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Chewy Coconut Cookies with a tropical twist, make the perfect sweet treat when you want something light. They whip up in under 20 minutes!
These Coconut Cookies are soft, chewy and easy to whip up! For more tasty cookies try Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies, Monster Cookies, and Texas Sheet Cake Cookies.
Coconut-y Cookies
Our family loves cookies. A good cookie recipe makes great after-school snacks or easy family night treats. We love to sit at the table with a glass of milk with these warm chewy goodies and laugh and talk together.
Because they are done in under 30 minutes and only require a handful of ingredients, they are the perfect snacking treat when your sweet tooth is aching and you want something quickly!
These scrumptious Coconut Cookies are soft and chewy but filled with crunchy toasted coconut for lots of flavor and a nice play of textures. This is a delicious twist on the classic cookie (and very similar to our Oatmeal Coconut Cookies). Plus, they are so soft, chewy, tasty – it’s impossible to only eat one!
How to Make Coconut Cookies
PREP. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
MIX. In a small mixing bowl add the the flour, baking soda and salt. Mix and set aside.
CREAM. In a separate medium bowl add the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar. Cream them together until smooth.
COMBINE. Add the egg and vanilla. Beat until light and fluffy.
INCORPORATE. Add the flour mixture, a little at a time, until incorporated. Stir in the coconut.
SPOON. Drop, 3 inches apart, onto ungreased cookie sheet. You can also line the cookie sheet with parchment paper.
BAKE & COOL. Place the cookie sheet into the preheated oven and bake until lightly toasted, about 8-12 minutes. Move to a wire rack and cool.
Coconut Notes:
- I used unsweetened coconut because the cookies already have a lot of sweetness, but either type works.
- You can easily add or subtract the amount of coconut flakes to your preference without changing the other ingredients. Although, I would not add more than 2 cups of coconut.
- Using toasted coconut is a great way to add extra flavor. To toast the coconut simply spread shredded coconut in a thin layer on a baking sheet. Bake at 325°F for 5-7 minutes, stirring frequently until mostly golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool. (If you don’t want to use all toasted coconut, you can mix the untoasted coconut into the dough then add some toasted coconut on top.)
- Use room temperature butter and egg as they will incorporate better into the cookie dough. Do not use melted butter otherwise the cookies will spread and be flat and crispy.
Variations and Storing
Variations:
- Add a cup of chopped nuts for more flavor and texture. Almonds, pecans and macadamia nuts are great choices.
- Add a coconut glaze on top. Make the glaze by mixing coconut milk and powdered sugar.
- You can also use a chocolate drizzle or even dip half the cookie in chocolate and sprinkle more coconut flakes or sea salt on the chocolate.
- Add caramel chips to the dough.
- Add chocolate chips.
- The brown sugar adds moisture and creates a chewy cookie. If you increase the amount of brown sugar to ¾ cup and decrease the white sugar to ¼ cup you can make them even more moist and chewy.
- Add extra coconut flavor by substituting the 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract with a 1/2 teaspoon of coconut extract to the batter.
FREEZE dough: Like other drop cookies you can freeze the dough to be baked later. Simply scoop the dough onto the baking sheet and place the sheet in the freezer. Once the dough is solid transfer them to a Ziploc. Freeze for 1-2 months. Bake according to the recipe adding a few extra minutes if baking from frozen state.
STORE: Serve warm or at room temperature. Store cookies at room temperature in an airtight container for 3-5 days. Cookies can be frozen for up to 2-3 months separate layers with parchment or wax paper.
For more coconut recipes, try:
- Coconut Cake
- Coconut Cream Pie
- Chocolate Oatmeal Coconut Cookie
- Toasted Coconut Cookie Bars
- Peach Coconut Banana Bread
- Oatmeal Coconut Cookies
Coconut Cookies Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 c all purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 c butter
- 1/2 c brown sugar packed
- 1/2 c sugar
- 1 egg
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/3 c coconut flakes
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F/175 degrees C
- In a small mixing bowl add the the flour, baking soda and salt. Mix and set aside.
- In a separate medium sized bowl add the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar. Cream them together until smooth.
- Add the egg and vanilla. Beat until light and fluffy.
- Add the flour, a little at a time, until incorporated. Mix in the coconut.
- Drop, 3 inches apart, onto ungreased cookie sheet.
- Bake until lightly toasted, about 8-12 minutes. Move to a wire rack and cool.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Hi! Is it okay to refrigerate the dough for a couple hours before baking?
I refrigerated before baking because I do that with all of my other cookies, but these cookies spread way too much in the oven! But, I also used a 2 inch scoop for these so they may have just been way too big.
Thank you!!
I tried them a second time with a 1 inch scoop, toasted coconut, and refrigeration before and they still came out flat! I weighed the flour so I’m sure I’m right on quantity, but should I add more? Could it be the high humidity in my area?
I’ve never had cookies come out flat before! Help!
I’ll try them again without refrigeration before baking! I’m thinking it could be the butter melting before the coconut flakes spread??
Mine were flat too. And middles were doughy. Cooked for 10 minutes.
BUT I only used 3/4 cup coconut. I’m gonna try again following the recipe. If that doesn’t work I’ll add a touch of cornstarch.
Oh. I refrigerated too. I always do. Overnight usually.
Hi Helen! Just seeing these responses as well after responding to the first. It sounds like the refrigerating the dough didn’t help! I will say when I have baked the cookies, they do turn out a bit more flat in general. But, here are a few other tricks to try and help cookies not spread in the oven:
1-Line your baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper (the baking mats are my favorite!)
2-Roll your cookie dough into tall shaped balls rather than perfectly circle so if they spread they won’t go out as wide
3-Using cool butter
4- Popping the cookie dough balls into the freezer while the oven preheats
Another would be to make sure you have the exact amount of flour, but it sounds like you did that. If it still is giving you trouble with spreading, you can add an extra 2 Tbsp of flour to the dough.
Different room temperatures, altitudes, humidity, and specific ovens can all have an effect on how the cookies bake, so sometimes it is a bit of a trial and error. Hopefully some of these tips may be helpful in getting these coconut cookies the consistency/thickness you are hoping for! 🙂
These are a thinner cookie than others. You can certainly try refrigerating before baking… it may help them to keep a thicker shape during baking. I usually use a small/medium cookie scoop. So the size could have played into them spreading? Not completely sure. But the colder the dough, the thicker the cookie. So refrigerating may help!
These are amazing. So delicious even the batter is good before they are cooked! Will make for my girls again for sure.
Yay! I’m so glad you enjoyed the cookies! These are a favorite over here too. 🙂
Really good cookies! Easy and fast to make, also!
Thank you! So glad you enjoyed them! I love a tasty dessert that can be whipped up fast!
Made these today. Followed recipe exactly. Fabulous
Thank you!! So glad to hear you enjoyed the cookies!
going to try these today,look yummy
Yay! Hope you enjoy them!!
Very good cookie! I added pureed almonds and drizzled chocolate over the cookie. DELICIOUS!!
Ooh that sounds like a delicious addition to the cookies!
I’m not a big coconut fan but these were so GOOD. If i wanted to reduce the sweetness of the cookies, how much should I reduce the two sugars by?
I have not personally tried reducing the sugars in this recipe, so you may have to experiment. I’d say start by reducing it 25% and see how they turn out. Reduced sugar will compromise the cookie’s texture a bit… The less sugar in cookies, the less the cookie will spread/more dry or crumbly it can be. Another option is to use unsweetened coconut in the recipe rather than sweetened. You’ll have to let us know what you end up doing and how they turn out!
Delicious! I made them with fresh coconut and the whole family loved them! I’ll definitely be using this recipe again, thank you.
Ooh fresh coconut sounds amazing. So glad to hear that you liked the cookies.
These are the best coconut cookies I have ever had. I could taste the coconut, that I toasted and the butter, together they were fantastic. I also chose your recipe because I have a granddaughter named Luna. I will certainly make these again for my family. I will double the recipe next time, because they were devoured.
I’m so happy you and your family enjoyed these cookies. Luna is a great name. 🙂
I’m so excited to try this recipe, are the coconut flakes sweetened or unsweetened?
I used unsweetened in the recipe just because there is already a lot of sweetness, but either kind will work great. Hope you enjoy the cookies!
Delicious, chewy, and flavorful! Great recipe loved by my husband, my parents, and -most importantly- me haha. Thank you for a wonderful repeat recipe.
I’m so happy you and your family enjoyed them so much! Thanks for sharing!