at least 3 inches apart.
- Bake until lightly golden brown around the edges, about 20 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Optional Topping: Melt the chopped chocolate in a double boiler or use the microwave. For the microwave, place the chocolate in a medium heat-proof bowl or use a glass liquid measuring cup. Melt in 15 second increments, stirring after each increment until completely melted and smooth. Drizzle on cooled cookies. Sprinkle each with sea salt, if desired. Allow chocolate to set in the refrigerator or at room temperature.
- Macaroons stay fresh covered at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: Macaroons, with or without chocolate, freeze well up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator. You can prepare the coconut macaroon dough (steps 2-3) up to 3 days in advance. Cover tightly and refrigerate until ready to bake.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Baking Sheets | Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Paper | Food Processor | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Medium Cookie Scoop | Cooling Rack | Double Boiler or Liquid Measuring Cup (for melted chocolate)
- Don’t have a food processor? Use a blender in step 2 instead. If you don’t have either, give the shredded coconut a rough chop with a sharp knife. Mix with the almond flour, then mix in the almond butter. For mixing, use a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a whisk or paddle attachment on medium speed.
- Coconut: You can use unsweetened coconut if desired. The cookies are still plenty sweet, but feel free to increase sugar to 2/3 cup (135g).
- Almond Flour: Almond flour helps keep these cookies intact. I don’t recommend replacing with regular all-purpose flour, oat flour, or coconut flour. If you don’t have almond flour, use 1/4 cup of raw unsalted almonds. Pulse them into a fine crumb before adding the coconut and pulsing in step 2.
- Almond Butter: Feel free to replace with peanut butter. In my recipe testing, I found that the drier and thicker the almond butter, the drier the cookies taste and the less they spread. (They stayed in a tall mound shape.) The best batch was made with a fresh jar of creamy and almost runny almond butter. Open the jar, stir in any separated oil, then measure.
- Sugar: I have not tested this recipe with any other sugars, but feel free to try it with coconut sugar. Keep in mind that beating the egg whites and sugar together until thickened is a key step and you may not reach that point with any sugar substitutes.