Coconut Macaroons

I am not a big fan of coconut, when it comes to curry. However, I like it in the form of sweets. May it be the Bounty or the coconut macaroon or coconut crunch etc. I was introduced to this form of coconut macaroon a while ago and I liked it. In the recent past, while I tried figuring out how to make these, most of the online sources sounded them to be pretty easy. Yes, they are easy to make, once you get a hang of making it. This was my 'third' attempt that turned out to be a success, having attained the perfect shape.

The first time I made them, everything seemed fine, until it was half baked. When I opened the oven, the very look of the macaroon, made my enthusiasm baked off in the oven heat. The conical shapes were all gone and the macaroons just went flat with little cones here and there. It took me long to separate them from the baking sheet and I don't even want to remind myself of the trouble I had cleaning up the mess.






The second time, I made these, I used a different recipe and it turned out to be not of the desired texture and shape. I couldn't quite call them 'macaroons', because they didn't look like what I had in mind. But yes, both the trials, did deliver a sweet that was yum, which pushed me to keep trying. For the third time, the ingredients remained same, just that they differed in the proportion. So here is the recipe to the coconut macaroon that finally turned out to be a success. I hope it turns out to be good for you in your very first attempt :).

Ingredients

1. 1 large egg
2. A little less than 1/2 cup of granulated sugar
3. A pinch of salt
4. 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract
5. 21/2 cup of sweetened coconut flakes

Method

• Take a baking sheet and grease it well with butter. Keep it aside.
• Take a bowl and beat the egg in it. 
• Add sugar,salt and vanilla extract and mix it till it turns shiny and the sugar almost gets dissolved.
• Add the coconut and mix it in such a way that every flake gets moistened.
• Scoop out the mixture and place them on to the baking sheet. Give them the desired shape with your fingers.
• Preheat the oven to 350 F/180 C.
• Bake them for about 15- 18 mins or until the edges turn brown. 
• Yields around 18-20 macaroons

Tips

1. The macaroons would stick badly on to the sheet while baking. Hence, you could choose to place an aluminium foil/parchment paper on the baking sheet and then grease them well.  
2. If you happen to use unsweetened coconut, you would need to increase the amount of sugar added, accordingly.
3. You could also choose to give a chocolate coating on the base of the macaroon. Let the macaroon cool down. Take a microwavable bowl and add some chopped semi sweet chocolate and little butter. Microwave it till it melts. Dip the base of the macaroon in it and place it on a sheet and chill it in the refrigerator till the chocolate hardens.

Recipe courtesy: Adapted from Joy of Baking