Flaky coconut macaroons with bursts of sweet dried cherries, fragrant almond flavor, a crunch of almonds, and a decadent chocolate drizzle!
Hey y’all! I thought I’d bring back the Christmas Yumminess Countdown this year! Sorry I haven’t gotten on it sooner…I actually can’t blame it on school this time… this has been pure laziness! But I’ll be back home in a few days and will be baking up a storm!
And to kick the YUMMINESS off we have Chocolate Cherry Almond Coconut Macaroons… wow, that is a mouthful. Flavor wise these seem like a lot going on… 4 flavors is a lot to cram into one macaroon but it works! And who doesn’t love a good coconut macaroon at Christmas?!
These coconut macaroons were voted by my mother as her favorites! I think my favorite is still the Almond Joy version! And the Cranberry Orange version is very Christmas-ey too! But hand me one of these, and I would not say no thank you!
These cookies are gluten free but you wouldn’t believe it! And if you haven’t caught on, all of my macarons use the same basic coconut macaroon base but I just add in different flavors and mix-ins!
…and voilà!
- 3 egg whites
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ¾ teaspoon almond extract
- pinch of salt
- 14 oz (5⅓ cups) of sweetened shredded coconut
- ½ cup dried cherries
- ¼ cup slivered almonds
- Preheat oven to 325° F.
- Line two baking sheets with parchment.
- In a mixer with a whisk attachment, beat egg whites, sugar, almond extract, and salt until foamy and the sugar is nearly dissolved. (about 1-2 minutes) (you do not want peaks).
- Mix in the coconut and dried cherries with a spatula.
- Drop cookies onto the lined pans either using a measuring spoon or a scoop that is about 1 Tablespoon.
- Press down the cookies slightly so that they are flat.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes if you are cooking both sheets at the same time. If you are baking the sheets one at a time it takes about 15-18 minutes. The cookies should be golden brown on the bottom and the tops should look like slightly toasted coconut.
- Allow the cookies to cool on the sheet for about 5 minutes and then remove them to a wire rack.
- Voilà!
Did you mean orange extract, or almond extract?
Yes! You are correct! Sorry about that typo! I must have had my cranberry orange coconut macaroons on my mind!