Dark Chocolate and Cherry, Coconut Macaroons
Gluten Free, Dairy Free and Great for Passover
Coconut macaroons are a family favorite for the Passover holiday because they're gluten free and dairy free. You won't miss either in these chewy, flavor-packed bites. Coconut milk, egg whites and shredded coconut hold it all together.
We amped up the chocolate flavor by substituting in some dark cocoa for the Dutch process cocoa powder. If you've never tried dark cocoa, it's readily available in stores and online. We were first introduced to Black Onyx Cocoa Powder by the friendly staff at Savory Spice Shop in Littleton, Colorado. To use dark cocoa in any recipe, simply replace 1/3 to 1/2 of the cocoa powder called for in the recipe with the dark cocoa and fill up the rest with regular cocoa powder.
In this recipe, we love the tart, dried cherries that compliment the dark chocolate. You could change that up with dark chocolate chips for a double dark chocolate treat.
Many traditional coconut macaroon recipes call for sweetened condensed milk and sweetened shredded coconut, the sum of which is a cloying sweetness, not to mention the dairy we can't eat. Coconut cream (not coconut milk) is a thick and creamy substitute that we like even better than canned milk. We used unsweetened, shredded, organic coconut and added a little coconut sugar to make the cookies just sweet enough.
- 1 1/2 cups + 1/4 cup, divided, shredded coconut (fine shred; not sweetened)
- 1/4 cup Dutch process cocoa powder
- 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon dark cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup coconut sugar
- 2/3 cup coconut cream
- 2 large egg whites
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- pinch of salt
- 1/2 cup (3 ounces) dried tart cherries, chopped