Coconut Macaroons

I have had these macaroons in India as well as here and for some reason, I thought they are pretty difficult to make. Well, they are not. This recipe is a healthier version of macaroons, as quite a few of the recipes I checked online have sweetened condensed milk in them and this one does not. It also has very less of flour, no butter.

Ingredients:

1. 2 large egg white(s), at room temperature
2. 1/4 tsp table salt
3. 1/3 cup(s) sugar
4. 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
5. 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
6. 1 cup(s) sweetened coconut flakes

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper coated with cooking spray. (Note: if you do not have parchment paper, simply coat cookie sheets with cooking spray)

2. Combine egg whites and salt in a medium bowl; beat with an electric mixer at low speed until egg whites are foamy, about 1 minute. Gradually add sugar, increasing the mixer speed until egg whites form stiff, glossy peaks.

3. Fold in remaining ingredients. Drop batter by tablespoons onto prepared cookie sheets. Bake until light golden brown, about 15 minutes. Yields about 2 cookies per serving.

My personal notes:

1. The first time I made these, I used extra large eggs, as that is what I had. I didn't think it would make a huge difference between large and extra large, but I guess I was wrong and the batter turned out runny due to more of egg whites and I got flat macaroons. The second time I corrected the issue and the macaroons turned out good. If they are still runny, adding extra coconut flakes helps too.
   
2. Soak the eggs in lukewarm water for about 5-10 minutes to bring them to room temperature. Else, it takes really long (about 30-45 minutes) for the eggs to reach room temperature
3. I had to beat the life out of the egg whites, as I did it by a hand whisk. I saw a video which showed that the egg whites had to beaten till they reach a hard peak. This means if you remove the whisk from the mixture, there will be a stiff peak of frothy egg whites formed at the tip of it (It should not drip or be runny).
4. I also added less than a 1/3 cup sugar as the coconut flakes are already sweetened. The next time will probably add even lesser.
5. The insane part was when I tried to melt some chocolate to dip these, and I tried melting dark chocolate morsels in the microwave--- it got pretty messy, I would try the double broiler method the next time.

So if you have an electric mixer or have the patience to beat the egg whites, this recipe is pretty simple :)