Easter Coconut Macaroons Tested Recipe

Easter Coconut Macaroons Recipe

Easter Coconut Macaroons are a delicious combination of sweetened coconut, whole eggs, white sugar, and vanilla extract. To dress them for Easter, a jelly bean is tucked into each cookie before it is baked. These Coconut Macaroons have the sweet flavor of coconut and when eaten warm from the oven, they have nice crisp edges while the insides stay moist, soft and chewy.

This recipe is adapted from Lynne Rossetto Kasper and Sally Swift's excellent book The Splendid Table's How to to Eat Supper. This is a no fuss, quick and easy recipe that begs to be made when a craving hits for something sweet. These are excellent anytime of the year, just forget about adding the jelly beans. Instead, you could add 1/2 cup of mini chocolate chips to the batter or dip the bottoms in melted chocolate like I have done here. These Coconut Macaroons can be made in just a few minutes in one bowl, and baked immediately. They are really just mounds of sweetened coconut, held together by beaten eggs, that are baked until nicely browned. While excellent warm from the oven, they are also good cold, so store them in the refrigerator. After a day or two their flavor softens yet they are still wonderfully moist and chewy.

Sweetened coconut is made by combining coconut with powdered icing. It can be packaged either in plastic bags or cans and is available shredded or flaked, sometimes even toasted. For this recipe I like to use shredded coconut which gives them that rough haystack look.

Coconut Macaroons: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C) and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a large stainless steel bowl whisk the eggs until well beaten. Stir in the sugar, salt, and vanilla extract. Finally, stir in the coconut, making sure that all the coconut is completely moistened.

Place small mounds (about 1 tablespoon) of the batter on the parchment-lined baking sheet, spacing several inches apart. Gently press one or two jelly beans into the tops of the Macaroons. Bake for about 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven and let cool on the baking sheet for about 10 minutes and then place on a wire rack to cool. Store in the refrigerator.

Makes about 2 dozen Macaroons.

Adapted From:

Rossetto Kasper, Lynn & Swift, Sally. The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper. Clarkson/Potter Publishers. New York: 2008.

Coconut Macaroons

2 large eggs

1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated white sugar

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

3 cups (300 grams) sweetened shredded coconut

Garnish:

Jelly Beans