Food and Recipes Recipes Coconut Balls Be the first to rate & review! Consider these a homemade upgrade to your favorite coconut-almond candy. Rather than a dense and dry coconut filling, this coconut dessert uses sweetened condensed milk and almond butter to make a sweet mixture that maintains its semi-wet consistency. Once all of the filling ingredients are combined, the mixture must be refrigerated for at least one hour so the condensed milk can hydrate and stick to the shredded sweetened coconut. This keeps the gooey filling together and prevents the candy from being too messy to enjoy. In addition to the nutty almond butter, sweet almond extract flavors the filling while slivered almonds add a crunchy texture to the coconut balls. We call for just the right amount of salt to balance all the sweetness, giving every bite that irresistible salty-sweet quality that keeps you reaching for another bite. Once the filling is rolled into balls and sets in the fridge, melt semisweet chocolate chips in the microwave. Coat each ball in the chocolate, garnish with a sprinkle of shredded coconut, and refrigerate for a few more minutes until the chocolate hardens. This encases the milky filling in a firm layer of chocolate, makng balls that break easily with a single bite and explode with bright almond-coconut flavor and crunchy chewy texture. By Micah A Leal Micah A Leal Micah Leal is a chef and recipe developer with 5 years of professional experience in restaurants and bakeries such as Husk Restaurant and Harken Cafe & Bakery in Charleston, South Carolina. He has also developed nearly 200 recipes for SouthernLiving.com and Southern Living Magazine. Southern Living's editorial guidelines Published on April 27, 2020 Print Rate It Share Share Tweet Pin Email Active Time: 20 mins Total Time: 1 hrs 45 mins Yield: 20 balls Ingredients 3/4 cup slivered almonds 1 tablespoon almond butter 1/2 teaspoon almond extract 2 cups packed sweetened shredded coconut, plus more for garnishing 1 cup condensed milk 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips 1 tablespoon vegetable shortening Directions Combine almonds, almond butter, almond extract, coconut, condensed milk, and salt in a bowl; mix until everything is well incorporated. In the palms of your hands, shape mixture into smooth heaping tablespoon sized balls and place on a baking sheet. Refrigerate until balls are well set, about 1 hour. Place chocolate chips and shortening in a microwave safe bowl, and heat in 30 second intervals at 30% power until the chocolate is smooth, stirring between each interval. Gently dip each coconut ball in chocolate and coat all over with chocolate, using a spoon to help coat and lift the dipped ball. Place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet and top with a few shreds of coconut. Repeat with remaining coconut balls. Refrigerate until chocolate has hardened. Micah A. Leal Rate it Print