These coconut cookies are crunchy on the outside and chewy and soft on the inside and have the texture of chocolate chip cookies. They are full of coconut flavor and smell irresistible.
Flavor and Texture
I’m usually a big fan of soft, melt-in-your-mouth cookies, but these coconut cookies recipe uses lots of coconut which gives the cookies some crunch and chewiness, and their texture is actually better this way. The cookies taste like chocolate chip cookies, minus chocolate chips, plus strong coconut flavor. They are addictively delicious. If you want them even softer, you can adjust the recipe slightly: instead of 2 eggs use 1 egg plus 1 egg yolk. You can also reduce the flour by 1/4 cup.
Coconut
I love lots of coconut flavor so I use 2 cups of shredded coconut in the recipe. if you want a milder flavor and softer cookies, you can use less coconut, anywhere between 1 to 2 cups, without changing anything else in the recipe. I use unsweetened shredded coconut because the cookies are sweet enough.
Toasting coconut
Toasting coconut will bring out its best flavor so I highly recommend it. You can toast the coconut in the oven or on the stove top. Oven method: To toast coconut in the oven, spread shredded coconut in a thin layer on a baking sheet. Bake at 350F/180C for 5-10 minutes, checking and stirring frequently until mostly golden brown. Remove form the oven and carefully transfer to a bowl. Stove top method: Add coconut to a skillet in an even layer. Cook over low-medium heat, stirring frequently, until golden brown. Be patient and don’t turn up the heat too much because coconut is easy to burn. Immediately transfer coconut to a bowl.
Baking time
If you want cookies that are soft on the inside, the secret is to slightly underbake them. I remove them from the oven when they just begin to brown at the edges. If you like crunchy cookies, bake them for longer until the the top of the cookie turns golden brown. If you mistakenly overbake them and they become hard, they would still taste delicious and will be great to dip in coffee. The cookies are softer when warm so you can rewarm them before serving. There’s no need to chill the cookie dough before baking the cookies (like in my other chocolate chip cookie recipes) because they stay thick and don’t spread much during baking.
More Coconut Recipes:
- Coconut Cupcakes
- Macaroons
- Chocolate Coconut Brownies
- Quick White Chocolate Coconut Truffles
- My Favorite Coconut Cake
- Easy Coconut Chocolate Cups
- 2 and 1/2 cups (350 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (2 stick/225 g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3/4 cup (150 g) dark brown sugar (light works too)
- 3/4 cup (150 g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 2 cups toasted shredded coconut, plus 1/4 cup more for rolling the cookies
Preheat oven to 350°F/180°C. Line pans with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl sift together flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- In a mixer bowl fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed for one minute until creamy. Add brown sugar and granulated sugar and beat on medium speed for about 3 minutes, until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at at time. Beat in vanilla extract. Add flour mixture and mix just until combined. Add coconut and mix slowly just until combined. Do not overmix.
Place 1/4 cup shredded coconut in a small bowl.
Roll dough into balls, using about 1.5 tablespoons of dough per cookie, roll in coconut, and place onto prepared baking sheet (it's easy to do this with an ice-cream scoop). Press the cookies down slightly since they won't spread much as they bake. Bake for 9-12 minutes, until cookies just begin to brown at the edges, but the center is still soft. It's important not to overbake the cookies or they will become hard. Remove from the oven and allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5-10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Store cookies at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Serve warm or at room temperature. Cookies can be frozen for up to 2 months.
37 Comments
Teodora
November 30, 2018 at 5:19 pmHello,
First i would like to say that i am a new “baker” – if i can call myself like that. But yes i have been trying to bake some stuff, such as cupcake, muffins and cookies. I randomly came across to your website and since i did I only follow your recipe for whatever I decide to bake! And somehow every time my things turn out great! Which is a big achievement for me considering that i never baked anything in my life!
So anyways, thank you!
I did these coconut cookies today, i saw you recommended using unsweetened coconut shredded but mine was with sugar and also think that coconut usually have its natural sugars. So because i did use swetened i put less sugar which actually wasn’t that less , i think it was 230g
But my cookies turned out to sweet for me. I don’t usually like tooo sweety.
Please suggest of how much sugar i should use in this case?
Thank you
Shiran
December 2, 2018 at 5:54 amHi Teodora, I’m so happy that the recipes are working for you! If you used 230g sugar and you still think that the cookies are sweet, you’ll just have to experiment with it. You can reduce the amount of sugar by 1/4 cup (50g) every time until you like the result.
Genesis
March 26, 2019 at 3:24 pmSo good! I will definitely make these again!
Kaylee
May 25, 2019 at 3:28 pmI have not made them yet I am just curious about
how many this recipe will make.
Ann
October 9, 2019 at 11:23 amHello Shiran,
Is desiccated coconut fine for this recipe?
Thanks
Shiran
October 16, 2019 at 6:49 amYes!
Elizabeth Carol McDowell
May 31, 2020 at 2:11 pmIt says 30 cookies
Dawn
November 17, 2019 at 11:09 amJust baked these cookies and they turned out awesome. Big hit with all the family definitely one of my favourite cookies now. I fallow the direction exactly and all was perfect.
Laura
November 19, 2019 at 8:40 pmThanks for the recipe! I would like to know if this recipe works good in a silicone baking mold. Can’t wait to try. Thanks!
Debbie S.
December 7, 2019 at 3:00 pmI bake a coconut ( and toast unsweetened) every year and make coconut cookies around Christmas. I didn’t use eggs in the past but this recipe is dynamite! I used a melon scoop lightly sprayed with oil, perfect sizing and 12 minutes on the nose. Instead of rolling in coconut I sprinkled some on top, just made it easier. The only problem with these cookies is…not eating them all!!
Sarina
January 6, 2020 at 8:33 pmI’m trying these out tonight! It will be my first time making coconut cookies. Can’t wait to try them!
Rena PL
January 11, 2020 at 8:15 amso delicious…my whole family loves is…I use this recipe all the time but each time I make a little different by adding cranberries or chocolate chip instead of coconut. 🙂
Ann
January 20, 2020 at 8:09 amThis the second time I’ve made them. Followed directions to the letter. These are awesome. My husband took some to work with him, and he is not big on sweets. The kids loved making them and eating them!
Thom
February 22, 2020 at 3:48 pmWhat a great recipe! Someone mentioned the cookies are too sweet. I pulled back on the sugar, using a half cup each of brown and white sugar. They turned out great.
I’ve also altered the recipe on a couple of occasions for a different twist. I used one cup white sugar (no brown sugar) and added juice of one lime and zest of two limes (the limes were small). They were the bomb!
What a nice site. I look forward to trying a few more recipes.
Shiran
March 16, 2020 at 12:03 pmThank you so much, Thom 🙂
Thelma Louise
February 25, 2020 at 4:28 pmHi Shiran,
These are wonderful!
The first time I made them, I followed the recipe exactly. They are really nice as is.
However, I have made these about a dozen times and over time I have made adjustments, incorporating feedback from family and friends.
1. I up the “niller” (as we call vanilla extract in my kitchen) to 2 teaspoons.
2a. I use toasted, unsweetened FLAKED coconut in the batter.
2b. Using a chefs knife, I finely chop 1/2 cup of untoasted, unsweetened flaked coconut to roll each cookie in.
3. I probably make mine smaller than yours. Baked they are about 2″ in diameter. Of course you can make them any size you want! I find the smaller ones are perfect to have a couple along with afternoon coffee or iced tea in the summer.
A note to those who haven’t toasted coconut. Be careful toasting the coconut. You CAN toast it too long! The goal is to bring out the magical goodness of coconut flavor and fragrance. You will know you’ve got it right when the edges of the flakes are just lightly browned and when you open the oven door you are blasted with coconut aroma!
TLJ
Shiran
March 3, 2020 at 5:47 amThanks for all the tips, Thelma! I’m glad you loved them 🙂
Fran
February 28, 2020 at 10:36 amThese cookies are amazing. Not sure I can bear to share them!
Karen Kervin
March 23, 2020 at 2:22 pmQuestion: are you rolling the cookies in plain or toasted coconut?
Shiran
March 29, 2020 at 3:11 amHi Karen. I use plain coconut.
Serwah Ennuson
April 18, 2020 at 8:17 amIt turned out good added tablespoons of orange juice to bring out more flavor. Loved it
April
April 26, 2020 at 11:50 pmThese are so delightfully buttery, coconuttty, and delicious. I thought I would bake these just for myself since I am the only one in the family who loves coconut. But, my whole family LOVED these, even the coconut haters. Thank you for this gift of a recipe. It’ll become a family staple for sure. Yum.
Auntie Claus
August 17, 2020 at 2:49 pmThese cookies are wonderful!! I’ve been looking a long time for delicious coconut cookies … and I knew this was the recipe after just one bite! Heavenly. Coconut cookies are usually crispy (which I don’t object to) with an elusive flavor … is it coconut? Vanilla? Whereas these cookies are just steeped in decadent coconut flavor. (Only tweaks I made were to sub Mexican vanilla, and replace about 1/3 cup of the sugar with Splenda.). Thank you for developing such a fabulous cookie!!
Nana’s Girl
August 21, 2020 at 8:03 pmThese cookies are so delightfully coconutty! I’ve searched for a recipe like Mothers-brand Cocadas for years without success … others have only a slight coconut flavor. When I tried amping up the taste with coconut flavoring, they were just artificial. Your recipe just uses coconut, but the cookies just explode with flavor! The only thing I did differently was I twice-baked the cookies (like for biscotti). While the cookies were wonderful right out of the oven, they became too soft and cake-like overnight. Twice-baking retainer the crispness and still had good “chew”. Thanks for a terrific recipe!!
Shiran
August 23, 2020 at 5:20 amThank you for your tip! I’m so glad you like them 🙂
na
September 15, 2020 at 9:18 pmamazing, show stopping, never done before. the only complaint i have is the aftertaste leaving me dehydrated
Annie
October 3, 2020 at 6:27 amI tried this recipe and the cookies turned out to be gorgeous! They did spread a little, maybe because I live in a tropical country, but beautiful nevertheless.
Lison
October 16, 2020 at 12:13 pmMade half a batch just this morning to use up some coconut I had left from “ambrosia salad season”. Nice and quick recipe, the cookies were a perfect texture, a tad too sweet for me but that’s okay.
Thank you !
David S. Berman
October 17, 2020 at 4:27 pmThese look great – do you think I can use coconut oil in place of some or all of the butter? I prefer dairy-free cookies and don’t want to use margarine… thanking you in anticipation!
Shiran
October 20, 2020 at 8:57 amHi David. It’s possible, but it will change the flavor and texture of the cookies. I haven’t tried it myself 🙂
Zelma Long - Canada
November 25, 2020 at 11:41 amThese cookies were absolutely delicious! I only used 1/2 cup brown & white sugar and they still turned out well.
Elaine Kirven
December 17, 2020 at 5:48 pmJust made these cookies and they are delicious. Had to modify because I didn’t have baking soda. Substituted 4tsp baking powder and 8tsp concentrated lemon juice instead. Used sweetened coconut flakes as well. They arent too sweet either. Lovely cookies will be making again.
Sarah D
January 31, 2021 at 8:06 pmI made a half batch and added mini choc chips to half of that. They are wonderful!
Anna
March 13, 2021 at 9:52 amCan I replace butter with 1:1 veg oil? 🙂
Amy
May 16, 2021 at 1:09 pmHi there, is there any chance you could offer any advice on substituting some or all of the flour for almond meal? Would love to try it but don’t know how much to use or if it’s a good idea. Thank you in advance for your advice. 🙂
Shiran
May 25, 2021 at 2:26 pmHi Amy, it might work fine but it’s hard for me to say how it will turn out or how much almond flour to use without trying it myself.
Anne
October 4, 2021 at 4:03 pmI had such a craving for Mother’s brand Cocada Coconut cookies but they are full of preservatives & chemicals, so i took a chance trying to find a comparable recipe & after weeding thru all the gooey macaroon recipes I found this one – hooray! I followed instructions except baked them longer for crisp texture, (dont like chewy), and I didn’t roll in coconut, (dont like that either(. The cookies came out EXACTLY as I had hoped, tasted just like (only better than) the Mother’s Cocadas, lol! Thrilled – will be trying your other recipes for sure. Thank you!!