These coconut pecan cookies are made with shredded coconut and chopped pecans, resulting in a crunchy and chewy texture.
The combination of the nutty pecans and sweet coconut creates a perfect balance of flavors.
Whether enjoyed as an afternoon snack or served on special occasions, Coconut Pecan Cookies are sure to satisfy any sweet tooth.
Toasting the coconut and pecans is essential for this recipe, it adds a depth of flavor which makes these cookies even more amazingly delicious.
For more cookie recipes check out my double chocolate cookies, brown butter chocolate chunk cookies, oreo chocolate chip cookies, gingersnap cookies, and cheesecake cookies.
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Why this recipe works
- Coconut and pecan flavor- These cookies have a delicious buttery flavor with hints of coconut and nutty pecan flavor.
- Texture- These have a crispy on-the-outside texture with a chewy and soft middle with crunchy bits of pecan.
- Simple- This recipe uses simple ingredients you can find in any grocery store: flour, butter, eggs, sugar, brown sugar, and other basic ingredients.
- One bowl- This cookie recipe comes together in just one bowl! Which means fewer dishes for you to wash!
- Freezer friendly- These freeze great and can be prepped ahead of time. You can freeze the cookie dough balls and bake them without thawing!
Ingredients
Before you start to make this recipe, measure and prepare your ingredients so the cooking process will go smoothly and easily.
Full measurements are in the recipe card below.
Butter- use unsalted butter for this recipe. Only butter will work for this recipe, no margarine, and no coconut oil. Margarine has a weird taste and can ruin the flavor of these delicious cookies.
Flour– We used all-purpose flour for this recipe. cake flour will work great as well.
Baking soda – Baking soda allows the cookies to rise and spread. Make sure that your baking soda isn’t expired. Don’t replace baking soda with baking powder!
Sugar- We used granulated sugar for this recipe. You can use caster sugar as well.
Brown sugar- adds a caramelly flavor and chewy texture to the cookies.
Eggs– To give the cookies a good structure and gives them a chewy texture. Make sure you’re using room-temperature eggs.
Cinnamon- We love adding ground cinnamon to the cookie dough, it adds so much flavor.
Pecans- We use pecans for both the cookie dough and one for the top of the cookies. We highly recommend toasting the pecans before using them.
Toasting the pecans releases the amazing flavors they naturally have.
Shredded coconut- I used shredded coconut for these cookies, I recommend toasting them before using them for extra delish flavor. You can also use coconut flakes.
Vanilla extract- adds extra flavor.
Kosher salt- you will need about ½ teaspoon of kosher salt for this recipe.
Instructions
Into a large mixing bowl, add the room-temperature butter, kosher salt, vanilla extract, cinnamon, brown sugar, and granulated sugar.
Cream the mixture with an electric hand mixer until the mixture is creamy and light for 1-2 minutes.
Add the eggs, and egg yolk and mix until combined and creamy.
Add the toasted and chopped pecans and shredded coconut and mix.
Then, add the flour, and baking soda, and mix with the hand mixer until just combined and there are no lumps of flour visible.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rest in the fridge for at least an hour. We let the dough rest in the fridge overnight.
Preheat oven to 180c (350f) and prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Use a cookie scooper to scoop out the cookies or scoop the cookies with a tbsp, 1 ½ tablespoon at a time.
Place the cookie dough balls onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet, and bake in a 180c (350f) preheated oven for 11-12 minutes.
Immediately top the cookies with more pecans and coconut flakes for decoration. Let the cookies cool for 5 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Expert Tips
- Use room temperature ingredients. It is important that you use room-temperature ingredients like eggs and butter. This step ensures that your mixture mixes into a homogenous mixture and bakes perfectly.
- Don’t overmix the batter, you don’t want to develop the gluten in the flour. This step ensures you have moist cookies and not dense and dry cookies.
- Measure your flour correctly! When measuring your flour, avoid scooping it with a measuring cup. Instead, stir the flour with a spoon to create as many air pockets as possible, and spoon it into your measuring cup. Finally, level it with the back of a knife.
- Line your sheet pan with parchment paper or a silicone mat! This step helps the cookies to bake evenly, and it makes sure that your cookies release easily from the pan.
- Use a cookie scoop to scoop out the cookies, that way you will have even-sized cookies, it ensures that your cookies bake evenly.
- Make sure that you are using fresh ingredients! One of the most common mistakes in baking and making cookies is not noticing that your baking powder or baking soda is expired.
- Be patient! I know it’s extremely tempting to eat these cookies as they are pulled out of the oven, but let these cookies cool for at least 15 minutes so they will be firmer and won’t crumble up.
- I suggest letting these cookies cool for 5 minutes and then transferring them to a wire rack to cool for at least 10 more minutes. This step ensures that the bottom of your cookies will not be soggy from the steam.
Faq's
We use all-purpose flour for these cookies. Cake flour will work great as well.
This usually means that there is too much flour in the dough. It is very important to measure your flour correctly.
We used shredded coconut for a subtle but flavorful touch of coconut, but you can use coconut flakes instead for more coconut texture.
This step is optional, but I highly recommend it! Toasting the pecans and coconut adds a delicious rich flavor to the cookies which takes them to the next level of flavor wize.
Storing
Store these cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week.
Freezing
Freezing the baked cookies- allow the baked cookies to come to room temperature, transfer them into a freezer-friendly container, and freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw at room temperature for a few hours.
Freezing cookie dough- Follow the instructions as written and make the dough balls, then transfer the dough balls into a freezer-friendly airtight ziplock bag, and freeze the cookie dough ball for up to 3 months.
Bake at the same temperature and add 1-2 additional minutes of baking. There is no need to thaw the cookie dough before baking.
Substitutions
Dairy-free- It’s easy to make this cookie recipe dairy-free. Simply replace the butter with vegan butter. Do not margarine! margarine has a bad flavor and it can ruin the flavor of these cookies.
Gluten-free- you can swap the flour with gluten-free flour to make these gluten-free. I never tested this recipe with gluten-free flour, but it should work.
Variations
Nuts- You can replace pecans with your favorite nuts like walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts, cashews, etc.
Coconut extract- For extra coconut flavor, add ½ teaspoon to 1 teaspoon of coconut extract to the cookie dough.
Equipment
- Mixing bowl (set of 3)
- Whisk Set (pack of 3) to whisk the ingredients together
- Baking sheet and rack set (our fave)
- Cookies scoop set of 3 (the best cookie scoop we used)
More pecan recipes
Pecan banana bread- This extra moist pecan banana bread is made with brown butter, mashed bananas, chopped pecans, and greek yogurt which makes this bread super soft and fluffy.
Pecan upside down cake- This pecan upside down cake is made with a moist and simple vanilla cake and topped with an easy caramel pecan topping.
Caramel pecan cheesecake- This caramel pecan cheesecake is made with a cinnamon crust, creamy cinnamon cheesecake filling, and a caramel pecan topping.
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📖 Recipe
Chewy Coconut Pecan Cookies
Ingredients
- ½ cup Butter softened
- ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
- ½ cup Brown sugar
- ½ cup Granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon Cinnamon
- 1 Egg
- 1 Egg yolk
- ¾ cup Pecans toasted and chopped
- ½ cup Shredded coconut also toasted
- 1 ½ cups Flour
- ½ teaspoon Baking soda
Instructions
- Into a large mixing bowl, add the room-temperature butter, kosher salt, vanilla extract, cinnamon, brown sugar, and granulated sugar.
- Cream the mixture with an electric hand mixer until the mixture is creamy and light for 1-2 minutes.
- Add the eggs, and egg yolk and mix until combined and creamy.
- Add the toasted and chopped pecans and shredded coconut and mix.
- Then, add the flour, and baking soda, and mix with the hand mixer until just combined and there are no lumps of flour visible.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rest in the fridge for at least an hour. We let the dough rest in the fridge overnight.
- Preheat oven to 180c (350f) and prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Use a cookie scooper to scoop out the cookies or scoop the cookies with a tbsp, 1 ½ tablespoon at a time.
- Place the cookie dough balls onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet, and bake in a 180c (350f) preheated oven for 11-12 minutes.
Notes
- Use room temperature ingredients. It is important that you use room-temperature ingredients like eggs and butter. This step ensures that your mixture mixes into a homogenous mixture and bakes perfectly.
- Don’t overmix the batter, you don’t want to develop the gluten in the flour. This step ensures you have moist cookies and not dense and dry cookies.
- Measure your flour correctly! When measuring your flour, avoid scooping it with a measuring cup. Instead, stir the flour with a spoon to create as many air pockets as possible, and spoon it into your measuring cup. Finally, level it with the back of a knife.
- Line your sheet pan with parchment paper or a silicone mat! This step helps the cookies to bake evenly, and it makes sure that your cookies release easily from the pan.
- Use a cookie scoop to scoop out the cookies, that way you will have even-sized cookies, it ensures that your cookies bake evenly.
- Make sure that you are using fresh ingredients! One of the most common mistakes in baking and making cookies is not noticing that your baking powder or baking soda is expired.
- Be patient! I know it’s extremely tempting to eat these cookies as they are pulled out of the oven, but let these cookies cool for at least 15 minutes so they will be firmer and won’t crumble up.
- I suggest letting these cookies cool for 5 minutes and then transferring them to a wire rack to cool for at least 10 more minutes. This step ensures that the bottom of your cookies will not be soggy from the steam.
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