Coconut apricot macaroons are chewy pyramids of unsweetened coconut folded with egg white, chopped dried apricot and fresh lemon zest. That makes them an easy Christmas cookie for a cookie tray or a gift tin, since it is one bowl and a whisk. No mixer, and the batch makes about 24.
Use unsweetened coconut, not the sweetened flakes in the baking aisle. There is already two thirds of a cup of sugar in the bowl, so sweetened coconut tips the whole thing into candy. If that is all you can find, halve the sugar.
Seven ingredients and no flour, no butter and no dairy anywhere. That makes these naturally gluten free, which the page never mentions. It is the one cookie on a Christmas tray most guests can eat.
Coconut Apricot Macaroons
Course: DessertCuisine: AmericanDifficulty: Easy4
servings30
minutes40
minutes300
kcalUnsweetened shredded coconut tossed with egg white, sugar, chopped apricot and lemon zest, then shaped into damp pyramids by hand. Baked until the ridges toast and the edges brown.
Ingredients
- For the Macaroons:
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup dried apricots, finely chopped
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon fine salt
2 large egg whites, lightly beaten
Finely grated zest of 1/2 lemon
3 cups (about 8 ounces) finely shredded unsweetened coconut
Directions
- Heat the oven: Set the oven racks in the upper and lower thirds and heat to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment, since both go in together.
- Mix in one bowl: Whisk the sugar, chopped apricots, vanilla, salt, egg whites and lemon zest together in a large bowl. No mixer is needed at any point.
- Add the coconut: Add the unsweetened coconut and toss until every shred is coated. Sweetened flakes make the cookies cloying against the sugar already in the bowl, so if that is all you have, use half the sugar.
- Shape the pyramids: Spoon heaping tablespoons onto the sheets about an inch apart. Moisten your fingertips with water and press each mound into a pointed pyramid, re-wetting your fingers every few cookies so the mixture releases cleanly.
- Bake: Bake 16 to 20 minutes, rotating the pans halfway, until the ridges are toasted and the edges lightly browned. Move them to a rack to cool, then store airtight for up to a week.
Notes
- There is no flour, butter or dairy in this recipe, so it is gluten free and dairy free as written. The original lists 30 minutes of cooking against a method that bakes 16 to 20 with both sheets in at once. The 93 calories a cookie checks out.
FAQs
Why does the card say 30 minutes of cooking?
The method bakes for 16 to 20 minutes and both sheets go in at once, on the upper and lower racks. So the oven time is 20 at most, not 30. Rotate the pans halfway and start looking at 16.
Where do I find unsweetened shredded coconut?
Health food aisles and bulk bins carry it, and it is often labelled desiccated coconut. The sweetened flakes next to the chocolate chips are a different product. Buy the finely shredded kind rather than the long flakes, which do not hold a pyramid.
Why wet your fingers before shaping?
The mixture is sticky with egg white and sugar and it clings to dry hands, taking the shape apart as you lift them away. A little water on your fingertips lets you press a clean point. Re-wet them every few cookies.
Can I dip them in chocolate?
Yes, and the bottoms are the usual place, dipped once the macaroons are completely cool so the chocolate sets rather than slides. Dark chocolate suits the apricot better than milk. Melt it gently, the same way you would for these chewy chocolate ginger cookies.
How long do they keep?
A week in an airtight container, which the recipe states, and they stay chewy rather than drying out. The coconut oil does that. They keep the same way as these coconut macaroons, away from anything crisp.
