Directions:

Preheat your oven to 325, then move racks into the upper and lower thirds of the oven.

Line 2 cookie pans with parchment paper.

In a processor or blender pulse almonds untill just finely chopped, then set aside.

Grate to zest half of a lemon into a stainless steel bowl.

Add egg whites and whisk until frothy.

Stir in sugar, spice, carrot, coconut and almonds.

Stir to moisten all of the ingredients.

Set aside for 10 minutes to rest and dissolve sugar while hydrating the coconut.

Set the bowl in a wide skillet of barely simmering water and stir with a Silicone spatula, sweeping the bottom of the bowl to prevent egg whites from cooking.

Continue until the mixture is very hot and any liquid has thickened slightly and turned from translucent to opaque, 5 to 7 minutes.

Drop heaping teaspoons 1 inch apart on parchment-lined cookie sheets.

You can roll dough into ball shaped cookies with your fingers.

Bake 20 to 25 minutes, rotating the pans from top to bottom and front to back about halfway through the baking time.

Look for the tips of the carrot shreds begin to color and the bottoms of the cookies look deep golden brown when you lift a corner of the parchment over (without removing the cookie) and look underneath.

Slide the liners from the pans onto the racks to cool.

Let the cookies cool completely before serving.

To remove the cookies from the parchment, hold one cookie at a time while gently peeling the parchment away from it.

Cookies keep for 3 to 4 days, loosely covered to prevent sogginess. Enjoy!