Coconut Macaroons

I went over to my aunt's house over the weekend and she loved the Homemade Girl Scout Samoas cookies I made with my girlfriends and asked if I could make her some coconut macaroons. So I came back a few days later with bags of shredded coconut in tow ready to whip up some macaroons.

Jung and I ended up making three batches of cookies that night and I think by the time we were done, it was well past midnight. We're crazy I tell you, but my aunt and uncle loved them, so it was well worth it. It was also really funny to see Brutus, Jung's dog, try to sneak a lick of the butter every so often while we weren't looking.

I made this recipe years ago and I remember it being a little too sweet and it not really holding up its shape, so I read some comments and found that you need to use less condensed milk and also refrigerate the mixture before baking. Someone suggested adding some almond extract as well so we added 1/2 teaspoon and found it a bit too strong, so I halved it in the recipe below.

Coconut Macaroons

adapted from Ina Garten

Ingredients

14 ounce bag of sweetened shredded coconut

14 ounce can of sweetened condensed milk

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon pure almond extract

2 large egg whites, at room temperature

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Combine the coconut, condensed milk (minus 2 tablespoons worth - make some Vietnamese coffee with it later on), vanilla and almond extract in a large bowl. Whip the egg whites and salt on high speed in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment until they make medium-firm peaks.

Carefully fold the egg whites into the coconut mixture. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Drop the batter onto greased or parchment lined sheet pans using either a 1 3/4-inch diameter ice cream scoop, or 2 teaspoons.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until golden brown. Cool and serve.

These were crispy and golden on the outside and chewy on the inside. My aunt couldn't believe how easy these were to make and how few ingredients were involved. With the slight variations from the original recipe, these were a definite hit.