Almond-Coconut Macaroons with Dried Cherries

Every spring a group of friends from my church gets together for a Seder meal, to honor our Jewish neighbors' tradition and experience the kind of celebration Jesus would have had every year. After many years of celebrating between ourselves, we're hosting a church-wide Seder ceremony this year.

Joe's braised leg of lamb is always a big hit, but last year he did a beef brisket and I decided to try a new dessert. These coconut-almond-cherry macaroons are light and tasty and perfect!

If you like quick and easy baking, these are just about the easiest cookies you can make. Stir together a couple of ingredients, bake 20 minutes, and that's it! I wish I had made a double batch, because people couldn't get enough. I was blushing from the compliments.

If you want to go over the top with these, press half a maraschino cherry into the top of each cookie, and then dip the bottoms into melted semi-sweet chocolate.

Ingredients

1 8-oz can unsweetened almond paste

1/2 cup sugar

2 egg whites, well beaten

1/3 cup slivered almonds

1/3 cup dried cherries, chopped

1/2 cup sweetened coconut

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Cover a baking pan with a sheet of parchment paper.

Break up almond paste into a mixer or food processor bowl. Add the sugar and egg whites and blend well. Scrape down the sides. Stir in the rest of the ingredients.

Drop spoonfuls of the dough onto the sheet. Bake at 325 for 18-20 minutes, until a little golden and puffy. Let cool for a few minutes before removing from the pan.

Makes 15 macaroons.