Coconut Macaroons - a Light(er) Snack

Recently I had the good fortune to go to Miraval Spa in Arizona. The food they made was all amazing but the macaroons - I went crazy for them. Miraval is nice enough to provide copies of the recipe so I snatched one up. I thought this would be a nice cookie to make for the holidays - really delicious but no butter and full of bran flakes so if you're going to have sweets, this one's a bit better for you. Just don't eat dozens of them and you'll be fine. Enjoy and Happy Holidays all!

Coconut Macaroons, Miraval Style

Yield: about 5 dozen

Ingredients:
- 8 egg whites
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp vanilla
- 3 cups sugar
- 4 cups coconut (unsweetened)
- 7 cups bran flakes
- Vegetable spray for the cookie sheet

How to:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. In a bowl, beat the egg whites, salt and vanilla and beat until foamy. Gradually add the sugar and beat until stiff and glossy. Gently fold in the coconut and flakes.
3. Prepare a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and sprayed with vegetable spray. Drop mixture in 1 tsp increments on the cookie sheet. the Directions say to leave 2" between cookies but I found they don't spread out so you can put them pretty close to each other. 1" should be plenty of room. Bake for 12-15 minutes until golden. Allow to cool on cookie sheet.