Oh hello soft, gooey, deliciousness. Where have you been?
I’m sure I’ve made these before but never with so much success. I think the secret ingredient is having the mental attitude of baking them for someone else. Or is that just me?
The Hobnob search
It all started when we bumped into my mother-in-law in the supermarket. She mentioned that she was on the hunt for the new coconut hobnobs. Have you seen them? They’re essentially a chocolate chip cookie with a coconut macaroon theme. Sounds good right? So good that they are literally sold out everywhere and at the time of writing this post are going for around £9 a pack on Ebay. Total madness.
The solution? Bake some myself.
I wanted to check out the consistency first and that’s when I decided to make this coconut macaroon recipe before incorporating a choc chip cookie into the mix. I’m still working on that one. Watch this space. I can’t wait. I think it will be delish. I’m currently deciding between making little balls of coconut macaroon to stir up in the cookie mix and having a coconut macaroon centre. Which would you do?
How to make Coconut Macaroons
These really are super easy and taste great as long as you don’t over bake them. They just go chewier rather than being soft and gooey. You may prefer that but I don’t. A soft shell with a moist centre is the best way for me when it comes to coconut macaroons.
Coconut macaroon recipe – the easy one
Ingredients
- – 125g desiccated coconut
- – 1 Medium egg white
- – 150g caster sugar
- – 15 almond halves – to decorate
Instructions
- Heat your oven to 200°C, Gas mark 6. Line a baking tray with greaseproof paper.
- Place the coconut and sugar in a food processor and whizz for 10 seconds. You don’t have to do this step but it will make the texture of the macaroons even finer. You can mix by hand.
- Add the egg white and blend thoroughly. It should form wet clumps.
- Roll out the macaroon balls. I like them to be quite large so they are really soft inside- about the size of a large walnut. Dampen your hands so the mixture doesn’t stick too much.
- Place on the baking tray. Give them plenty of space to spread. About 3 cm between each one is perfect.
- Flatten the balls lightly with the palm of your hand
- Pop in the oven for 12-15 minutes. When the bottom edge looks like it’s browning they’re done. You should be able to lift one up to check.
- Pop them on a cooling rack till they are completely cool. They taste better cool.
Passover recipe
These are a great treat for the Jewish Passover. They’re quick and easy to make, need few ingredients and you can make your own mayonnaise with the leftover egg yolks.
I’m also working on creating a vegan version. I’ve had a lot of success with using chickpea water whisked up with some cream of tartar to replace egg whites with baking. But I’ve also had some spectacular flops. Have you tried vegan egg substitutes? I’d love to know what works for you. Answers on a postcard (aka please leave me a comment and help a girl out)
Gifting coconut macaroon
I think these make a great gift. I made these and some almond macaroons at the same time, popped them all in a box with some greaseproof paper lining the bottom – because the coconut oil does seem to seep out, and wrapped with a pretty bow. I know I’d be happy with that. Wouldn’t you.
Enjoy
Em x
