Blonde Macaroons

Looking for a great gluten free, diary free cookie?  Well look no further, these little morsels are crispy on the outside and melt in your mouth delicious on the inside.

In my quest to find a healthier cookie I have resorted to pinterest and found a number of cookie recipes I have pinned but never tried.  So, this year I vow to start trying them out and find out if there are a hit or miss.  This one is definitely a hit and a keeper.

I found this delightful recipe for something called Detox Blonde Macaroons from a great blog The Detoxinista. As it contains some of my all time favorite ingredients and is wheat free, I knew I had to give this a try.

It is a fast and easy recipe and they are truly delicious.

You will need

• organic raw coconut butter (either bought or you can make your own
• organic unsweetened shredded coconut
• pure maple syrup
• vanilla extract
• pure almond extract
• sea salt

That's it. ( full recipe below)

Now let's get started.

If you are using bought coconut butter, you can simply put all the ingredients in a bowl.  However, if you are making your own coconut butter, you will need to make this first and then you can add the balance of the ingredients.

Mix well.  I used a hand held mixer and worked really good.  Make sure all ingredients are well incorporated.  Mixture will stick together.

Use a mini ice cream / cookie scoop to drop your macaroons onto parchment lined cookie sheet

Preheat your oven to 300F, and bake for 22-26 minutes.  

Remove from oven and let rest for another 25 minutes - trust me on this one, as they are very tender and will fall apart if you try to move them immediately.  Once rested your macaroons will be crisp on the outside, soft and buttery on the inside - very tender, delicious and addicting.

Full recipe from Detoxinista.com

Detox Blonde Macaroons

Author: Detoxinista.com

Serves: 2 dozen

These buttery macaroons are naturally sweetened and a guaranteed crowd-pleaser!

Ingredients

• 2⅔ cups shredded unsweetened coconut (or one cup coconut butter)
• 2 (additional) cups shredded unsweetened coconut
• ¾ cup pure maple syrup
• 1¼ tsp. vanilla extract
• ½ tsp. pure almond extract
• ¼ tsp. fine sea salt

Instructions

1. Begin by blending the 2⅔ cups of shredded unsweetened coconut in a food processor or blender, until you have a creamy coconut butter. (This takes a couple minutes in a blender, and up to 10 minutes in a food processor.) Be sure to scrape the sides a couple times, so that you have an even consistency. *If using store-bought coconut butter, move on to the next step.
2. Add in the rest of the ingredients and mix well with a spatula. The batter should be sticky and uniform.
3. Drop the batter by small rounded spoonfuls onto your dehydrator sheets. If you’re using the “oven method,” drop them onto a pan lined with a Silpat, or parchment paper.
4. Oven method: Preheat your oven to 300F, and bake macaroons for 22-26 minutes, watching closely so that they don’t burn. Macaroons will be crisp on the outside, soft and buttery on the inside, and very tender. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for an additional 25 minutes, so that they firm up. Place the macaroons in the fridge or freezer to “set” further, or serve immediately! (I personally like them best served at room temperature.)
5. Dehydrator Method: Dehydrate your macaroons at 145 degrees for the first hour, then reduce to 118 degrees (if you care to keep them raw) for up to 12 hours, periodically checking for crispness. They are ready when they are firm and crispy on the outside, but still tender on the inside. (If you’re impatient, dehydrate at 155F for 2-3 hours.)
6. Store macaroons in an air-tight container for up to 5 days. For a longer shelf-life, store them in the freezer–> they’ll last a LONG time in there!

Notes

Drizzle some melted dark chocolate on top to make these extra-decadent!