Toasted Coconut Cookies from Beyond Frosting

Toasted Coconut Cookies - made dough May 31, 2023 from Beyond Frosting

1 1/2 cups sweetened coconut flakes, toasted

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter

2 cups granulated sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon coconut or vanilla extract

3 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spread the coconut in an even layer on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Toast for 5-8 minutes, stirring every couple of minutes, until lightly browned. Cool.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter and sugar, beating on medium speed until light and creamy, 2-3 minutes.
3. Add the eggs and coconut or vanilla extract, beating until combined.
4. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda and cream of tartar. Add in 2-3 additions, mixing on low speed after each addition, until just combined. Add toasted coconut and mix until combined.
5. Portion dough into golf-ball-size dough balls then flatten slightly into thick discs. Cover and chill or freeze for several hours or overnight. 
6. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper and evenly space chilled or frozen dough discs. Bake for 11-12 minutes or until edges are golden and middles no longer look raw. Remove from oven and let rest on baking sheets for several minutes before transferring to wire rack to cool completely.

Another great recipe for the coconut lovers - a chewy, almost crisp (but not overbaked) cookie, thanks in part to the texture from the toasted coconut. The coconut flavor also comes through clearly, in large part, not only from the coconut itself but also the toastiness of it.

I didn't use coconut extract simply because I don't like the artificial taste of it so I went with vanilla extract instead. But you don't really need extract as the coconut flavor is pretty prevalent.

The dough was also a dream to work with, not too dry or too sticky but easy to portion into dough balls. I made them small so I easily got several dozen out of the batch.

The only issue I had is the cookies spread more than I expected and the texture was more crisp-chewy than cake. I don't know if I would've gotten a softer, more cakey texture if I had made the cookies bigger. 

But it's a good summer cookie to make since it doesn't have frosting and holds up well to be packaged and mailed.