Coconut Macaroons: Better Than Yankee Candle

Bill & I went to Punta Cana on our honeymoon & while the sights were beautiful, memories abundant & drinks constantly poured, the food was far from superior. Actually, it sucked. Big time. However, I can't hate on Punta Cana's lack of culinary skills all night because there was one little morsel of Heaven I discovered while we were there: the coconut macaroon.

At the lunch buffet, there were a few stations of different ethnic foods & a dessert station. I made a bee-line to the dessert station the moment I saw it, deciding from it's contents how large the savory portion of my lunch would be. I saw "Coconut Crispies" on a card behind a plate of golden dollops and was a little hesitant, but the whole trip had been a culinary bust so I thought "Why not?". Oh goodness how that flavor changed my idea of what a coconut cookie should taste like. I appreciate the Girl Scout Samoa as much as any other person, but these bad boys were on my plate every day the rest of the trip & when I wasn't eating them, I was thinking about eating them.

When we got home I researched "Coconut Crispie Cookie" to try & find a recipe to replicate this beautiful flavor I'd discovered in the Dominican and eventually found that they were really called coconut macaroons. I paged through a few blogs to find a recipe that sounded correct & eventually settled on a tried & true go-to recipe book: The Joy of Cooking.


If you know me, you know I'm a Yankee Candle fanatic. I think they're the perfect gift to give & receive because everyone likes when their house smells good! Bill & I have one burning constantly. I am currently baking a batch of these coconut macaroons & the smell can put any scent from Yankee to shame. Our house smells magnificent right now – I had NO idea a simple cookie could enchant every sense like this! They taste good, they look good, they smell good?? I am not ashamed to admit: I thanked Jesus today for this cookie. I think it's important to pray for all things good in our lives, and this cookie is so, so good. A little scoop of vanilla ice cream & one of these is enough to make any bad day evaporate into a distant memory.

What cookie do YOU thank Jesus for?

Coconut Macaroon

Coconut Macaroons
Makes about 36 1 1/2" cookies
Preheat the oven to 325º. Grease or line 2 cookie sheets.
Stir together in a large bowl until combined:

2/3 cup sweetened condensed milk
1 large egg white
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/8 teaspoon salt


Stir in until blended:

3 1/2 cups flaked or shredded coconut


Drop the dough by the tablespoonfuls about 2 inches apart onto the cookie sheets. Bake, 1 sheet at a time, until golden brown, 20-24 minutes. Let stand briefly, then remove to a rack to cool.