Coconut Macaroon Nests

Many years ago I came across what I consider to be a great Coconut Macaroon recipe.  Every year at Christmas I make a giant batch and hand them out to the coconut lovers in my life, and they always get rave reviews!  Lately I have been seeing pictures of bird nests in honor of Easter, made of various food items, with filling and candy in the center.  Somehow it came to me that what my ever-growing self needed was to combine this rich coconut macaroon with nutella and top it with candy.  The result was something that only happens in dreams!

   

The key players!  Simple, but delicious!

This is what your mixture should look like once all ingredients are mixed together.  It should be cohesive, but still a little loose - clear as mud right!

Here are the balls before I pressed in the center.  It was late when I was making these so it did not occur to me that you all do not have super-human eyesight and that the foil was a horrible backdrop.  Nonetheless you get the basic idea!

This is what the macaroon should look like once they have been baked.  Don't worry if they are still a little moist or loose when you move them to the cooling rack, everything will work out once they cool.

 And here is the finished project!  Be warned these are VERY rich!

And this monkey LOVES coconut macaroons almost as much as swimming.  She played the poor mistreated dog role the entire time I was working on these!  I felt a tiny bit of bad so I gave her half a plain one...it's almost Easter after all!

Coconut Macaroons

2 14oz bags of sweetened coconut flakes

1 14oz can of sweetened condensed milk

1/8 C Sour Cream

1 T Heavy Cream

1/2T Vanilla

Nutella

Easter Egg-shaped Candy

Preheat oven to 325.

Add one bag of coconut and all the other ingredients into the mixer bowl and turn on a slow speed to begin then increase to medium.  Once all ingredients are combined add the second bag of coconut while the mixer is running.

Use a small scoop to make the tightly-packed balls, and then press down in the center with your thumb.  You may have to work with the edges of the macaroon to keep get the right shape depending on the consistency of your mixture.

Bake @ 325 degrees for 10-12 minutes, or until the edges are light golden brown.  Remove to a wire rack to cool.

Once completely cooled, add a small spoonful of Nutella to the center of the macaroon and top with your favorite Easter egg-shaped candy.  Enjoy!