the highs and lows of macarooning.

where have i been?! june was a crazy month spent frolicking around berlin from the early mornings to the late evenings. i really wish i could say that - amidst the chaos - i was able to cling to some normalcy through healthy, natural home-cooking. but the sad truth, my dear foodies, is this: way more than half of my meals were consumed outside of anyone's kitchen. that's right: i ate out. a lot.

to be fair, berlin has excellent culinary options! especially for an aspiring vegan or vegetarian, you'll rarely be left stranded empty handed (or stomached). still, i was starting to miss winding down my days by preparing meals from scratch, as well as sitting down peacefully to share them with someone. 

i also started missed baking! and while i've been holding back posting about these delicious macaroons for a while now, i'm glad to be making my reappearance (granted, onto my own blog..) with this recipe. 

the day i decided to make macaroons, i got a bit antsy about trying out something new and decided therefore to test out a few recipes. while the pictures above testify to the success of one of them, the photo below tells the story of 2nd baking attempt gone very, very awry.

presenting macaroon pancakes...

i wish i could say i know what went wrong with this poor batch. but truth be told, i haven't a clue. could have been the condensed milk, or perhaps a faulty measurement on my part. and while obviously i still devoured the entire batch in record time, i was happy to have the other less aesthetically disturbing batch on hand to offer friends and family. and the ridiculously easy recipe to share with you here!

choco-dipped coconut macaroons
as seen on epicurious

1 large egg white
1 tablespoon white sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
3/4 cup sweetened coconut flakes
pinch of salt
100 g melted chocolate

preheat oven to 300 degrees F. grab a sheet of parchment paper.

stir together egg white, sugar, vanilla extract, almond extract, and a pinch of salt until combined. stir in the coconut flakes. divide mixture in four and using your hands, make four macaroon mounds. drop onto the parchment paper with about 2 inches of space between each one.

bake until the tops are starting to get oh so slightly golden, which should take approximately 15 to 20 minutes. remove and let cool. you can also leave the macaroons as they are now. but if you want to take things to the next level....

melt 100 grams of chocolate - i used semisweet chocolate chips. you can do this over the stove or in the microwave. once the macaroons have cooled for about 20 minutes, dip their bottoms in the hot and gooey chocolate. let them rest on their sides on the sheet of parchment paper until the chocolate has hardened.

try not to consume the entire batch all at once.