Updated Coconut Macaroons (1845)

Coconut Macaroons.

 

Revisited the Very Fine Coconut Macaroons from Eliza Acton's Modern Cookery (1845) for Fort Steilacoom on Sunday. It's a simple receipt that scales easily (1 white beaten stiff, 2 oz sugar, 1oz dry shredded coconut; bake on low until firm). I did 2 eggs worth again, which neatly filled 1.5 pans. Despite beating the egg whites to stiff peaks, the mixture liquefied as soon as I added the other ingredients, so I didn't get to shape the macaroons by rolling the dough into balls. This is probably why they turned out a bit flat, but they tasted fine anyway. I'm mostly posting this update so that I can note the cooking temperature: the macaroons were mostly done after 30 minutes at 180F, but the bottoms were still sticky and tended to come apart. I put them back in for another 10 minutes (40 minutes at 180F in total), and then let them sit in the cooling oven overnight. They ended up cooked all the way through, without changing color.