(C)hanuk(k)ah: Chocolate Covered Coconut Macaroons

My Chanukah Troll, which I've had since the age of 9, oversees the Coconut Macaroons.

Back when I first started this blog--when my photos were atrocious and no one read a word I had to say--I tried to make those fancy French macarons. They were, without a doubt, a disaster. I hadn't yet figured out that a tall glass works wonders for getting batter into a pastry bag, and had no idea that over-beating would destroy any chance at lightness. Even a delicious center couldn't salvage those babies. And this is why I have foregone those airy almond confections in favor of another O--and I mean that it in the most G-Rated way possible.

Jews love themselves some macaroons. This has a lot to do with the fact that they contain no leavening agent and are thus perfect Passover treats. I agree with this assessment as long as we're not talking about those disgusting store bought Manischewitz macaroons. I get it--macaroons started out as almond meringue confections and slowly morphed into more substantial cookies with bits of coconut. But those almond-coconut macaroons have the weirdest consistency--dry and crumbly, but oddly sticky. The random bits of coconut flakes also give me the feeling that I'm chowing down on stray hairs. Granted, that's always a possibility, as a long-haired dog has been roaming my house for thirteen years, but it's not a quality I particularly look for or strive to create.

This is why I'm glad that coconut macaroons these days are usually 100% coconut with no almond to be found. And even though it isn't Passover, macaroons in this form have been co-opted by the Jewish masses as a way to celebrate all of our holidays, including Chanukah. Some recipes use egg whites to bind the coconut, but neither my Mom nor I have been able to get the cookies to stay together with those sorts of recipes. Instead, we've been making these macaroons for years because not only are they guaranteed to stick together, they're tasty and consist of three ingredients that always sit in our pantry. Sweetened condensed milk is our binding of choice, producing a perfect sweetness and a wonderfully chewy cookie. Because of the sugar content in the SCM and the coconut, the bottoms and tops of these macaroons also tend to caramelize, bringing another dimension to their taste. I could eat an entire batch of these plain, but decided to spruce them up a bit as they were being sent out to a few readers. If you cringe at the idea of tempering chocolate, throw some mini chocolate chips into the dough and you're good to go--it's what my mom did when I was a kid.

This recipe doesn't use the entire can of sweetened condensed milk, but the remainder is the perfect amount for a third of a recipe of Magic Cookie Bars if you don't feel like letting it go to waste.

Coconut Macaroons
Makes 24 Cookies

2 2/3 cups packed sweetened
flaked coconut

2/3 cup sweetened condensed milk

1 tsp. vanilla extract

8 oz dark chocolate, tempered

Preheat oven to 350F. Mix coconut, condensed milk and vanilla in one bowl. Line a baking sheet with greased parchment or a Silpat (very, very important). Using a spoon or a small cookie scoop, drop 24 tightly packed cookies onto your baking sheet 1" apart. Grease the back of a spoon and use it to gently press any stray pieces of coconut back into the mound so they don't burn. Bake for 10-12 minutes until lightly browned. Let cool on sheet until set. If you packed the dough tightly, they will retain their shape and any excess sweetened condensed milk will form a ring around the edge. Trim the edge with scissors or a knife if they get in the way of your dipping. These little pieces are delicious, so snack on them.

After tempering your chocolate, dip your chocolate and shake off any excess. Let dry on a rack. If your dipping skills are as atrocious as mine, use a small rubber spatula to "paint" on the chocolate.