Sweet & Nutritious: 5-Step Healthy Coconut Macaroons Recipe

Source: Taste of Home

Although, the two share some similarities, macaroons and macarons are not the same thing. Their similarities include that they’re both made with egg whites and are naturally gluten-free. 

But, French macarons are generally very light and delicate sandwich cookies made with whipped egg whites and almond flour, and they often have some ganache,  jam, or frosting as their filling. 

Meanwhile, coconut macaroons are made from shredded coconut instead of almond flour. They’re not as airy as macarons, but they’re also much easier to make and not nearly as finicky. 

And that’s what we are making today! 

Why You’ll Love Coconut Macaroons 

• Coconut macaroons don’t need refrigeration, so making them ahead of a holiday party or any other event is an excellent choice. 
• Coconut macarons are soft, gluten-free, chewy, and oil-free, hence they are totally healthy. 
• Making them is really super easy! Even beginner bakers can easily prepare them for the first time!
• The taste of these macaroons is sweet and coconutty, with aromatic hints of a caramel-like flavor that comes from the toasted sides of the coconut macaroons! 
• They have an unbelievable texture, crunchy and fluffy at the same time!

What Type of Coconut to Use

When making healthy coconut macaroons, remember to use unsweetened fine or desiccated shredded coconut. This is super important because using longer shreds, the macaroons will not hold together and they’ll spread across the pan. There are a couple of brands on Amazon that make finely shredded coconut that works perfectly. 

Ingredients Needed to Make Healthy Coconut Macaroons 

To make healthy coconut macaroons, you only need six ingredients, and maybe also chocolate chips (which are optional, but we’d highly recommend them!).

• Unsweetened fine shredded/desiccated coconut 
• Almond flour 
• Maple syrup
• Coconut oil
• Vanilla
• Sea salt
• Dairy-free chocolate chips 

How to Make Healthy Coconut Macaroons

Step 1. Stir together the unsweetened shredded coconut, almond flour, maple syrup, vanilla,  coconut oil, and sea salt in a medium-sized bowl.

Step 2. Use a rounded Tablespoon or small cookie scoop to scoop the batter onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and then bake for 20-22 minutes.

Step 3. Once you’re done with baking, remove from oven and let cool. They will firm up as they cool so wait about 10-15 minutes or so before serving or dipping in chocolate.

Step 4. If you’re adding melted chocolate, add chips to a microwave-safe bowl and heat for about 30 seconds, and stir. If you notice chips aren’t melted, heat for another 10 seconds or so. If the chocolate seems too thick even after melting you can add a teaspoon of melted coconut oil to thin it out.

Step 5.  Now dip each macaroon into the melted chocolate and/or drizzle chocolate over each macaroon and place macaroons in the fridge/freezer for 5-10 minutes to allow the chocolate to harden.

Serving Suggestions

Now you’re done with the recipe, it’s time to have a look at some serving inspiration. 

You can enjoy these healthy coconut macronoons with your tea or coffee. And when you want to have some extra special taste, then try this type of cookie with any of those awesome beverages:

Orange Lemonade Drink, Dalgona Coffee,  Caramel Spice White Hot Chocolate, or Cantaloupe Mora Smoothie!

You can also dip macaroons in melted dark chocolate! It is optional but tastes so delicious. Just once your coconut macaroons have fully cooled, dip them in a small bowl of melted chocolate.

You can also eat these delicious macaroons with peanut butter spread along with your breakfast. 

How to Store Healthy Coconut Macaroons

Store any coconut macaroons in the fridge or freezer. If you do store them in the freezer, let them sit out at least 10-15  minutes before eating. They’re hard straight from the freezer.

Top Tips for Perfect Healthy Coconut Macaroons

Here are some additional tips for when making coconut macaroons:

As mentioned earlier, it’s very important to use unsweetened coconut for macaroons, be it fine or shredded coconut. If you use the longer shreds, the macaroons will not hold together and they’ll simply spread across the pan. 

If you use stiff coconut flakes, your macaroons will be harder to shape, and will easily fall apart after baking. The texture of your macaroons will majorly depend on choosing finely shredded coconut.

If you can only find unsweetened coconut flakes, then blend them in a food processor or blender at a high speed to make them much smaller for the best results.

If you fancy it, add sea salt to traditional coconut macaroons (absolutely optional). Just half a teaspoon of sea salt will make the taste of these healthy macaroons more pronounced.

Other Coconut Dessert Recipes

We all will agree that coconut can be a diverse ingredient. So if you love dishes made by adding coconut or experimenting with different recipes adding coconut, there’s definitely a lot more than just our healthy coconut macaroons. Here I’ve rounded up a list of sweet dessert ideas made with coconut that are sure to steal your heart: 

• Lime-in-the-Coconut Almond Bark
• Crunchy Apricot-Coconut Balls
• Pina Colada Cupcakes
• Incredible Coconut Cake
• Pineapple Coconut Upside-Down Cake
• Coconut Clouds
• Tropical Coconut Pie
• Raspberry Coconut Balls
• Lemon Coconut Cupcakes
• Chocolate Alfajores
• Coconut Ice Cream
• Italian Cream Cheese Cake
• Coconut Mango Bread Pudding with Rum Sauce
• Easy Coconut Cream Pie
• Hawaiian Sunset Cake
• Cherry Fudge Truffle Coconut Cheesecake

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