Macaroon fans know there’s no such thing as “too many” or “too much.” One chewy coconut cookie will inevitably lead to two, five, and seven, which is why we should cut out the middleman (standing and walking to the cookie dish again) and make the damn thing into a cake already.
The sheer simplicity of the ingredient list is a selling point. Macaroon cookies are made from five ingredients: shredded coconut, sweetened condensed milk, vanilla extract, egg whites, and salt. When I was developing the cake version, I didn’t reinvent the wheel. The ingredients are the same; I simply adjusted the proportions. The goal was to magnify the chewy, sticky, slightly crispy texture, and maintain the creamy, caramelized, coconut flavor. More is more. Bigger is better. This cake delivers on all fronts.
Instead of making the batter and scooping little dollops onto a cookie sheet, you heap it all into one nine-inch cake pan and let it ride. It’s lazier than making a double batch of cookies, and the macaroon cake gets a notable flavor boost from the hint of browned butter (a fortunate outcome from prepping the cake pan with a slather of the golden fat). The cake doesn’t rise much, which makes it a great single layer, snacking cake. But don’t be fooled by its stout comportment; the extra egg whites in the recipe give the batter just enough fluff to keep it light while maintaining the integrity of the original macaroon’s sturdy texture.
Prep a cake pan with a generous smear of butter, and fit a circle of parchment paper into the bottom. Mix the coconut flakes with the sweetened condensed milk and vanilla extract until thoroughly combined. In a separate bowl, by hand or with a mixer, whisk the egg whites and salt until you get stiff peaks. Gently fold the egg whites into the coconut mixture, in four additions. Stop folding in the egg whites just when the last fluffy streaks disappear. Pour the mixture into the prepared cake pan and bake it in a preheated 350°F oven for 40 minutes, or until the entire top is well-toasted and the edges are deeply browned (near worrisome, but it’s actually perfect). The cake should spring back when you gently press on the center.
The edges and the bottom of the cake are perfectly caramelized, crisp, and sticky, while the center is fluffy, tender, and sweet. The shredded coconut pulls a bit when you cut it into slices, so don’t expect clean lines. Although you can serve this undecorated, coconut matches up with a host of flavors, which makes it a good fit for any season. Try a drizzle of chocolate ganache in the colder months, a pile of fresh seasonal fruit in the spring and summer, or a dusting of powdered sugar and chocolate curls for some minimalist pizzazz. This cake keeps well at room temperature for up to five days, or in the fridge for a week. I haven’t tried freezing it, but since the cookie version can be frozen, I’m confident this cake will freeze well too.
Coconut Macaroon Cake
Ingredients:
14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
14 ounce bag sweetened coconut flakes
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
4 large egg whites
½ teaspoon salt
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter a 9-inch cake pan and fit a circle of parchment paper into the bottom.
In a large bowl, mix the coconut, condensed milk, and vanilla extract until well combined and no clumps of coconut remain. In a separate bowl, by hand or with a mixer, whisk the egg whites and salt until they become fluffy and hold a stiff peak. Gently fold the egg whites into the coconut mixture in four additions. Pour the batter into the cake pan and use an offset spatula or a rubber spatula to even out the batter as gently as possible. The heat won’t flatten out the batter, so now is the time to make the surface flat and even. Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until the top is an even golden browned and the edges are deeply browned. The top should spring back when gently pressed. Loosen the edge with a knife and allow to cool for 15 minutes before flipping it out of the pan. Let cool completely.