Gourmet

Coconut Macaroons

ByGina Marie Miraglia Eriquez

March 4, 2022

4.4

(63)

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Gourmet's Coconut Macaroons on a serving plate.

Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Kaitlin Wayne

Active Time

10 minutes
Total Time

45 minutes

This truly easy coconut macaroon recipe strips the classic cookie down to the basics: Just sweetened shredded coconut, an egg white, a small amount of sugar, a pinch of kosher salt, and a few flavorings.Vanilla extractis essential—it gives the confection rounded, warm flavor, but you could consider thealmond extractoptional. While ⅛ teaspoon seems like such in infinitesimal amount, the impact the second extract has on the coconut flavor is phenomenal, making each bite taste more coconutty than it would without it.

You’ll whisk the egg white with the sugar to break it up, but no need to gofull meringue. As soon as the wet ingredients are fully combined, stir in the coconut, then divide the batter into four mounds and bake until the macaroons are deliciously golden brown.

If you’re so inclined, you could dip the bottoms of the cooled cookies in meltedchocolate(ordrizzle a littleover the top). Bitter dark chocolate would add a sophisticated element to counter the sweet cookies, but a little milk chocolate would play up the fun, making these chewy coconut macaroons taste all the more like a favorite candy bar.

Ingredients

Makes 4 cookies

Refined coconut oil, melted, or neutral oil for preparing baking sheet

1 large egg white

1 tablespoon sugar

¼ teaspoon vanilla extract

⅛ teaspoon almond extract

¾ cup sweetened flaked coconut

Special Equipment:Parchment paper

Step 1
Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 300°F. Lightly brush a baking sheet with oil, then line with parchment and brush the parchment with more oil.
Step 2
Whisk together1 large egg white,1 tbsp. sugar,¼ tsp. vanilla extract,⅛ tsp. almond extract, and apinch of saltuntil combined, then stir in¾ cup coconut. Divide coconut mixture into fourths and drop in 4 mounds (about 2 inches apart) onto prepared baking sheet.
Step 3
Bake until tops are pale golden in spots, 15 to 20 minutes, then carefully lift foil with cookies from baking sheet and transfer to a rack to cool completely, about 15 minutes. Peel macaroons from parchment.

Nutrition Per Serving

Each cookie contains about 74 calories and 5 grams fat.

Cook's Note:

This recipe make four three-bite cookies and can easily be doubled or tripled for more. Store cooled macaroons in an airtight container at room temperature for up to three days or freeze for up to three months.

Editor's note:This recipe was originally printed in the May 2005 issue of ‘Gourmet’ and first appeared on Epicurious April 2005. The flour and butter originally used to line the pan have been removed from this recipe to make these macaroons pareve and kosher forPassover. Head this way for more of ourbest coconut desserts→

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Reviews (63)

Good basic recipe. I did whip the egg whites, adding the sugar and vanilla, like a meringue but just beating to soft peaks. I was afraid they would not hold together but after they were baked they did. I will dip some in chocolate later. Good, straightforward recipe.
- Cindy Sullivan
- Farmington Hills, Michigan
- 4/14/2022
Why does it say (1 flour) but never call for flour to be incorporated? I figured that the flour is only used on the baking pan & not in the mixture, thanks to a couple of reviews that mentioned that flour would make them not Kosher & gave other alternatives for the pan. Epicurious, please FIX THIS ERROR.
- lisacpa
- Prosper, Texas
- 2/19/2021
My granddaughter and I each doubled the recipe and used parchment instead of foil. They were super easy and yummy. We also dipped in chocolate. Messy but fun project
- dmhconsulting
- Tallahassee, FL
- 1/3/2018
Just curious, why butter the baking sheet UNDER the foil?
- PBIPhotobug
- South Carolina
- 12/14/2016
Good recipe, but here are some changes to consider: Coconut flakes come in 7 oz. packages (about 2 cups), so a recipe using this quantity makes sense. Whip 2 large egg whites with the pinch of salt until soft peaks form. Add 2 Tbsp sugar (this will keep the treats from being too sweet - especially if the coconut flakes are already sweetened) and mix through. Whip into that 1 tsp almond extract unless you prefer a vanilla flavor - your choice. Fold in the coconut flakes and drop onto parchment paper on a cookie sheet to make removal of the cookies easy after baking. Be sure to toast (brown) the tops to get a richer flavor.
- Anonymous
- Providence, RI
- 11/3/2016
These were very simple to make and very delicious! Some people were complaining about them sticking to the foil, but my came off with no problem after I let them cool.
- Maddiemdd
- St. Louis, MO
- 6/23/2015
absolutely delicious! followed the sugar amount on the recipe and loved them. came out perfectly!
- mcvat
- madison, wi
- 1/10/2015
Was way too sweet for me. Second batch cut back the sugar by just less than half and that was about right. I did whip the egg whites to a soft peak, which I think made it easier to blend. Also, despite buttering the foil, the cookies stuck. Did second batch on buttered parchment paper and the cookies came away from the paper easily.
- knoeds
- Madison, WI
- 11/16/2013
Although I have not yet made these, take note that if you want to bring these to a Kosher Seder, do not use flour as suggested in preparing the cookie sheets. That would render them unKosher! I suggest using parchment.
- Anonymous
- Redondo Beach, CA
- 3/20/2013
哇!我希望我知道早是多么容易ake delicious macaroons. I love macaroons and these definitely hit the spot when I had a macaroon craving. The whole family loved them and we made them several times. The last time I made them, I accidentally doubled the almond extract, so I halved the vanilla to compensate. They were delicious that way, also. Not only do these have fantastic flavor and texture, but they are so quick and fun and inexpensive to make! We generally triple the recipe (about a bag of coconut). They also keep well. I may like them better a day or two later.
- SunCloudSarah
- Reno, NV
- 12/27/2012
My family are coconut and pineapple lovers. I've been looking for a great recipe for Coconut Macaroons. I didn't realize how easy they were to make. I quadrupled the recipe and made 16 cookies. I thought the ratio of sugar and extracts was perfect, as other recipes had far more sugar added. Couldn't be happier now that I found the perfect Coconut Macaroon recipe.
- swissmiss09
- Southington, CT
- 11/23/2012
I also doubled the recipe but whipped the egg whites so they would be a bit airy. I don't like dense macaroons. I added orange extract and orange zest. I used a tablespoon to drop the cookies onto the sheet and baked for about 18 minutes. It yielded 16 macaroons. Next time I would add less sugar since the sweetened coconut is sweet enough for me. Tasty and easy to make.
- Anonymous
- east coast
- 2/12/2012
Like other reviewers, I doubled the recipe and dropped mounded teaspoons to make them more bite-sized. I didn't have almond extract (odd), so I substituted a equal amounts of coconut and butter extracts... DEE-LISH! I used parchment paper sprayed with a bit of cooking oil and had no trouble with them sticking. Mine didn't brown as nicely as the photo so I popped them under a low broiler to give them a toasted look. Mine were chewy and delightful... definitely a keeper.
- smooch
- 1/14/2012
These are absolutely delicious!!!! Instead of making four big ones, I made 1 tablespoon sized cookies and that made about 8-10. I also doubled the batch, which came out perfectly!!!! I will make these again no doubt
- Anonymous
- Boston
- 7/29/2011
These are sooo good!!!!! They are soo easy to make...taking less than 5 min to mix together and 15 min to bake...I will be defiantly make these again!!! :)
- Anonymous
- 7/9/2011