Making coconut macaroons couldn’t be easier: You whisk together a few ingredients over simmering water, stir in coconut and flour, and relax while the dough chills. Drop the dough onto baking sheets by the tablespoon and bake, then add a drizzle of melted chocolate over the top for an easy decoration that will earn these a spot on your next cookie plate.

What to buy: Sweetened, shredded coconut is also known as angel flake.

Game plan: It is essential to give the dried coconut time to soak up the egg white mixture so that you end up with round, fluffy macaroons instead of flattened disks. This process takes at least 6 hours, but you’ll get the best results if the dough chills overnight.

This recipe was featured as part of our Crazy-Easy Christmas Cookies.

  • Yield: About 35 cookies
  • Difficulty: Easy
  • Total: 45 mins, plus chilling time

Ingredients (8)

  • 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
  • 4 large egg whites
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
  • 7 ounces sweetened shredded coconut (about 2 2/3 cups)
  • 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 6 ounces semisweet chocolate chips

Instructions

  1. Fill a large saucepan with 2 inches of water and bring it to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low so the water is just simmering.
  2. Whisk together the sugar, egg whites, honey, vanilla, and salt in a large heatproof bowl. Set the bowl over, but not touching, the simmering water. Heat, whisking frequently, until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture looks thicker, paler, and is hot to the touch, about 8 to 10 minutes.
  3. Remove the bowl from the heat and stir in the coconut and flour. Cover and refrigerate the dough for at least 6 hours or preferably overnight.
  4. Heat the oven to 350°F and arrange a rack in the middle. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Stir the dough and drop level tablespoons onto the baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Store the remaining dough in the refrigerator.
  5. Bake until the cookies are light golden brown around the edges and set in the centers, rotating the sheet halfway through, about 12 to 15 minutes total. Place the pan on a wire rack and let the cookies sit for 1 minute. Transfer the cookies to the wire rack to cool completely. Using a cooled baking sheet and the same sheet of parchment, repeat with the remaining dough. Set aside the parchment to use for drizzling the chocolate over the cooled cookies.
  6. Place the cooled cookies on the reserved parchment sheet (they can be touching). Melt the chocolate chips in a small saucepan over low heat. (Alternatively, melt the chocolate chips in the microwave.) Dip a fork into the chocolate and drizzle it over the macaroons in a zigzag pattern. Let the cookies sit at room temperature until the chocolate has set, about 30 minutes. Store the macaroons in an airtight container for up to 2 days.