Coconut Butter Cookies

When I recently made the Chewy Date Bars, I had a lot of dough left over after assembling the bars. I didn’t want to waste the dough and there was enough left that I figured I could make some cookies with the rest of the dough. They ended up tasting so good that I figured they deserved their own post.

The dough is a butter-rich dough with coconut added in. I simply rolled the dough into balls and then rolled in coconut. I didn’t toast the coconut, as it basically toasts while the cookie is baking. They were great as they were, but I thought of a few additions that might make them even better. The coconut gives them a slightly nutty flavor, and I think that you could enhance that by adding some chopped toasted almonds to the dough. In addition, you could add some almond or coconut extract to boost the flavor.

1 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup sugar

3/4 cup powdered sugar

1 teaspoons vanilla

1/2 teaspoons salt

2 cups flour

1 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 cup coconut, plus additional for rolling

Combine the butter and sugars in a large mixer bowl. Beat on medium until creamy. Add the vanilla and salt and beat to combine. Stir in the flour, baking powder and the 1/2 cup coconut and mix until a soft dough forms. Gather the dough in a ball and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with silicone baking mats. Form dough into one inch balls and then roll in coconut. Bake for about 15 minutes or until set and coconut is toasted.

Recipe adapted from Sticky, Chewy, Messy, Gooey by Jill O’Connor