Chocolate Latkes
There are no potatoes or added fat in these! Lots of chocolate and coconut make for a crunchy and chewy exterior and a wonderfully brownie-like interior. From Chocolate Holidays: Unforgettable Desserts for Every Season by Alice Medrich (Artisan, 2005). © 2005 Alice Medrich
Makes about 24 cookies
Ingredients
- 4 egg whites
- 3 cups sweetened shredded coconut
- 3-1/2 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
- 6 tablespoons sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Scant 1/4 teaspoon salt
Directions
- Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350°F. To make the latkes, combine all of the ingredients in a large heatproof mixing bowl, preferably stainless steel. Set the bowl in a skillet of barely simmering water and stir the mixture, scraping the bottom to prevent burning, until it is sticky and hot to the touch.
- Scoop rounded tablespoons of the mixture about 2 inches apart on the cookies sheets. Flatten each cookie slightly with your fingers to resemble miniature potato pancakes. Bake until the cookies feel dry on the surface and the edges and the protruding coconut shreds are dark golden brown and the interior still looks like melted chocolate, 13 to 15 minutes. Rotate the sheets from front to back and upper to lower about halfway through. Slide the parchment onto a cooking rack. Cool the cookies completely before removing them from the parchment.
The cookies are most delicious on the day they are baked—the exterior is crisp and chewy and the interior soft and moist. Cookies may be stored, airtight, for 4 to 5 days.