Here’s a little gift to you – from our house to yours.
Hope you and your families are having a wonderful holiday filled with much love, health, happiness and joy!
Coconut Snowballs
adapted from Diamonds for Dessert: Frosty the Snowman
(makes 24 1 1/2″ snowballs)
- 3 1/4 cups unsweetened shredded coconut
- 3/4 cup vanilla sugar
- pinch of ground kosher salt
- 3 egg whites (from large eggs)
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- a few squares of dark chocolate
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and preheat the oven to 350F.
In a large bowl, stir together the coconut, sugar and salt. Mix in the egg whites and vanilla until all of the coconut is moistened.
Scoop the coconut mixture by tablespoonfuls and shape into round balls. Place on to prepared baking sheet, fitting 20-24 per sheet.
Bake in the centre of the oven for 8-12 minutes until the bottoms are just barely golden. Remove from the oven and cool completely on rack. Store in an airtight container, refrigerated.
Before serving, melt the dark chocolate and drizzle over top of the macaroons. Let sit for 15 minutes until set. Serve.
Tips and Suggestions:
- The coconut mixture is very crumbly. After baking, you might find a lot of tasty toasted coconut remaining on the parchment paper. Save it for later – use it as a topping on parfaits, mixed into your granola or over ice cream.
- Don’t have vanilla sugar in large quantities? You can substitute vanilla extract. Also, you can make your own vanilla sugar in advance for next time. Take 1 or 2 vanilla bean pods and place them into a glass jar that seals. Then, top up the jar with 2-3 cups of granulated sugar. Seal the jar. Stir or shake the sugar mixture once daily. It’ll be ready to use in about 2 weeks. Every time you remove some sugar, be sure to top it up and stir in the new sugar again.
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Crispy Mint White Chocolate Bark
(makes 2 small cellophane gift bags worth)
- 3 regular-sized candy canes
- 350g pure white chocolate, broken into 1″ pieces
- 50g (3/4 cup) Rice Krispies cereal
- 1/2 tsp peppermint extract
Place the candy canes into a medium-sized ziptop bag and using a rolling pin, break the candy canes into coarse pieces (not powder). Set aside.
Line a 9″x13″ baking pan with parchment paper.
Place the white chocolate pieces into a medium-sized microwavable bowl. On 50% power, heat the chocolate at 30 second intervals, stirring well between each interval until the chocolate is mostly melted. Stir some more until it is smooth. Mix in the Rice Krispies, a handful of the candy canes and peppermint extract until the cereal is well coated.
Spread the mixture into the prepared baking pan to your desired thickness. It’s very likely that your mixture won’t reach the edges of the baking pan. Sprinkle the remaining candy cane pieces over top of the chocolate and using a piece of parchment, lightly press the candy cane pieces into the top of the bark.
Refrigerate for 15-20 minutes until the chocolate has set. Break into 2″ pieces and serve or store in an airtight container for about 2 weeks.
Tips and Suggestions:
- Leaving the bark in the refrigerator for an extended period of time is not recommended. The candy cane starts to soften and gets a little gooey.
- If dark chocolate is more your preference, substitute the equivalent amount for the white chocolate.
EmmaEats...and Katie too! 
What a great couple of treats! Hope you had a great Christmas and an even better New Year!
Thanks Peggy! Christmas has been wonderful so far and we wish you all the best in the coming New Year! Happy Holidays!
I know the holidays are over but my husband loves coconut, so I’ll definitely try out these coconut snowballs. Thanks for posting!
We’ve been munching on them ourselves — even now, after Christmas. They’re such a light, sweet treat. It helps ease us back into our normal routine. 😉 Hope you all enjoy them too!
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