In a large non-stick pan add 3 1/2 cups of dessicated coconut and gently heat on medium heat. Dessicated coconut is available at your Indian Grocery Store. It is not a sweeten coconut so make sure you get the dessicated coconut and not the sweeten coconut that that you find in the baking aisle. You want to heat the coconut until it is fragrant, but not browned.
Once the coconut is heated (about 2-3 minutes) add one can of condensed milk (14oz) and 1/4 tsp of cardamom powder. I also added some red food coloring to make my coconut turn a shade of pink for fun. This step is completely optional because the original candy bar does have white coconut.
Heat the coconut and condense milk up until it is fully incorporated together (about 2-3 minutes). You want to get it to the point where the coconut is starting to clump together so you can press it to make the bars.
Line a baking sheet with some parchment paper and press your coconut mixture into a 1/2 inch thick rectangle. Put it in the fridge to set for 1-2 hours.
Cut it into your desired shapes. I cut them on a diagonal, but little squares or rectangles are fine. If your edges are a little jagged from cutting just press the sides with a butter knife to make the edges smooth.
In a microwave safe bowl add about 1/2 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips and 3 tbs of milk. Heat for 30 seconds and stir the chocolate until it melts into a dipping sauce. ** every microwave oven is different so you may need to increase the cook time until the chocolate is melted.
Dip each chocolate until covered with a thick coating of chocolate. Allow to dry and set.
Enjoy. Makes several dozen pieces of candy. You can always add the Almond on top of each piece to make it an Almond Joy. Store in an air-tight container in the fridge. I added a layer of wax paper between each layer so the chocolate did not stick together.
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