Lemon and Stem Ginger Coconut Macaroons

I’ve had this coconut lurking around in my cupboards and I’ve been wondering what to do with it. Then I realized, why not make macaroons? I absolutely adore them, but how can I make them better? As I was looking around in my cupboard, as this is how most of the recipes I make transpire, I found some crystalized stem ginger. What a fantastic idea I thought! Lemon, coconut, ginger; what could go wrong? Nothing! These were absolutely delicious; I really enjoyed them even though the texture of the coconut isn't exactly like it is back home. We have a shredded coconut which tends to be longer and isn’t so chopped up as desiccated coconut. These none the less were delicious, and go perfectly with a cup of tea. These are very simple and yield about 12. If you can’t find crystalized ginger you can easily grate one tsp of ginger in. Enjoy!

Lovely bits of lemon poking out. :)

Ingredients:
150g desiccated coconut (about 1.5c shredded)
100g caster sugar (½ c. fine sugar)
100g crystalized stem ginger chopped fine
1 tbsp. ground almonds
2 egg whites beaten very soft peaks
Zest of one large lemon

To Start:
Heat oven to 180C (375F).
Measure out coconut and almond flour and mix thoroughly.
Dice the crystalized ginger finely and zest the lemon. Mix in with the coconut and almond flour thoroughly.
In another bowl whip the egg whites until just light and fluffy, not looking for stiff peaks, just some froth.
Slowly add in the sugar a little at a time.
Fold in the coconut, almond flour, ginger and lemon zest a little at a time and mix thoroughly.

To Bake:
With two spoons form the balls and place them on a wax paper lined baking tray.
Bake for about 20 minutes or until lightly toasted and brown.
Cool completely before removing from wax paper.