I am not lying when I say these smacaroons are awesome. Everyone who has tried them has loved them, and they ask, “These are healthy?!”
Yes. They are extremely healthy.
I have been snacking on these like crazy! They are a great on-the-go breakfast, dessert, or snack; or for serving on a lazy Sunday brunch.
My inspiration for making these came from Heather’s fantastic Grain & Sugar-Free Scookies. You all know how much I love grain-free and sugar-free foods, and her scookies looked amazing! Seriously, Heather, you are a genius!
My little bites of goodness ended up being more like a mix between a scone and macaroon instead of a scone and cookie, so the smacaroons were born!
Scones+Macaroons=Smacaroons.
~These smacaroons are grain-free, gluten-free, vegan, soy-free, peanut-free, dairy-free, and, of course, sugar-free!
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups raw almonds (or 2 cups almond flour)
- 1/2 cup unsweetened, shredded coconut
- 1 cup chia gel (3 tablespoons chia seed+1 cup water. Let sit 20 minutes.)
- 2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
- 1 banana, mashed
- 1 Tablespoon coconut oil
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp vanilla
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375*.
- Blend raw almonds in a food processor or strong blender until almonds turn into almond flour. Don't blend too long or else it will turn into almond butter.
- Mix all ingredients together until well-combined. Batter should stick together.
- Take an ice-cream scoop (or your hands!) and form into balls.
- Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown. I like to broil it for the last minute or so, so the macaroons get a nice crunchy edge.
I love the coconut+banana+chocolate combo. The coconut replaces the peanut butter in my favorite combo that I can no longer eat due to lent! The Smacaroons have a somewhat tropical taste with the banana and coconut, but it is comforting, too. They are soft and fluffy in the middle, but nice and crispy on the outside. They taste delightful straight out of the oven because the chocolate is nice and melty!
You can omit the banana if you want to make it completely sugar-free; but it tastes so good with the banana and bananas are good for you! Natural sugars are a-okay in my book!
Health Benefits
- Almonds: Almonds are a major superfood, and they are full of monounsaturated, good-for-you fats. It contains many nutrients that benefit the brain, and regulate cholesterol. The monounsaturated fats and vitamin E reduce the risk of heart disease.
- Coconut: Coconut is widely misunderstood because of it’s high fat content; however, coconut’s saturated fat is made up of medium-chain fatty acids. These medium-chains are easy to absorb and digest, and are converted quickly into energy. Coconut is also a great source of dietary fiber with a whopping 5 grams per oz.!
- Chocolate: Click HERE for a post I did about all the benefits of chocolate.
- Bananas: Rich in potassium, bananas help the body’s circulatory system deliver oxygen to the brain. This also helps maintain a regular heartbeat and a proper balance of water in the body. It also contains tryptophan to help relax you and lift your spirits!
- Chia: Click HERE for a post I did about all the benefits of chia.
I calculated the nutrition facts for the smacaroons because I was interested to see the calorie content for something made out of mostly almonds. Each Smacaroon is only about 100 calories! I would take one of these over those artificial, bland, cracker-like 100-calorie packs any day!
Thought-provoking, mind-prodding question of the day:
Do you follow recipes?
I never follow recipes really. I always change something in my food! I may glance over the ingredient list, but I always end up throwing whatever I want into the mix. I also rarely measure my ingredients. If it is the right consistency, it is probably fine!
Follow Me!