These little sweets, featuring the made-for-each-other trio of chocolate, coconut and peanut butter, are almost like fudge. They hold up well in the fridge and make a nice edible gift.
| Level: | Intermediate |
| Total: | 2 hr 20 min |
| Prep: | 10 min |
| Inactive: | 1 hr 5 min |
| Cook: | 1 hr 5 min |
| Yield: | about 44 bite-size pieces |
Ingredients
- Cooking spray
- Peanut Butter Cookie Layer:
- 2 cups smooth peanut butter
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- Macaroon Layer:
- 3 large egg whites
- One 14-ounce bag sweetened, shredded coconut
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon fine salt
- Ganache Layer:
- 6 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped into 1/2-inch pieces
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- Pinch fine salt
Instructions
- Position an oven rack in the bottom position of the oven, and preheat to 350 degrees F. Line a 9-inch square baking dish with foil, leaving an overhang on all sides. Coat the foil with cooking spray.
- For the peanut butter cookie layer: Beat the peanut butter, sugar and salt with an electric mixer on medium-high in a medium bowl until smooth. Beat the eggs in one at a time and then the vanilla. Adjust the speed to medium-low, add the flour and beat until incorporated. Press the batter into an even layer in the bottom of the prepared baking dish; set aside.
- For the macaroon layer: Whisk the egg whites in a large bowl until frothy. Toss the coconut, sugar and salt together with your hands in another large bowl; add the egg whites, and stir until the coconut mixture is coated. Scatter the coconut mixture in an even layer on top of the peanut butter cookie layer (there shouldn’t be any peeking through).
- Bake until the center doesn’t jiggle when shaken and the coconut is golden brown, 55 minutes to 1 hour. Transfer to a rack, and let cool completely.
- For the ganache layer: Put the chocolate in a medium heatproof bowl. Combine the cream, butter and salt in a small saucepan, and heat over medium heat until steaming. Pour the hot cream mixture over the chocolate, and let sit for 5 minutes; stir until smooth.
- Pour the ganache over the coconut. Cover loosely, and refrigerate until the chocolate is set up, about 30 minutes.
- Lift the bar mixture out of the pan, and peel off the foil. Trim to make neat edges, and cut into very small squares, about the size of fudge.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 26 servings |
| Calories | 347 |
| Total Fat | 25 g |
| Saturated Fat | 13 g |
| Carbohydrates | 28 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 4 g |
| Sugar | 20 g |
| Protein | 7 g |
| Cholesterol | 21 mg |
| Sodium | 96 mg |
Reviews
I absolutely agree that there is something wrong with this recipe. I like the tastes, though, but the layers are not sticking together at all and the coconut layer is wrong. 14 ounces of schredded coconut seem to be way to much for 3 egg whites and this layer fel apart for me and did not have the texture of macaroon at all. Maybe a lot less coconut or more egg whites and sugar. I don´t know, but something is wrong, unfortunately. I was looking so much forward to tasting these good-looking bites.
I was very disappointed in these. The coconut and peanut butter layers didn’t stay together, and overall it didn’t taste too great either. Save your ingredients for something better.