Flavorful, crispy and only 5 ingredients. Although gluten-free, you might not even notice. These cookies make a beautiful gift, as long as you don’t eat them all before giving them away! By the way, coconut is a great source of quick energy and good for heart health.

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus more for greasing the foil (or use a silicone baking liner like Silpat)
• 3 large egg whites
• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons unsweetened dried shredded coconut
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Line the baking sheets with regular foil, and spray the foil lightly but thoroughly with vegetable oil spray or butter. As an alternative, you can use non-stick foil or line the baking trays with the silicone sheets.

Mix the egg whites with the coconut, sugar and salt until well blended. Stir in the butter. Let the batter rest for at least 15 minutes to allow the coconut to absorb the moisture. You can cover the batter and store it in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and pre-heat the oven to 300 degrees.

Stir the batter well. Drop level tablespoons 3 inches apart on the lined baking sheets. Spread the batter in a circle that is 3 1/2 inches wide and 1/4 inch thick. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until the cookies are mostly golden brown on top, but a few pale patches are ok. Rotate the sheets from front to back and top to bottom, about halfway through the baking time. If the cookies are not baked enough, they won’t be crunchy when they cool.

Slide the foil sheets onto racks and let the cookies cool slightly before removing them from the sheet tray.

To keep them crisp, put the cookies in an airtight container as soon as they cool. They can be stored in an airtight container for up to 1 month. The recipe states that it makes 3 dozen 3 1/2 inch cookies, I got 2 dozen out the batter. Enjoy!

Source: Alice Medrich