All girls get excited when they get flowers, myself included, but only some girls get excited when they get flours. While wandering the baking aisle at Whole Foods last week, I found something I’d never seen before, coconut flour! Be still my beating heart. I looked away, coyly, then another furtive glance. It was true! All yellowish and powdery next to the almond meal, and hazelnut flour, I didn’t even know I’d been looking for it- plainly wrapped in a Bob’s Red Mill package, but I had been. Why, perhaps I’d been searching for it my whole life.
Of course, I couldn’t just stand there, I had to do something, I had to pick up the bag, and… smell it. Good LORD, I could actually smell it’s sweet coconutty deliciousness through the bag. In that moment, I could care less who saw me, I took another whiff. I knew the coconut flour was coming home with me. We’d make sweet beautiful cookies, cakes, and pies together- I knew love was in the air.
I set about finding a fresh coconut at my local mercado and cracking that sucker open with the back of a kitchen knife to drain the coconut water (YUM). Then, I roasted in the oven at 350º for about 25 minutes so I could crack it open all the way and then scoop the flesh out with a flexible knife. Then I shaved the delicious flesh with a veggie peeler. This is my instruction on how to get fresh unsweetened coconut. So far as I can tell, there is no easier way. If you want to use regular unsweetened coconut, from the store, that will be okay too- just make sure it’s NOT SWEETENED, because that will be icky and ruin these fantabulous perfect coconut chocolate chip cookies.
By the way, I mixed these up in the bowl of my stand mixer. Just one bowl = fewer dishes. Hooray!
- INGREDIENTS
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
- 8 tablespoons cold unsalted butter- cut into ½ inch pieces
- 1 large egg
- ½ cup all purpose flour
- ½ cup whole wheat flour
- ¼ cup coconut flour
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/4 cups semisweet chocolate chips
- 1 cup fresh shaved coconut (shave it with a veggie peeler) or unsweetened flaked coconut
- INSTRUCTIONS
- Adjust the oven rack to the top 1/3 of the oven and preheat to 300º .
- Line three baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Beat the sugars and butter together until smooth. Mix in the egg, vanilla, and baking soda.
- Stir together the flours and salt, then mix them into the batter.
- Add chocolate chips and coconut.
- Scoop the cookie dough into 2-tablespoon balls and place 9 balls on each of the baking sheets.
- Bake for 15-17 minutes (while licking the bowl clean), or until light golden brown.
Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack. - Enjoy with ice cold milk!
Such a fun post !! You're a girl after my own heart. I love your passion and excitement for ingredients.Thanks for sharing your new discovery.
Anna,
I am glad to put a smile on your face. Food and passion go so well together.
X
Sabrina
Bri! I love your blog……..so beautifully shot, and makes my tummy cry for more! You're amazing.
Thanks, Jaybird. I think I\’ll need some photos with some tilt adornments!
As a matter of fact, I\’m adding a link now! Kisses!
XX
Very interesting, I was not aware there was a coconut flour. I like the flavor but I can not stand to eat the shaved pieces of coconut that comes in a bag at the store. Always tasted rubbery to me.
I will definitely try this! I bet if I use this flour in Tres Leches cake, it would taste very good with all that milk on it!!
Thanks for sharing…
Oh Ilke, that sounds divine. I love tres leches cake. Please share your results if you give it a try.
X
I bet these cookies were the absolute best with the coconut flour you found and using fresh coconut. It's funny you said that about finding new flours in the grocery store…I feel the exact same way. We must be foodies 🙂 I'm going to have to try this amazing recipe and get over my fear of using fresh coconut.
My first visit to your fantastic blog!
I must admit, I\’m a little obsessed with these cookies, and can\’t wait to make them again. I may even make a batch of them for FoodBuzz Fest!
Wow, coconut flour? That sounds tempting! I'll have to check out my Whole foods assortment of Bob's Red Mill Flours!
Beyond tempting. I'm thinking of making some horchata spiced cookies next with my coconut flour! Ah, beloved coconut flour. I noticed another brand of the good stuff last night at Whole Foods which came in a can. Also, a friend at Food Buzz Fest said she made her own. Impressive!
My kids are recent coconut fans, and I actually a bag of the flour in my pantry! (Similar story to yours!). Might have to put it to use this evening!
These are ah-mazing cookies, I've baked them about a bajillion times since I came across this recipe! This past week I was told I am allergic to soy – one of the worst things a doctor could've said to me. This means no more butter for me, so I need to use coconut oil as a subsitute… do you know how that would change the recipe?
Hi Rebekah, thanks so much. Are you making these vegan and using butter subsitute? Otherwise butter should not have soy in it. Butter should be 100% milkfat so you should be safe. If you're avoiding the soy fed to cows, try an organic brand made from grass-fed cows if you really want butter. Or you can use goat butter which should be grass fed. As for coconut oil, it should be a cup for cup replacement. Let me know how they turn out! 🙂