Coconut Macaroons

We got some awesome chocolate topped coconut macaroons at the Atlantic Baking Company in Rockland, Maine this summer. Back home and needing to make a cookie of some sort, I decided to give it a try.  I turned to my trusty Silver Palate Cookbook and made cookies with the following ingredients:

1/3 c unbleached all-purpose flour

2 1/2 c shredded coconut [9 oz]

1/8 t salt [omitted]

2/3 c sweetened condensed milk

1 t vanilla extract

While the Silver Palate recipe calls for a quarter cupfull of batter per cookie baked 20 minutes or until golden brown at 350 degrees F,  I wanted much smaller cookies and failed to reduce cooking time. The results were good but not as soft and chewy as the Atlantic Baking Company's. But like the Atlantic Baking Company I added a chocolate dip (see photo left). I have since modified the recipe to use the entire can of condensed milk (the macaroons freeze well). 

Mix together:

2.6 oz (1/2 c + 1 T) flour

15 oz shredded coconut

Mix well then add:

14 oz sweetened condensed milk

2 t vanilla or 2 t almond extract*

Mix until all the ingredients are well blended

Preheat oven to 350 degreed F. Drop about 2 T of batter per cookie (should make 36 cookies) on baking sheets covered with parchment paper. Some bits of batter may fall away from the cookie. After all the batter has been distributed, using your damp hands, push the stray pieces to the nearest cookie and push to attach.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 15 - 20 minutes until golden brown checking after 10 minutes and rotating the cooking sheet if cookies in the rear are browing faster than those in the front.

Remove cookies from pan and cool on a rack. If desired, when cool, dip (I acutally don't "dip" I "frost" the bottom of each cookie) in chocolate (I use 365 Dark Chocolate Baking Chunks) melted in the microwave. Set the cookie upside down on a plate, then put the plate of cookies in the  refrigerator to set the chocolate, (Photo of resultant cookies - after chocolate has set - at top of page.)

NOTE: I use melted chocolate so ofter that I just cover the ramekin containing any remaining melted chocolate and refrigerate until next use.

* I prefer almond extract. However if making for a group that might include some people who are allergic to nuts, use vanilla.