Back in Seattle, the Whole Foods bakery macaroons were always one of my favorite special treats. They're crispy on the outside and fluffy and moist on the inside, and I would savor every last morsel. I missed them a lot after I moved. In the last year or two, as Matt's health has improved some and Ella has become more and more in tune with all the treats her friends get, I figured I needed to work on some cookie recipes with unrefined sugar. Okay, okay, so they're for me too... Cookies are just fun, and I was tired of living without them.
Muffins, cakes and breads are all fairly liquid-sugar friendly, and I find that maple syrup or honey actually improves their texture, but cookies are unforgiving. They want dry sugar. So, I decided to cut out as much as was palatable and go with an unrefined cane sugar.
My local Whole Foods sells both Sucanat and Rapadura in the grocery section, Sucanat seeming a little coarser to Rapadura's fine powder. But, in the bulk section, the stuff they label as Sucanat looks and tastes just like the Rapadura in the packaged, much pricier bag. The difference, for those of you interested, between either of these and say Evaporated Cane Juice or Turbinado is that the latter two are crystallized and separated from their molasses content in the final stage of processing. Retaining the molasses means you still get some Vitamin B6 and a handful of minerals—hey, it's something, right?
My other issue was chocolate, which I consider a vital cookie ingredient. No one manufactures chocolate with unrefined sweeteners, except Sunspire, and I'm not a fan. So, I decided to make my own. At one point last Christmas, I went so far as to put my home-sweetened chocolate into a pastry bag and squeeze out chips. My internal dialog went like this: "Wow, this is really time-consuming... Hmm, I bet this is totally unnecessary... I wonder what else I could be doing... Oh well, I might as well keep going since I'm already halfway done... Screw this, I'm just going to make chunks and call it good." I've learned to love chunks.
As a dark chocolate fiend from very early childhood (I used to sneak the 1oz. chunks of Baker's Chocolate my mom kept in our fridge), I like my chocolate pretty, um, dark. So, keep that in mind should you chose to try this recipe... One problem with unsweetened chocolate is that it can be gritty or chalky. I don't recommend the Trader's Joe's baking bar for this purpose. El Rey, Valrhona and Scharffen Berger are all pretty pricey but excellent, and Ghirardelli's good in a pinch. My new favorite is sold in the candy bar section of my local Whole Foods: Vintage Plantations 100% Dark. The price is comparable to Ghirardelli, but I prefer the flavor.
The two best things about these little coconut delicacies is that they're gluten free (for those with true allergies, you should check your chocolate, sugar and coconut sources just to be safe) and super-quick. It's a 20 - 30 minute recipe from start to finish with very minimal mess. Enjoy!
Ingredients:
For the macaroons:
2 1/2 cups coconut
1/2 cup sucanat (or other sugar)
2 large egg whites
1 tsp. vanilla
1 big pinch sea salt
For optional chocolate sauce:
4 oz. unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
2 tbsp. butter, cut into pieces
2+ tbsp. maple syrup
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350 F with rack in center. Line baking sheet with parchment* and get out an ice cream scoop (or big spoon) and a cup of cold water. Set aside. Mix all ingredients together in a big bowl with your hands until completely combined. Clean your hands and then use your ice cream scoop to spoon 11/2 tablespoon sized rounds onto your baking sheet, about an inch apart. Dip the scoop/spoon in the water every few times so the mixture doesn't stick to your spoon. Since these don't spread out, you can fit them all on one sheet. When you're done scooping, use your fingers (again dipping in water occasionally) to press each ball into a firm shape. Bake for about 12 minutes until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack and store in a cookie jar, with wax paper in between stacks, or in an airtight container. They're never as good as the day you bake them!
If desired, melt chocolate and butter, being careful not get any water (even a drop) in the melting chocolate (or it can seize or separate). You can do this in a double boiler (a bowl over a pot of simmering water--don't let the bowl touch the water), or in the microwave at 50% power for 2 minutes, stirring after 1 min. Stir until smooth and then add maple syrup to taste. Pick up your freshly cooled cookies and give 'em a good dunk. Yum!
* If you don't have parchment paper, leave this step out and just set them directly on the sheet.
Next up: Wholegrain Chocolate Chip Cookies (that actually taste good)!
Friends of ours recently introduced us to this awesome new treat: coconut milk-agave ice cream! I had completely given up hope of an alternatively sweetened ice cream at the grocery store. I need to do some experimenting, but I can't imagine some of their flavors would be hard to duplicate at home. Considering that my favorite one is Mint Galactica, which has sugar-sugar in the chocolate chips, I'd like to try making my own. I'll be sure to fill you in if I figure out a good recipe. For now, I'm just excited to be able to buy some ice cream that I feel good about feeding to Ella and Matt. If you can get it in your area, try a pint! It's so, so good.
