Macaroons

Macaroons have always held a special place in my heart. When I was a kid, every once in a while, I would get treated to scrumptious little white macaroons from the local grocery store. They were always the same, and always very good. And, like every person who grows used to something but eventually leaves home and then misses that very thing, I took those little macaroons for granted. Those tiny white pieces of heaven were the ultimate melt-in-your-mouth cookies, slightly larger in size than Hershey's Kisses, always with pistachios in them, and a distinct floral flavor - I can't quite put my finger on it - rose essence, perhaps? Anyway, they were delicious.

But until I can replicate what is in my head, exactly, the two recipes below have more than sufficiently appeased the craving from the memories that came flooding back. I hope you enjoy them. The first recipe is courtesy of my friend Ashley K, Snow Capped Coconut Macaroons (coconut almond macaroons with a chocolate glaze, essentially) and I came up with the second one, Chocolate Walnut Macaroons. I found them both to be entirely delicious. I made several batches of both last Saturday and served them to friends (with kids) and all were thoroughly pleased with them.

Just out of curiosity, do any of you have crazy macaroon memories like I do?

Snow Capped Coconut Macaroons

(recipe courtesy: Ashley K)

You will need:

For the Cookies:
2 large egg whites
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup sliced almonds, crushed
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 cups sweetened shredded coconut

For the Glaze: (Use glaze only if you want to, these macaroons are entirely delicious plain too!)
6 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
3 tablespoons light corn syrup
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
Coarse sugar crystals, for decorating

Make the cookies: Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Lightly beat the egg whites in a medium bowl until frothy, then stir in the granulated sugar, almonds, vanilla and salt. Fold in the coconut. Drop tablespoonfuls of the batter 1 inch apart on the prepared baking sheets. Dampen your hands and form into tall pointed mounds. Bake until the edges are golden brown and the macaroons look dry, 16 to 20 minute. Let cool 10 minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer to a rack to cool completely.
Make the glaze: Put the chocolate, corn syrup, butter and 3 tablespoons hot water in a microwave-safe bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and microwave until melted, about 2 minutes. Whisk until smooth.
Dip the tip of each macaroon about halfway into the glaze, then place on a clean parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Sprinkle with coarse sugar, then refrigerate until the glaze sets, about 1 hour. Store in an airtight container up to 1 week.

Chocolate-Walnut Macaroons

You will need:

2 large egg whites, beaten until stiff peaks form

1 cup granulated white sugar

1/4 tsp salt

2 tablespoons good cocoa powder

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Optional - Chocolate glaze, as outlined above (Use glaze only if you want to, these macaroons are entirely delicious plain too!)

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Beat egg whites, then fold in sugar, salt, cocoa powder and walnuts. Drop by spoonful one inch apart on parchment lined baking sheet, and bake at 300 degrees for 20 minutes, or 25 minutes, until crisp. Let cool on baking sheet for 10 minutes before moving to rack to cool completely.  

If desired, spread a little bit of the chocolate glaze on each cookie and let set in the refrigerator for one hour. Store in airtight container for up to one week.

Enjoy!