Gluten Free Mocha Macaroons
This is a guest post and recipe by Carol Kicinski …
Macaroons exemplify my philosophy of gluten-free eating and cooking. They are naturally and simply gluten-free cookies. They require no mixing of other gluten-free flours in a futile attempt to replicate the taste and texture of their glutenized counter parts. In fact, macaroons require no flour, just a mixture of egg whites and nut meal or coconut.
And these Mocha Macaroons are amazing! Crunchy around the edges, chewy in the middle and rich, dense flavor through and through. Positively addictive! Fortunately they are a snap to make so you can go from craving to satisfaction with these mocha macaroons in just over 15 minutes.
I have made these mocha macaroons using almonds that I grind myself in a mini food processor or purchased almond meal. The almond meal is quicker and the texture a bit more refined but they are delicious either way. Just beware in purchasing ground almond meal as not all brands are gluten-free. Don’t assume that just because the ingredients lists only almonds that they are gluten-free. Some brands process the almonds in the same equipment as they process glutenized products causing cross-contamination. Make sure the packaging says “Gluten Free.”
Usually I sift in the powdered sugar but sometimes I’m too lazy and honestly the results are the same so I will leave that up to you. Also I don’t bother rolling the dough into balls as they spread out anyway; I just sort of pinch up some dough, roughly shape it into a ball and drop it on the pan. I think that shaping the cookies with spoons would be difficult because the dough is very sticky but if you are obsessive compulsive about all your cookies being exactly the same size then by all means try it out and let me know how it works!
Prepare to become addicted!
Ingredients
- 2 egg whites – unbeaten
- 1-1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 cup ground almonds
- 3 tablespoons cocoa powder – I use dark
- 1 tablespoon instant ground espresso or coffee granules
- Pinch salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Prepare 2 baking sheets with either parchment paper or Silpat Mats (I prefer these).
- Put all ingredients in a mixing bowl and mix until well blended. If you have a sticky, gooey, chocolaty mess then it’s perfect.
- Wet your hands with water and pull up a ball the size of a small walnut, and place on prepared pans leaving at least one inch between each cookie. You will probably have to re-wet your hands several times.
- Bake macaroons for 11 minutes. They will still seem a bit squishy when done but they harden up a little as they cool and you want the insides chewy. Don’t worry if the bottoms of the cookies look a bit sticky.
- Let cool on the pan for about 1 or 2 minutes then remove to a rack to finish cooling.
Notes
I suppose you could store any left over cookies in an airtight container or pretty cellophane bag but honestly, I’ve never had these last for more than a few minutes, they get gobbled up almost immediately!
Tagged gluten free, peanut-free, soy-free, vegetarian
