COCONUT MACAROON-FILLED CHOCOLATE COOKIES (BETTER THAN MOUNDS)

Steps:

• First, make the coconut macaroon filling:.
• With two racks in the middle of your oven, preheat the oven to 325.
• Spray two baking sheets or parchment paper with non-stick cooking spray.
• Beat egg whites and salt together until soft peaks form.
• Slowly add in sugar and beat until stiff, glossy peaks are present.
• Beat in vanilla.
• Add half the coconut and sprinkle with the flour.
• Add the rest of the coconut and gently fold into the egg white meringue.
• Using a 3/4 ounce scoop (almost 2 TBSP), drop onto baking sheets, spaced about 2 inches apart.
• Bake about 8-9 minutes, until just set. These will be under-baked and not brown at all. It's okay, because will be the filling and will finish baking inside the chocolate cookie.
• Now, it's time to make the chocolate cookie dough, while the macaroons are cooling:.
• Increase the oven temperature to 350.
• In a mixer, cream together the butter and sugars.
• Add the eggs, one at a time.
• Now add the vanilla.
• Blend in the cocoa, 1/2 cup at a time.
• In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.
• Mix in the flour mixture to the dough about a cup at a time, until well combined.
• Place fresh sheets of parchment paper (ungreased) on your cookie sheets.
• Using a 1 ounce scoop (2 Tablespoons), drop 6 mounds of dough onto each cookie sheet, spaced widely apart. These will be very big cookies.
• Spray the back of a teaspoon with non-stick cooking spray and use the back of that spoon to make a nest out of the dough for each macaroon.
• Set a macaroon on top of each chocolate cookie "nest".
• Place another 1 ounce scoop of chocolate cookie dough on top of the macaroon layer. Now there are three cookie layers.
• Spread and flatten the dough, so that the macaroon is completely covered.
• Bake in the upper half of the oven for 13 minutes. Cookies may look a little under-baked when you remove them from the oven, but they will set up and dry, as they cool.
• Immediately, slide the parchment paper with the hot cookies onto a cooling rack (otherwise, they will continue to bake and burn on the bottom). Cool for at least 5 minutes.