Super soft & chewy coconut cookies. With a slight hint of caramel – these delicate cookies are so simple and delicious.
Last week I bought a very large bag of coconut. I had no idea what I’d make with it – but I figured having it in my cupboard would give me inspiration.
I debated making some sort of coconut cupcake – but that seemed like too much work. Maybe tropical muffins? Pineapple isn’t in season. Turns out, because I was searching for something complicated I completely forgot about one of the most delicious options – Coconut Cookies.
Not haystacks or anzac cookies – but super chewy coconut cookies. Thin & soft, with a slight caramel taste, and lots of coconut. A little crispy on the edges, but completely chewy with no dry cookie crumbs. The type of cookie that you can stack and eat 3 at once.
These cookies get their delicious caramel-like taste and chewiness from using brown sugar and honey. The coconut gives a great texture, and then slightly underbaking makes them super soft.
Now, I for one usually prefer a thick cookie – but these are so chewy and soft that I didn’t miss having a thicker cookie one bit. They’re delicate in a delicious way that works perfectly with the coconut flavor. However, because they’re a thinner cookie I wouldn’t recommend adding chocolate chips or other add-ins.
My only final advice for these cookies is about keeping them thin without burning. Because the batter is soft and the cookies are meant to spread, drop the dough onto your prepared cookie sheet in balls no bigger than 1 tablespoon. Make sure the cookies are placed at least 2 inches apart so that they don’t spread into each other. And finally, under bake. Under baking keeps them oh so soft.
Seriously, these coconut cookies are deliciously soft, chewy and amazing. I can eat about 5 in one sitting and I recommend that you do too!
Chewy Coconut Cookies
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter , softened to room temperature
- ⅔ cup packed brown sugar
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon honey
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
- 1 large egg , room temperature
- 1 and ⅓ cup all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 and ⅓ cups sweetened shredded coconut
- 2 teaspoons boiling water
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F degrees.
- Line baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
- In a large bowl beat the butter, sugars & honey together until light and fluffy. Add in the egg and vanilla and continue mixing.
- In a separate medium sized bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt.
- Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and beat on low to low-medium speed until almost combined. Then beat in the boiling water and coconut.
- Drop the cookie dough into small balls (slightly under a tablespoon) on your prepared cookie sheet 3 inches apart.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes until the edges are just starting to brown and the tops are beginning to set.
- Allow to cool on the cookie sheet for about 5-10 minutes, then continue cooling on a wire rack.
Nutrition
Not sure I could stop at just 2 or 3, thinking I could easily eat a whole batch of these gorgeous cookies. I love a crispy-chewy cookie and your description of their caramel coconut flavor has my mouth watering. Throwing this recipe into my holiday cookie baking for sure!
Thanks so much Brie! I definitely approve with eating more than 2 or 3!
PS – Sorry for the very slow reply, I’ve been away on vacation and just getting back to responding!
How many cookies will this.make, and have you ever froze the dough for baking later? Was hoping I could freeze the dough in balls and bake closer to Christmas
This recipe will make about 25-30 cookies total. To freeze the dough, you can make the cookies up to the point of forming into cookie dough balls. Then place the dough balls on a plate, cover with clingfilm and place in the fridge for about 2-3 hours to allow the balls to harden. Then you can place the cookie dough balls into a ziploc bag and freeze them til your ready to bake. 🙂
Hi,
Delicious and very pretty !
My second batch I added a little lime zest and that was nice too.
Happy Holidays !
Thanks so much! The lime zest sounds like such a tasty addition – I’ll definitely need to try it next time!
Adding coconut to my shopping list right now. These look just like a cookie that they offered on an RCL cruise I went on a couple weeks ago. The gentleman handing them out said they were a favorite and we’re going fast. Only was able to have them once as they didn’t offer them any other day. But, with this recipe I will be able to make them when ever the mood strikes. THANK YOU!
Thanks Jen! Very jealous of your cruise – I’ve never been but the idea of relaxing at sea seems pretty incredible! Let me know what you think of the cookies 🙂
Hi,
I’ve just made about 4 batches of these cookies and they’re amazing! Thank you for the recipe. I was wondering, how long will they last? Should I freeze the all made cookies if I want to keep them for about a week?
I’m so glad you liked them!!! For a week, they’d probably be ok in the fridge in an airtight container – but I would definitely freeze them for any longer than that. Or you can freeze the dough in the ball stage, and then bake from frozen (they’ll probably take about 1 extra minute each)
Love these cookies! They are buttery, coconutty (if that is a word) and delicious. Thank you for sharing.
I only have salted butter. Can I use it for this recipe?
That would be fine – I’d just remove the 1/4 teaspoon salt from the cookies. Hope you love the recipe 🙂
These cookies are amazing!! Thank you for sharing!
My daughter and I bake for a Montessori school, once a week. Finding something different every week (with no peanut butter – allergy) is sometimes a struggle. Grades are from preschool to Grade 4. Quite the age span. I’ve just finished a sampler batch of these coconut cookies and upon trying one, lost my mind. The kids will go nuts over these and I love the amount they make in a single batch. Recipe is sooo easy to double. Love, love them. Thanks so much for making this week a no-brainer.
These cookies were delicious! I ended up using non-sweetened shredded coconut because that is what I had on hand and I also added some mini chocolate chips. They were phenomenal!
Do you think they would turn out nice and chewy if I substituted gluten free flour mix? I would really love that. Have you experimented with it?
Thank you
To be totally honest, I’m not 100% sure as I find that different brands of gluten-free flour behave differently.
Just made the Chewy Coconut ,Cookies. My husband keeps asking for more. This is a great recipe.