Lemon Coconut Macaroons Recipe
Lemon Coconut Macaroons Recipe (V, GF): an easy vegan recipe for sweetly tart lemon macaroons made from healthy ingredients to brighten your day! Vegan, Paleo, Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free.
So I had no idea whatsoever that my sister Jenny LOVES coconut macaroons. Like… I’ve only known her for 32 years of my life. No big deal, right?
Wait a minute, I’m 32, right? Someone call Erik and check my age for me!!
The older I get, the less I actually remember what age I am, when my birthday is (or even what month it’s in), and apparently what my family member’s current likes and dislikes are.
Meanwhile, when I started this coconut macaroon expedition a few months back (in March, and yes, I totally had to check), I did my usual thing: tested, re-tested, then tested again to make sure the recipe for my 4 ingredient vegan coconut macaroons (the base recipe for all of my coconut macaroons) was on point.
After those rounds of testing, I did my other usual thing, which was to bring those batches over to my mom and my sister Jenny’s house.
Never expecting for a moment the reaction I’d get.
Jenny said, “WOW. These taste like…
…the REAL THING.”
And coming from Jenny, who loves all manner of junk food and is a connoisseur of desserts, I was blown away. And pleased with myself, of course. 😉
In the months that followed, I made and shared more vegan coconut macaroon recipes with you (and Jenny), and yet, still, she would ask for more. See: my Chocolate Dipped Vegan Coconut Macaroons Recipe and my 4 Ingredient No Bake Coconut Macaroons. The thing is, sometimes when I’m recipe testing, I unfortunately have loads and loads, make that batches and batches, of the exact same thing to share.
When I was testing this Lemon Coconut Macaroons Recipe, there were like 1,000 cookies (OR 1,000 lemon coconut macaroons, I should say) that I had to unload. And there’s only so much the freezer will take. So the burden falls to loved ones/casual acquaintances/people on the street to take these goodies.
But after you bring these folks the 5th batch of the same thing, ya kinda feel bad, ya know? Like, they must be sick of this by now.
Surely!!
Well, guess what? Jenny never got sick of my coconut macaroons. And she sure as heck never got sick of these Lemon Coconut Macaroons. OH YEAH!! Even after the possibly-100s of paleo coconut macaroons I’ve brought her, she’s still asking me to make a bigger, wink wink, batch of these lemon coconut macaroons to bring over. And, in typical Jenny fashion, she also asked me to bring over some vegan lemon poppy seed muffins and a few slices of my easy vegan lemon loaf along with all the macaroons.
And that, folks, is how you KNOW they’re good.
Lastly, special shoutout to my reader, J, for requesting these lemon coconut macaroons. And a super special shoutout to my J for requesting that they be made with lemon icing. (Um, YUM!!) I went ahead and included that optional lemon glaze just in case you wanted your socks blown off in the most delicious way possible.
Yep, even I don’t really know what that means… Heh heh.
In case you’re still on the fence, check out this Lemon Coconut Macaroons Recipe’s finest points! They’re…
- super easy to make
- vegan, paleo, gluten-free, dairy-free and refined sugar-free
- made with just 6 simple ingredients
- the perfect excuse to bust out your citrus zester and your citrus squeezer
- just the vegan macaroons recipe you’ve been searching for
- made with the healthy & allergy-friendly, whole ingredients that you know and love
- perfectly tart and delightfully sweet
- basically everything you could ever want out of healthy paleo macaroons
Are you ready to bake this? You grab the coconut, I’ll grab the lemons! Let’s do it. 🙂 It’s truly such a joy to share these recipes with you. I can’t wait to hear what you and your loved ones think (hopefully they’re as pleased as Jenny!!).
Sending you all my love and maybe even a dove, xo Demeter ❤️
If you enjoyed this Lemon Coconut Macaroons Recipe, then you’ll just love these healthy paleo dessert recipes:
Gluten Free Vegan Coconut Recipes and More
- Dairy-Free Coconut Flour Cookie Dough Recipe (Vegan, Paleo, GF)
- 2 Ingredient Chocolate Coconut Candy Clusters (Paleo, GF)
- Healthy Lemon Raspberry Muffins Recipe – Easy Gluten Free Vegan Muffins!
- Easy Vegan Lemon Almond Poppy Seed Bread Recipe (Healthy, Vegan, Gluten Free)
- Macaroons made with Coconut Flour: Gluten Free Coconut Macaroons Recipe (Dairy-Free, Egg-Free)
- Keto Coconut Macaroons – 3 Low Carb Recipes!
Lemon Coconut Macaroons Recipe
- Total Time: 28 minutes
- Yield: 9 large cookies or 18 medium cookies 1x
Description
Lemon Coconut Macaroons Recipe (V, GF): an easy vegan recipe for sweetly tart lemon macaroons made from healthy ingredients to brighten your day! Vegan, Paleo, Gluten Free, Dairy-Free.
Ingredients
Lemon Coconut Macaroons
- 1 1/4 cups unsweetened small coconut shreds* (I use these gluten-free small coconut flakes)
- 1/4 cup finely ground, blanched almond flour
- 3 tablespoons coconut oil, solid**
- 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 1/2 tablespoons lemon zest, more for topping (about 1 teaspoon)
Optional Lemon Glaze (leave out glaze for paleo)
- 1 1/2 tablespoons organic, unrefined confectioners’ sugar*** (sugar-free substitute in notes)
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or greased foil. Set aside.
- Add all Lemon Coconut Macaroon ingredients (coconut, almond flour, oil, maple syrup, lemon juice and lemon zest) to a food processor (preferred) or blender. Here are the gluten-free small coconut flakes that I use–you must use small coconut flakes in this recipe, about the size of sprinkles. Using large coconut flakes will result in flat, spread-out cookies.
- Blend just until you get a wet and sticky mixture, with smaller, but still noticeable coconut pieces. If any maple syrup remains at the bottom of the processor, fold into dough until well mixed.
- Using a cookie scoop, scoop firmly packed balls of coconut mixture. Drop onto the prepared baking sheet, making sure to space balls evenly apart.
- Bake for 14-18 mins, until golden around the edges and slightly golden on top. Mine took 16 mins for large ones. Place baking sheet onto a cooling rack. Allow to cool on baking sheet for 30 mins-1 hour.
- Optionally, make glaze (skip for paleo). In a small bowl, whisk together Lemon Glaze ingredients: organic, unrefined confectioners’ sugar and lemon juice. Whisk until thickened. Drizzle macaroons with glaze. Optionally, top with lemon zest. Enjoy! Storing instructions below.
Adapted from my 4 Ingredient Paleo Coconut Macaroons.
Notes
- *You must use small coconut flakes for this recipe. The coconut flakes should be the size of sprinkles, or about half a grain of rice. Large coconut flakes will result in flat, spread out cookies (unlike the round macaroons you see in the pictures). Here are the gluten-free small coconut flakes that I use (pictures included in link).
- **Solid coconut oil is best for this recipe. Using melted coconut oil will result in smaller macaroons.
- ***Powdered sugar substitutes: Swerve powdered sugar is a good sugar-free, low carb substitute. You can also grind the sweetener of your choice, such as Xylitol, in a coffee grinder or small blender until you get a powder. Since Swerve is a bit drier, use about 2 ½ teaspoons lemon juice to make the glaze. You can also add more powdered sugar if you’d like a thicker glaze.
- Store in an airtight container for 1 week at room temperature or in the refrigerator.
- If freezing, store in an airtight, freezer-friendly container for up to 1 month. Allow to thaw for 15 minutes before enjoying.
- Prep Time: 12 minutes
- Cook Time: 16 mins
- Category: Cookies, Dessert
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
This post may contain affiliate links, which allow me to make a small commission for my referral, at no additional cost to you.
Like this recipe? Share it with friends!
Did you make this recipe? Take a pic and share it on Instagram with the hashtag #beamingbaker & tag @beamingbaker. I’d love to see it!
Hi Shireen! Yep, this recipe is for baked macaroons. But, since they’re vegan, you don’t have to worry about eating the batter if you’d like. 🙂
Hi Shireen! Yep, this recipe is for baked macaroons. But, since they’re vegan, you don’t have to worry about eating the batter if you’d like. 🙂
Do we have to bake them?
Hi Shireen! Yep, this recipe is for baked macaroons. But, since they’re vegan, you don’t have to worry about eating the batter if you’d like. 🙂
Hi these are fantastic & so very yummy, I used coconut flour as I have a nut allergy & I love ginger so substituted the lemon zest with chopped up crystallised ginger
I first used lemon & ginger this way when making cheesecakes & they was a hit with friends, family & neighbours so much they keep asking me to make them, now these yummy lemon & ginger macaroons are another treat that they are asking for as well as the cheesecakes 🙂
Ooh I’ll bet that ginger adds an amazing favor! So happy this is a hit for you and the fam. Happy baking, Sharon!
These were CRAZY easy to pull together in a matter of minutes. Just a blitz in the food processor and bam, ready for the cookie sheet. I put mine in the refrigerator for 10 minutes before putting them into the oven. I wanted to make sure they had a chance to firm back up. Other’s having problems with these going flat might have had a warm house, or made them in the summer? Anyway, they got ever so lightly crunchy on the top & bottom, and the lemon zest and glaze are just a bright touch. Just like others stated, I could easily eat the whole batch……but heck, at least they’re easy enough to throw another batch together in minutes! Definitely a favorite QUICK cookie recipe that I also don’t have to feel bad about eating. Thank you.
Yay! I know, I love how quick it is to whip up a batch (or two 😉) of these macaroons. I’m so happy to hear you’re enjoying them guilt-free!
What do you do with fresh lemons picked from the garden? This morning I made your beautiful lemon coconut macaroons! Delicious!! This is becoming a habit. I enjoyed three as my breakfast with my morning coffee. Thank you for all your hard work. 😊
That’s obviously the BEST plan ever!! I am all here for your flavor journey through my macaroon recipes—now I’m thinking I should make a different flavor for your next baking stop. 😉 Best habit ever! Thank you for always taking the time to share in these lovely kitchen moments with me. Can’t wait to see what you bake next! 😊
I used your base recipe and then decided to ice them with lemon and they were great. Now I see that you HAVE a lemon macaroon recipe! Just thought I’d offer off my lemon glaze that is melted coconut butter, a bit of maple syrup and as much lemon juice as desired till runny. They were terrific (oh, and I used an egg white instead of the coconut oil, and adjusted the almond flour as necessary). Thank you!
Oh, haha!! Well, it’s obvious that you already knew how to make an awesome glaze on your own. 😉 Love that you shared a coconut butter based glaze. Yum!! Enjoy!
Hi there! this recipe looks great! about the coconut though, do you think i can process thick coconut until it is fine? i dont have enough fine coconut and i’d really like to try this recipe. With the pandemic going on, i cannot really justify another trip to the grocery store!
thanks and stay safe!
Hi Leah, thank you! 🙂 I’ve tried using larger coconut that’s be blended to a smaller grain, but the macaroons still ended up spreading and flattening a bit. Maybe if you added 2-3 tablespoons extra of your blended coconut that will help? Let me know how it turns out. Stay safe too! 🙂
Hello. Can these be made with all-purpose or cake flour? Thank you!
Hi Stela, you can try using 3 tablespoons of all-purpose flour. That’s my best guess for the amount, based on the fact that almond flour is much less dry than regular flour. 🙂 Let me know how it turns out!
Just made these and they taste divine!
I had one issue that maybe you could resolve…
I followed all the directions and used the tiny coconut flakes too. However, the bottoms seeped and burnt a bit. The main part of the Macaroon stayed domed and nice though. Just that weird drainage kind of stuff. Any thoughts? I ended up trimming that off when they were done cooking and they looked fine but just not as nice as they should.
Hi Lisa. So glad you enjoyed the taste—it’s one of Erik’s faves. 🙂 Hm, I’d say make sure you pack the cookie scoop as firmly as possible. That will help them stay together and avoid any rough edges. Hope this helps!
My recipe totally melted into a blob. I followed the directions to a T. What could I have done wrong?
Hi Lindsy! First, make sure you’re using *small* coconut flakes/shreds. If you use big flakes they will definitely melt and spread. Also make sure you’re packing the cookie scoop as tightly as possible. Hope this helps!
I haven’t made this yet, but have made some other recipes for my wife. She has several allergies and one of those is almonds. Can I substitute the almond flour for oat or coconut flour? And if so, is this true for your other recipes or would it be case by case?
My wife was diagnosed with Lyme’s disease and as a result of Lyme’s, she has developed several allergies (around 4 pages worth). Some notable ones pertaining to baking are all dairy, eggs, flax, vanilla, most nuts, gluten… but I have made her your recipe for chocolate cupcakes and frosting and I omitted the vanilla and she LOVED them. Thanks for sharing!
– Mel
Hi Mel. I’m so sorry to hear about your wife’s condition, and I’m so happy that she enjoyed the cupcakes! For these macaroons: you can swap for coconut flour, reducing the amount by about 1 tablespoon or so. As for the other recipes, it’s definitely a case by case situation as coconut flour is far more absorbent than most other flours. I try to list substation notes when possible, but if you don’t see one feel free to drop a comment and I’ll do my best to help you find a solution. 🙂
IF you decide to try these again, it could have been warm in your kitchen causing your coconut oil to be too soft heading into the oven. Try scooping the cookies onto your parchment lined baking sheet and then refrigerating them for 10 minutes before throwing them into the oven. I did so, and mine browned perfectly, stayed in nice balls, etc.
How many carbs in one medium?