Too often, macaroons are just too sweet. My solution is to add cocoa nibs to the recipe. They offset the sweetness, add an extra texture, and marry well with the coconut.

Ingredients

• 1 cup (6 ounces) shredded unsweetened coconut flakes
• 1 cup (3 ounces) shredded sweetened coconut flakes
• ½ cup (2 ounces) cocoa nibs
• ¾ cup (5 ounces) sugar
• 3 egg whites, at room temperature
• 2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract

Chocolate dipping sauce

• 2 cups (12 ounces) dark couverture chocolate, hopped (see Note)
• ¼ cup vegetable oil

Directions
1 Preheat the oven to 325ºF.

2 Line two baking sheets with nonstick silicone baking mats or parchment paper. (Alternatively, use nonstick baking sheets or lightly butter conventional baking sheets.) Set aside.

3 Combine the unsweetened coconut and sweetened coconut with the cocoa nibs in a mixing bowl, stirring to blend. Set aside.

4 Combine the sugar and egg whites in the top of a double boiler over simmering water. Cook, stirring constantly, until the sugar has melted into the egg whites. Add the reserved coconut mixture along with the vanilla and stir to combine.

5 Using a tablespoon or small ice-cream scoop, make small, neat mounds of dough, place the cookies, at least 1 inch apart, on the prepared baking sheets.

6 Place in the oven and bake for about 12 minutes, or until golden brown around the edges.

7 Remove from the oven and, using a metal spatula, transfer the cookies to wire racks to cool.

8 To prepare the dipping chocolate: Place the chocolate in the top of a double boiler over simmering water. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the chocolate has melted completely.

9 Add the vegetable oil and, using a whisk, beat to emulsify.

10 Remove from the heat and let rest for 10 minutes.

11 Working with one cookie at a time, fix the bottom of the macaroon onto the times of a fork and carefully dip the top of the macaroon into the warm chocolate or hold the cookie and dip half in. Hold the macaroon over the chocolate so the excess can drip back into the pan.

12 Place the macaroons, flat-side down, on a wire rack to set. Store in layers separated by waxed paper, airtight, at room temperature.

Note: Couverture or coating chocolate is a high quality chocolate made specifically for coating candles. It's available at some speciality food shops, cake and bakery supply store, and on the internet.

Makes about 2 dozen cookies.

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Excerpted from Milk & Cookies by Tina Casaceli. Copyright 2011 by Chronicle Books. Photography by Antonis Achilleos. Excerpted with permission by Chronicle Books. All rights reserved.