Coconut Macaroons

Making these cookies was first of all a lesson in basic cookery. Check to make sure you have all of your ingredients! I set out to make something else with coconut, involving graham cracker crumbs, only to find out at the last minute that the box I thought I had was no longer in the cupboard - and hadn't been there for a year, probably. So what else do you make with lots of coconut? Macaroons!

I just followed a basic recipe from Canadian Living but with one difference - I toasted about half the coconut first, which I had never done before. Quite easy, just put the flakes in a dry pan on medium and watched it carefully so it wouldn't burn, as I'm sure it would do quite easily. Macaroons are pretty much the easiest thing to make - and I make a lot of easy recipes. Also, because there's no fat in them I don't feel guilty about stuffing my face with them.

In a bowl, whisk 3 egg whites (which are really gross, by the way... slimy), 1/2 cup sugar and 1 tsp almond extract. It gets nice and foamy. Then mix in 2 cups coconut (I buy medium unsweetened) and 1 Tbsp flour and let it sit for about 5 min for the liquid to absorb. They were still pretty liquidy, though. Form into balls and bake at a low temperature, only 300, for about 25 min. They will get delicious and browned on top - and, because of using toasted coconut in the recipe, brown on the inside too.

I'm not sure how Canadian Living got theirs to be perfectly spherical, since mine definitely flatten out a little in the bottom. But otherwise, they are a delicious snack - and one I convince myself is sorta healthy, right? Isn't coconut oil the big thing these days? Even my mom uses it!