Flipped Out

Merry Christmas everyone!  So now it's the day after and we are wading through wrapping paper, integrating gifts into the household inventory and still eating terribly.

Everyone has their favorite Christmas treats.  You know, those goodies that just mean it's holiday time.  My family has way too many and my hips are here to testify.  One of our favorite Christmas treats are simple to make and have a 29 year history in our family... we call them "Flips."

I discovered Flips during my BYU years.  I lived with a bunch of girlfriends from home - we called ourselves the "DQs" - the Dairy Queens of Wisconsin.  We even had blinking Christmas lights in the outline of DQ in our front picture window.  Anyway, one of us discovered a "dietetic" (Remember when things were labeled dietetic instead of "low fat" or "low sugar"?) candy at the Varsity Theater candy counter called "Flips."  They were delicious!  Coconut, chocolate and marshmallow... at least we thought they tasted like coconut, chocolate and marshmallow.  Upon further investigation and inquiry at the candy counter, we found out they were really made of whipped egg white, carob and toasted almond slivers - hence dietetic designation.  None of it mattered because they were so yummy!  What a fantastic deal!  We stuffed ourselves with Flips every chance we got... guilt free.  They were dietetic!  Ha ha - I guess the concept of volume didn't occur to us.  After we left BYU we got someone to pick them up for us every chance we got.  Finally, they were no longer sold at the Varsity Theater.  What became of our beloved Flips?  We didn't know so we had to duplicate them.  I wasn't sure where to get the special "dietetic" ingredients, but I did know where to find coconut, chocolate and marshmallows.

Start with a 14 oz. bag of flaked coconut and spread it out in a jelly roll pan.  Use a jelly roll pan so you can easily stir it without spilling all over.

Put it into a 300 degree oven for ten minutes.  Remove and stir.  Repeat this three or four times until the coconut is toasted to a nice golden color.  The Santa salt shakers approve.

 

This time of year, Kraft puts out 10 oz. bags of tree and star marshmallows - the perfect size for Flips - plus there's the festive pink and green when you bite into them. 

If the pink stars and green tree marshmallows aren't available, I usually cut regular marshmallows in half.

Chop up your chocolate (about one and a quarter lbs.) and melt it in the microwave.  Toss some of the marshmallows in and coat.

Roll them in the toasted coconut.

Place on a parchment lined cookie sheet.

Put the pan in the fridge or a cool place - like my unheated front porch.  I call it the walk-in cooler.

Your Flips are now ready for happy consumption, but just remember, these are not dietetic so don't over do it like a DQ would!