Easter coconut bird nest with egg chicks

Chocolate Bird’s Nest Cookies

Yield: 14 bird's nests

Chocolate Bird’s Nest Cookies

Chewy chocolate coconut macaroons are shaped into bird's nests and decorated with colorful Peeps chicks and candy-coated chocolate eggs for a festive Easter cookie or springtime treat!

Ingredients
• 4 egg whites
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 3 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 3 cups (packed) sweetened flaked coconut
• 1/4 cup chocolate chips, melted
• Mini candy-coated chocolate eggs
• Peeps marshmallow chicks

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Prepare two cookie sheets by lining them with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the egg whites until frothy. Mix in salt, sugar, vanilla, cocoa powder, and flour and beat another minute until smooth and thickened. Stir in coconut until all ingredients are well combined.
3. Use a cookie scoop to drop a scant 3 tablespoons of dough per cookie onto prepared cookie sheet, spacing cookies at least 1-inch apart and fitting 7 to 8 cookies per pan. Using fingers to form dough into a nest measuring approximately 2 1/2 inches across with an indentation in the center. Bake for 23 to 25 minutes or until cookies are set. Allow to cool for a couple of minutes on the cookie sheets before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
4. Once cookies are cool, place a spoonful of melted chocolate into the center of each nest, and arrange three chocolate eggs on top or press in a Peeps chick.

Notes

These coconut macaroons really stick to the pan without parchment paper; I've found that it works much better than greasing the pan and I highly recommend using