My transition to a low carb lifestyle has, for the most part, been pretty easy. With the exception of a few foods which are really, really hard to replicate (bread is particularly tricky), so many foods can be substituted out with low carb options.
Though I have never been a huge sweets eater I did find myself craving a little bowl of ice cream a little while ago. As often happens with cravings, once it got started it began to grow and since there do not appear to be any sugar free options in my grocery stores I began dreaming of having my own ice cream maker so that I could make my own at home. Like I needed another kitchen gadget. Yeah, no.
As fortune would have it though, two coincidences lined up to make that craving go away. Someone posted a video of Dave Asprey (of Bulletproof Exec fame) making ice cream, which looked pretty easy to do, and a day or two later one lonely returned ice cream maker showed up at my local Costco.
It was a sign from the Universe.
After rushing home with my new toy I set to work making a batch of ‘Get Some Ice Cream’. How disappointing to discover that I couldn’t get started immediately since the metal bowl needed to be frozen ahead of time. Bummer. Ok, into the freezer it went and I waited until the next day to get started on the recipe. This stuff is made with a bunch of eggs and after putting it together I found myself with 4 egg whites that needed to be used up. Coconut macaroons seemed like an excellent, and really easy solution to my egg white problem.
I like coconut but I wanted to add a little extra flavour and decided to try adding in some orange oil. I had purchased a box of citrus Boyajian Baking oils in Fernie in the summer time and haven’t had too many uses for them yet so this seemed like a good excuse to use one. It added loads of flavour but no carbs so it was a nice option. My box came with lemon and lime oils too.
The lime would have been nice and next time I may try it. I think it could be quite piña colada like. Next time.
For now, I’m pretty happy to have these crunchy little treats to turn to when I’m looking for a little sweet treat. They are pretty too and make me think of tea time.
Ingredients
- 4 large egg whites
- 3 C unsweetened shredded coconut
- 1/2 C sugar equivalent substitute I used an erythritol/stevia blend
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tsp orange oil
- 1/4 tsp salt
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350°
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Spread coconut on a large baking sheet evenly. Toast in oven for about 5 minutes until just slightly browned on bottom. Stir and allow to cool slightly
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Rinse baking sheet and cut a piece of parchment paper to cover baking sheet
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Whisk remaining ingredients together until frothy and solids are fully dissolved. Add coconut. Mix thoroughly
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With a spoon or your hands squeeze small balls of coconut mixture into round balls, approximately 1 - 1 1/2" round
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Place on baking sheet. They will not spread so you can place them fairly close to each other
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Bake until just golden, about 15-20 minutes
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Let cool on pan for 5 minutes then transfer to a cooling rack
Recipe Notes
The macaroons will keep for about a week in an airtight container.
Adapted from The Kitchn
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