Chewy coconut macaroons are golden brown and crispy on the outside and soft and chewy inside. And they're the easiest cookies in the world to make -- you just need one bowl and 5 simple ingredients.
This recipe was revised on 3/1/22 with new tips, techniques, and ingredients.
If you're one of my fellow coconut lovers, you'll be in heaven the first time you bite into these soft and chewy vanilla macaroons -- not to be confused with vanilla macarons, those fancy French meringue cookies that bear a very similar name.
These are classic coconut macaroons in their purest form -- soft, chewy, nutty, the perfect sweet treat.
You’re going to love these
Super simple recipe, and you only need one bowl.
Basic ingredients you can easily find in most grocery stores.
Naturally gluten-free, so no need to search for gluten-free substitutions.
No-chilling time necessary. Whipped egg whites and just enough sweetened condensed milk holds the shredded coconut together perfectly.
Ingredients
This chewy coconut macaroons recipe comes together with 5 simple ingredients.
Egg whites. Egg whites help hold the batter together so the cookies won’t spread during baking.
I used liquid egg whites -- ones with the only ingredient being egg whites. The packaging warned me they wouldn’t whip, but they whipped up beautifully for me in this recipe.
You can also use the whites from 2 large eggs. If you find yourself with a couple leftover egg yolks, here are some ideas for how to use them.
Coconut flakes. I had the best experience baking these vanilla macaroons with Baker’s Angel Flake Sweetened Coconut.
While I'm all for using store brands whenever possible, I found generic coconut flakes to be too dry.
Baker's Sweetened Coconut is rich and moist and creates the best chewy texture in these coconut cookies.
Sweetened condensed milk. You only need ¾ cup of sweetened condensed milk for one batch of vanilla macaroons. Which… I know. It would be nice to use the whole can.
But the good news is you can buy it in squeeze bottles now -- look at these! You can also freeze any leftover sweetened condensed milk for another use.
Eagle Brand sweetened condensed milk worked the best for me.
I found store brands to be thinner and resulted in a little bit of pooling at the bottom of the cookies. They didn't ruin the recipe by any means and were still delicious, but to get the best looking cookie, I recommend Eagle Brand.
Pure vanilla extract. To get the most intense flavor in your vanilla macaroons, use pure vanilla extract, not imitation.
Some folks like to add a little almond extract or even coconut extract to intensify the coconut flavor. If you decide to give this a try, start very small -- like ¼ teaspoon. A little can go a long way with flavored extracts, especially almond.
Step-by-step Instructions
Optional step: To create perfectly shaped chewy coconut macaroons that don't have any craggy edges, you can whiz the coconut through a food processor to break up the coconut into small, fine flakes that will mound into perfect little balls. But this step is totally up to you -- the cookies will still look great without it. For reference, these photos were taken without taking this step. But I have done it and they do look nice.
Step 1
Set the oven temperature to 325.
Place parchment paper or silicone mats onto one large baking sheet or two half sheet pans -- you'll need enough room to bake about 18 coconut macaroons.
Step 2
Beat egg whites in a large bowl.
You can beat them by hand with a wire whisk or with an electric hand mixer (with regular beaters or a whisk attachment) at medium-high speed until soft peaks form. This means the peaks will barely hold their shape and curl over on themselves.
Step 3
Add vanilla extract and salt and beat for another minute.
Step 4
Add the coconut and sweetened condensed milk to the mixing bowl.
Fold egg whites into the coconut and sweetened condensed milk with a rubber spatula until completely combined.
Step 5
With a cookie scoop, scoop the coconut mixture into portions about the size of a golf ball and place them onto your prepared baking sheets.
The best way to ensure your vanilla macaroons are uniformly sized and shaped is to use wet fingers to form the mixture into nice little mounds and tuck in any stray coconut shreds.
Step 6
Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the coconut is golden brown on the tops and the bottoms.
Let the macaroons cool on the baking sheet for 3 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Expert Tips
Whip the egg whites until they just start to hold soft peaks — meaning when you lift your whisk or beaters, the egg whites will form a peak that will barely hold its shape and curl down onto itself.
Portion the dough with a cookie scoop to make perfectly even chewy coconut macaroons.
Use wet fingers to mound the dough into round balls and tuck in any stray coconut shreds.
Be careful not to over bake your vanilla macaroons. You don’t want burned coconut, so check for doneness on the earlier side of the baking time.
Recipe FAQs
Coconut macaroons will spread if there is too much liquid (usually sweetened condensed milk) in the dough, or, for recipes that require chilling before baking, the dough is still too warm.
This chewy coconut macaroon recipe shouldn’t spread at all.
If, for some reason, your first pan of macaroons spreads a little bit, try placing the dough into the refrigerator for about an hour.
Store macaroons in an airtight container at room temperature for a few days. You can also store them in the refrigerator for about a week.
However you store them, they will be a little softer than the day you made them, but will still taste delicious.
You can also freeze macaroons for months. Just place them in an air-tight container, placing parchment paper or wax paper in between layers. Let them thaw at room temperature.
Hungry for more chewy macaroon recipes?
This basic macaroon recipe is the perfect base to create your favorite flavored macaroons. Here are a few new recipe variations to try!
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Chewy Coconut Macaroons
Ingredients
- 6 tablespoons liquid egg whites (or 2 large egg whites)
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 14 oz bag sweetened coconut
- ¾ cup sweetened condensed milk
Instructions
- Optional step: To create perfectly shaped chewy coconut macaroons that don't have any craggy edges, whiz the coconut through a food processor to break up the coconut into small, fine flakes that will mound into perfect little balls. This step is totally up to you -- the cookies will still look great without it. For reference, these photos were taken without taking this step.
- Set the oven temperature to 325. Place parchment paper or silicone mats onto one large baking sheet or two half sheet pans -- you'll need enough room to bake about 18 coconut macaroons.
- Beat egg whites in a large bowl. You can beat them by hand with a wire whisk or with an electric hand mixer (with regular beaters or a whisk attachment) at medium-high speed until soft peaks form.
- Add vanilla extract and salt and beat for another minute.
- Add the coconut and sweetened condensed milk to the mixing bowl. Fold egg whites into the coconut and sweetened condensed milk with a rubber spatula until completely combined.
- With a cookie scoop, scoop the coconut mixture into portions about the size of a golf ball and place them onto your prepared baking sheets. The best way to ensure your vanilla macaroons are uniformly sized and shaped is to use wet fingers to form the mixture into nice little mounds and tuck in any stray coconut shreds.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the coconut is golden brown on the tops and the bottoms. Let the macaroons cool on the baking sheet for 3 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Store macaroons in an airtight container at room temperature for a few days. You can also store them in the refrigerator for about a week. They will be a little softer the next day, but will still taste delicious.
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