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Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies are everything you love about a classic chocolate chip cookie, soft, chewy, and buttery, with a tropical upgrade of nutty toasted coconut in every bite. The toasted coconut adds the most wonderful chew and a subtle sweetness that pairs perfectly with melty chocolate chips, and these come together in one bowl in about 20 minutes. My girls love them warm from the oven on a cozy afternoon. If you love an easy cookie, our copycat Mrs Fields chocolate chip cookies are another must bake.
Toasting the coconut first is the little step that makes these cookies taste amazing.
Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies Quick Look
- 🕒 Prep Time: 10 minutes
- 🌡️ Cook Time: 12 minutes
- ⏳ Total Time: 22 minutes
- 🍽️ Serving: 9 cookies
- ⚡ Calories: 345kcal
- 🌶️ Flavor Profile: Soft, chewy, and buttery with melty chocolate and nutty toasted coconut
- ✋ Difficulty: Easy, a simple one bowl dough, like our cream cheese cookies
Quick Answer
Cream the butter with granulated and brown sugar, then mix in the egg and vanilla. Add the flour, baking soda, and salt and mix until combined, then fold in chocolate chips and toasted coconut. Roll the dough into 9 balls, place them on a lined sheet tray without flattening, and bake at 350 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes until puffed and just barely golden.
Jump to:
- Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies Quick Look
- Quick Answer
- Why This Recipe Works
- Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Key Ingredients
- Variations and Substitutions
- How to Make Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Serving Ideas and Suggestions
- Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies FAQs
- Other Recommended Easy Cookie Recipes
- Chewy Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies
Why This Recipe Works
Click to see the technique science
- Toasted coconut is the secret. Toasting the coconut flakes first deepens their flavor and adds a nutty, caramelized note that raw coconut just cannot match.
- Two sugars for chew. Brown sugar brings moisture and chew while granulated sugar gives the edges a delicate crisp.
- Do not flatten the dough balls. Leaving the dough in tall balls helps the cookies bake up thick, soft, and puffy instead of spreading thin.
- A quick one bowl dough. Everything comes together with a mixer and a spatula, so there is no chilling and almost no cleanup.
- Resting on the hot tray. Letting the cookies sit on the warm sheet tray after baking finishes setting them for that perfect soft, chewy center.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- They are a soft, chewy chocolate chip cookie with a fun tropical coconut twist.
- Toasted coconut adds amazing flavor and the best chewy texture.
- They come together in one bowl with no chilling, just like our chocolate sugar cookies.
Key Ingredients
A handful of simple baking staples plus coconut come together for these chewy cookies.
- Toasted coconut flakes: The star twist, adding nutty flavor and wonderful chew. Toast them first for the best taste.
- Chocolate chips: Melty pockets of chocolate that pair perfectly with the coconut.
- Brown sugar: Adds moisture and a soft caramel note for chewy cookies.
- Butter: Softened and creamed with the sugars for a rich, tender dough.
- All purpose flour: The structure of the cookie, whisked with baking soda and salt.
See recipe card for exact quantities.
Variations and Substitutions
These coconut chocolate chip cookies are easy to customize.
- Use a mix of milk, dark, or white chocolate chips, or chop a chocolate bar for chunks.
- Add a half cup of chopped macadamia nuts, pecans, or walnuts for extra crunch.
- Drizzle the cooled cookies with melted chocolate for a fancier finish.
- Use untoasted coconut for a softer, milder coconut flavor if you prefer.
How to Make Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line sheet trays with parchment. Cream the butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar for 2 minutes, then mix in the egg and vanilla. Add the flour, baking soda, and salt and mix until combined.
- Fold in the chocolate chips and toasted coconut until evenly distributed through the dough.
- Divide the dough into 9 balls and place them on the trays at least 2 inches apart. Do not press them down. Press extra chocolate chips and coconut on top for a pretty finish.
- Bake for 10 to 12 minutes until the cookies are puffed and just barely golden and no longer glossy. Let them rest on the tray for 30 minutes, or move to a wire rack to cool.
Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Toast the coconut first in a dry skillet or low oven until golden, watching closely since it burns fast, for the best flavor.
- Do not flatten the dough balls, as keeping them tall helps the cookies bake up thick and soft.
- Measure flour by spooning it into the cup and leveling so the cookies stay soft and do not turn dry.
- Press chips and coconut on top before baking for that pretty, loaded bakery look.
- Let them rest on the tray for a bit after baking to finish setting the soft, chewy centers.
- Pull them when barely golden, since they continue cooking on the hot tray and you want soft, not crisp, cookies.
Serving Ideas and Suggestions
These coconut chocolate chip cookies are best served warm, when the chocolate is still melty and the toasted coconut is fragrant. A cold glass of milk is the perfect partner, or sandwich a scoop of vanilla ice cream between two for an over the top treat. They are the kind of cookie that disappears off the counter before they even fully cool.
Pile them on a platter for a party or bake sale right next to our white chocolate raspberry cookies and a batch of soft frosted Lofthouse cookies for a cookie tray with something for everyone.
They also make a sweet homemade gift. Stack a few in a cellophane bag with a ribbon, or tuck them into a tin alongside our simple almond cookies for the holidays.
Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies FAQs
Toasting is highly recommended because it deepens the coconut flavor and adds a nutty, caramelized note that makes these cookies special. That said, you can use untoasted coconut for a softer, milder coconut flavor if you are short on time.
Unsweetened or sweetened coconut flakes both work. Flakes give a chewier texture and more visible coconut, while shredded coconut blends in more. Use whatever you have, and toast it first for the best results.
Flat cookies usually mean the butter was too warm or the dough balls were pressed down. Keep the butter just softened, roll the dough into tall balls, and do not flatten them so the cookies bake up thick and soft.
Yes. Roll the dough into balls and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months. Bake chilled dough straight from the fridge, or add a minute or two to the bake time for frozen dough balls.
Store cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. Add a slice of bread to the container to help keep them soft and chewy, or warm a cookie in the microwave for a few seconds before serving.
Absolutely. Freeze fully cooled cookies in an airtight container with parchment between layers for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature, or warm in the microwave for that fresh baked taste.
Tried these chewy coconut chocolate chip cookies? I would love to hear how they turned out, leave a comment and a star rating below and tell me if you toasted your coconut!
Chewy Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 8 Tablespoons unsalted butter softened
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 large egg
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup toasted coconut flakes
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line sheet trays with parchment paper, set aside.
- Place the butter, sugar, and brown sugar into a large bowl and cream together with an electric mixer or in the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment until combined for 2 minutes. Add in the vanilla and egg, mix until just combined.8 Tablespoons unsalted butter, ½ cup granulated sugar, ¼ cup packed light brown sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 1 large egg
- Add in the dry ingredients: flour, baking soda, and salt. Mix until combined.1½ cups all-purpose flour, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ¼ teaspoon salt
- Fold in chocolate chips and coconut.¾ cup chocolate chips, 1/2 cup toasted coconut flakes
- Divide the cookie dough and roll it into 9 balls. Place the balls on a cookie sheet at least 2 inches apart, do not press down. Press in some extra chocolate chips and coconut on top at this stage for a pretty presentation.
- Bake 10-12 minutes until cookies are very slightly golden brown and they no longer appear glossy, and are puffed up.
- Remove from the oven and let sit on a cookie sheet for 30 minutes before serving or transfer to a wire rack to cool completely, enjoy!
Notes
- If you are not a fan of coconut you can leave it out for delicious standard chocolate chip cookies, these are the best cookies either way.
- You do not have to chill this dough, it is just mix up and bake, super easy.
- You can easily double or triple this batch to make more depending on who you are serving.
- We used larger coconut flakes but regular-sized flakes work fine.
- To make them pretty right out of the oven press some more coconut and chocolate chips in the top.
- Any chocolate chips will work for these bakery-style cookies.
- These can be frozen, see my tips above on how to do that
Nutrition
Love This Recipe?
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these cookies look heavenly! They are calling my name right now!!