Toasted Coconut and Brown Butter Cookies with White Chocolate Chips

Step 1

Collect together your equipment (see Recipe Notes below) and ingredients.

Step 2

Around an hour before you make want to bake the cookies, brown the butter: this must be done at least 1 hour before but can be made up to 3 days in advance. Chop the butter into squares and place in a saucepan. Heat over a moderate heat, stirring from time to time, until the butter turns brown. To read more about browning butter, please see here.

Step 3

Pour into a mixing big enough to make the cookie dough in. Let it cool a little and then pop it in the fridge to harden.

Step 4

Secondly toast the coconut: heat a frying pan over a moderate heat and add the desiccated coconut. Cook, stirring from time to time, until the coconut turns a light brown. Keep a close eye on it; the coconut can burn very easily.

Step 5

Tip the coconut in a bowl to ensure the coconut does not carry on cooking. Set aside to cool.

Step 6

Make the cookie dough: when the butter has hardened in the fridge, remove it and beat with an electric whisk until lighter and fluffy.

Step 7

Add both of the sugars and the salt and beat again until fluffy. This should take 3-4 minutes. You may need to scrape down the sides of the bowl to ensure it mixes evenly.

Step 8

Add both of the sugars and the salt and beat again until fluffy. This should take 3-4 minutes. You may need to scrape down the sides of the bowl to ensure it mixes evenly.

Step 9

Add the flour and baking powder to the butter mixture. Either beat with an electric whisk on the slowest speed (to avoid a cloud of flour covering your kitchen!) or mix in with a wooden spoon. Do not over mix.

Step 10

Cut the chocolate into chunks and set 4 – 5 chunks aside to use later. Add the chocolate to the mixing bowl with the toasted coconut.. Fold in.

Step 11

Use an ice cream scoop to divide the mixture into balls, roughly 50g each – you should make around 17 cookies. If you prefer smaller cookies use a smaller scoop to give you 30g balls of cookie dough. Place, spread out, on a baking sheet lined with baking parchment.

Step 12

The final cookie is often devoid of chocolate chunks – add the chunks you set aside earlier and stick them into the base of the last cookie.

Step 13

Add the toppings: roll the top of each dough ball in desiccated coconut – you do not need to toast this coconut as it will toast as it cooks.

Step 14

Stick 3 – 4 chunks chocolate into the top of each dough ball.

Step 15

If you want to freeze any uncooked, now is the time. Spread out on baking parchment and freeze. As soon as the dough balls are solid, they can be transferred into labelled freezer bags or containers. Alternatively, you can store them covered in the fridge for up to 3 days and then bake them when you are ready.

Step 16

A few minutes before you want to cook your cookies, preheat oven to Fan Oven 160°C/180°C/350°F/Gas 4 and line your baking trays with baking parchment if necessary.

Step 17

Place the cookies spread out on baking sheets and bake in a pre-heated oven for:– 14 – 15 minutes for larger 50g cookies.– 11 – 12 minutes for smaller 30g cookies

Step 18

Let them cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes and then transfer to a cooling rack.