Low Carb Du Jour

I love coconut macaroons!  Before I started doing the low-carb lifestyle, I would buy them from a nearby bakery everytime I saw them.

Well, doing low-carb meant no more visits to the bakery for me!  I was missing coconut macaroons, so I tried this recipe and it’s really good.

The trick is to find unsweetened coconut – you can’t use the regular coconut from the grocery store.  That stuff is loaded with sugar.

I found unsweetened coconut at one of our local health food stores – so start your search there and you can always buy it online if your local search comes up empty.

Coconut Macaroons – Low Carb Style

• 2 cups unsweetened shredded coconut
• 4 egg whites from large eggs (should be about ½ cup)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4 to 1 cup pourable splenda
• about 2 Tablespoons water

1) Heat oven to 375 F. Line baking sheet with either parchment paper on a silicone mat.

2) Measure egg whites. If they aren’t quite ½ cup, add a little water to reach that level. Then add the vanilla.

3) Mix pourable Splenda in with unsweetened coconut.

4) Mix dry and wet ingredients together. The mixture should just hold together. Let set a minute or two and you’ll be able to mold the macaroons better.

5) Roll into balls a little bigger than an inch in diameter. Slightly flatten and put on baking sheet (whatever shape you put them in is how they will stay, so this is your chance). Put at least half an inch apart.

6) Turn down the oven to 325 F, and bake for about 15 minutes, but start checking them a couple of minutes before. You want them golden brown on the bottom, and just barely starting to brown on top (though if you like them a little crispier, bake a couple of minutes longer).

Makes about 14 cookies, but yield will vary based on size of the cookies.