So, every year I do the same old thing – a couple weeks before Passover – I head to the supermarket and search high and low for that surreptitious end cap stocked with the latest (but ever the same) boxes of Passover matzos and other intolerable snacks. But this year, however, I vowed, that aside from my ONE box of necessary matzos, I would not purchase, not even one can of the classic Passover treat, those tiny, smushed, completely overpriced coconut macaroons! No, this year I set out to make my own … and the result was better and easier than I imaged … not to mention much more economical.

First, I must confess, I looked at plenty of recipes before I used a variation of most, with one specific modification, I did not want to use ground almonds (or almond flour), purely because I didn’t want to invest in it … the idea was to make an inexpensive macaroon with my kids. Here’s what I ended up with, Purely Decadent Chocolate Chip Macaroons – and I must add – the only ingredient I purchased was a bag of Great Value Brand Shredded Coconut for $1.72, everything else, I had in my pantry … how’s that for macaroon economics?

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups unsweetened shredded coconut

2/3 cup sugar (most recipes called for 3/4 to a cup of sugar, but I generally reduce the measurement)

2 egg whites

2 tsp. vanilla

1/2 cup good quality semi-sweet chocolate chips

Pinch of table salt

Method:

1. Line baking sheet with parchment. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a large bowl, combine coconut, sugar, egg whites, vanilla and salt
3. Add chocolate chips, ensure the ingredients are well mixed
4. With wet hands, form 1-2 tbsp. of mixture into a haystack-like shape, or little domes about 1 inch apart
5. Bake until golden brown, about 12-15 minutes. Remove from pans to cool. Macaroons should slide right off of parchment
6. Store in airtight container for up to 5 days

In the end, my girls and I ended up baking two batches – one with straight chocolate chips and the second variation by adding diced crystalized ginger into the mix – all together, our efforts yielded 32, rather large and relatively inexpensive, but oh, so tasty, coco-nutty morsels of Passover goodness! See some pictures below. -April

Here is the picture with chocolate and ginger:

This is the just chocolate chip batch: