This recipe makes about 90 cookies. Cut the ingredients in half (or a smaller fraction) for a smaller batch, although a large batch is guaranteed to go quickly if you love coconut (and they freeze well in the rare circumstance you have leftovers).

Ingredients

  • 4 – 14 oz bags unsweetened coconut flakes (or 3.5 lbs bulk)
  • 2 – 14 oz cans sweetened condensed milk
  • 1/4 cup sour cream or Greek yogurt
  • 4 tablespoons heavy cream
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla
  • 8-12 oz good dark chocolate for dipping or drizzling

Directions

  1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees and cover two sheet pans with parchment paper. If making a full batch you’ll end up baking three rounds of cookies two sheets at a time (unless you have multiple ovens).
  2. Pour coconut flakes into a very large mixing bowl. You can do the mixing by hand with a strong spoon or use a Kitchenaid mixer with the paddle attachment. I recommend mixing only half the ingredients together at a time, scooping, then mixing up the other half.
  3. Pour the condensed milk, sour cream, cream and vanilla on top of the coconut flakes.
  4. If using a mixer, turn to a slow speed, then with the mixer running, slowly add the remaining coconut.
  5. Mix for about 10-15 seconds until combined then turn off the mixer. Scrape the paddle with a spatula and give the the batter a few turns to make sure all ingredients are well distributed. If mixing by hand it’ll probably take several minutes to ensure ingredients are combined evenly.
  6. Use a medium cookie scoop (one with a capacity of 1½ tablespoons) to scoop out the mixture and press slightly together so they hold their shape when you drop them onto the sheet pan. They won’t spread while baking, so you should be able to fit 15 cookies on your average sheet pan.
  7. Place two sheets into the oven and bake for about 15-20 minutes. The bottoms of the macaroons should be lightly caramelized (medium-dark brown). Repeat until mixture is gone.
  8. Melt the dark chocolate in a double boiler.
  9. Dip the cooled macaroons halfway into the chocolate and set them back onto a sheet pan covered with parchment. Alternatively you can drizzle the chocolate atop each cookie. You may want to place the dipped macaroons in the refrigerator or freezer so the chocolate cools faster and preserves a shine (if you cool under room temperature the chocolate may get dull).
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