There’s a great company out there called Hail Merry that makes amazingly delicious gluten-free, grain-free, dairy-free, and refined sugar-free treats like macaroons and mini-tarts. And let me tell you, they are wondrous! They’ve inspired me to create my own versions. I took one bite of their strawberry macaroons and knew that I had to learn to make my own, as I didn’t want to leverage the house to buy the quantity I wanted to consume. While Hail Merry’s version is hard to beat, my version gets the cravings taken care of in the comfort of my own, unleveraged home.
COOKIE INGREDIENTS
1 bag (1.2 ounces) freeze-dried strawberries
5 egg whites
⅛ tsp sea salt
¼ cup honey
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 cups finely shredded coconut, unsweetened
3 TBSP coconut flour, sifted
CHOCOLATE DIP INGREDIENTS
¾ cup chopped dark chocolate
1 tsp palm shortening
Makes 18 cookies
Preheat your oven to 350°F.
In a food processor, purée half the bag of freeze-dried strawberries until it becomes a fine powder. Be sure to remove any moisture packet from the bag first! (I may have puréed the packet with the strawberries once. Maybe.)
Coarsely chop the other half of the strawberries.
In a medium-sized bowl, beat the egg whites with the sea salt with a hand mixer until stiff peaks form.
Gently fold the strawberry powder, chopped strawberries, and remaining ingredients into the stiff egg whites just until combined. Don’t mix too vigorously, or you’ll lose the air in the egg whites.
Scoop the dough into golf ball-sized balls, and place them on parchment-lined baking sheets.
Bake the cookies for 13-15 minutes or until the bottoms turn golden brown.
Place the baking sheet on a wire rack and let the cookies cool completely.
Meanwhile, melt the dark chocolate and shortening in the top of a double boiler over simmering water, stirring until smooth.
Dip the bottom of each cooled cookie into the melted chocolate. Place the cookies on a wax paper-lined baking sheet until the chocolate hardens.
Store the cookies in an airtight container in the refrigerator, or freeze them until needed.
