In February 1995, the husband-wife team of Michael and Mary Gassen began rolling out pastries, cookies and breads at the Noe Valley Bakery and Bread Co. in San Francisco.
Over the years, their Jewish clientele has come to rely on the Gassens — who are not Jewish — for the macaroons they bake not just during Passover, but year-round.
“This recipe is a favorite at Passover, but also a winner every day,” Mary Gassen said. “If we took these big chewy cookies off our menu … we would have a riot on our hands.”
The Gassens provided j. with a scaled-down version of their macaroon recipe, which ordinarily yields 150 cookies.
Coconut Macaroons | Makes approximately 18 cookies
9 egg whites
2 1/3 cups granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
5 cups macaroon (desiccated) coconut
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Separate whites from yolks of 9 large eggs. Combine egg whites, sugar and vanilla and cook in a double-boiler until sugar has completely dissolved and the mixture is fairly hot. Remove from heat and stir in the coconut. Mix by hand with a spatula until coconut is completely incorporated. Drop large dollops (about 2 inches in diameter) on to a parchment-covered sheet pan. Be sure to leave about an inch of space between the cookies because they will spread a little.
It is best to not let the mixture cool down too much because it will start to stiffen and will be difficult to work with. Put sheet pan in middle of oven and bake for 20-22 minutes. You want a deep golden brown color.