These Coconut Macaroons are filled with dried fruit and pecans giving them an extra chewy bite! Feel free to substitute whatever dried fruit or nuts you have on hand.
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line a baking sheet with a parchment or a baking mat; set aside.
In a large bowl, stir together the coconut, pecans, cranberries, apricots, flour, and vanilla. Pour in the sweetened condensed milk and mix together until combined.
In a separate bowl, use a handheld mixer to whisk the egg whites and salt until they reach stiff peaks, about 3 minutes. Pour the egg whites into the coconut mixture and gently fold until combined.
Using a small cookie scoop or spoon, scoop about a tablespoon of the macaroon mixture on the baking sheet. Bake in preheated oven for 25-30 minutes until the tops are golden. Let cool on baking sheet or cooling rack completely.
Notes
Mix together the coconut, fruit, nuts, vanilla, and flour before adding the sweetened condensed milk. It will help to combine the ingredients more evenly.
Beat the egg whites into a stiff peak. This means that when you pull a spoon through the eggs whites, they should stand straight up without collapsing.
Don't worry about being too gentle when folding in the egg whites.
Use a cookie scoop to scoop the batter on to the baking pan. The cookies are meant to look like a haystack, so don't worry about making them look perfect.
Bake just until the tops start to brown. Be careful not to over bake.
Let cool completely before storing. Coconut macaroons can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week. You can also freeze in an airtight container for up to a month.
To dress these up, you can dip the bottoms of the coconut macaroons in melted chocolate, or drizzle melted chocolate over the tops of them.