Shredded coconut, oats, chocolate chips, pecans and grated carrots are the base of these deliciously moist cookies. They also happen to be refined sugar-, egg- and dairy-free.
Chef's notes
This recipe was inspired by Food and Thought General Store in Naples Florida, who were kind enough to share their recipe with me.
Steps
1
Gathering the Dry Ingredients
Ingredients
1 1/4 cup cane sugar*
1 1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
1 1/4 cup oats
1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp sea salt
*Note: We used cane sugar for this recipe, but feel free to try using other sugars. We have made this recipe using only 1 cup of sugar and it produced really good results. Based on how sweet you like your cookies, you might want to play around with the amount of sugar to see if you like them more or less sweet. The majority of taste-testers preferred the recipe that used the full 1 1/4 cup of sugar as called for in the recipe.
Combine the sugar, coconut and oats in a large bowl. Add the flour and salt and stir to blend completely.
2
Preparing & Gathering the Remaining Ingredients
Ingredients
1 cup grated carrots
3/4 cup dark chocolate chips
3/4 cup pecans, chopped
1/4 cup + 2 tbsp (6 tbsp) melted coconut oil
1/4 cup + 3 tbsp (7 tbsp) water
2 tsp vanilla extract
The amount of chocolate and pecans used is ultimately up to you, so feel free to add more or less, depending on how sweet and crunchy you like your cookies.
3
Mixing the Cookie Dough
Add the carrots to the dry ingredients followed by the chocolate chips and pecan pieces, stirring to blend..
Add the melted coconut oil followed by the water and vanilla. At this point, you may find it easier to mix the dough using your hands.
Mix the dough just until it comes together and all of the ingredients are thoroughly blended.
Optional, but recommended — place the cookie dough into the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to an hour before baking. This will harden the dough up a bit, making the cookies easier to form.
4
Baking the Cookies
Preheat the oven to 325°F (160°C). If you have a convection oven, turn the fan on. If not, just preheat a conventional oven.
Form the dough into into balls, about 1-inch around. Then, flatten them slightly. Place the dough rounds on a baking tray, leaving about 1 1/2-inches between each one.
Transfer to the preheated oven and bake for about 15 minutes or until the cookies are very lightly colored, but still chewy. The cookies will not become dark and golden. That being said, feel free to experiment by baking them a bit longer and/or baking them at 350°F — compare the results to see what you prefer.
When done, remove from the oven and allow to cool on the baking tray for a minute or two before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely before serving.
These cookies can also be formed and frozen for later baking.
The First 3 Are On Us
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Jennifer- You can try to use any other neutral flavored oil (not olive oil) you prefer in place of coconut oil. In place of cane sugar, use any other sweetener. If it's a liquid sweetener (like honey or maple), you will want to reduce the water just a bit. Good luck~ Ken.
Had a sweet tooth the other night and went searching for something but the cupboard was bare. Went searching in the recipes here at Rouxbe and found this recipe.
Fantastic! Made the recipe and used a 2Tbsp measured scoop. Got 3 dozen cookies and my sugar fix.
I am thinking of trying this recipe only adding more dried fruits and nuts and then pressing it into a making pan and turning this into a fruit and granola bars.
So glad that you liked the recipe Harry. If you do try making them in the pan, please feel free to report back to let us know how they/it turned out — sounds like a good idea. Cheers!
Hi Dawn; I have taken your Coconut Surprise Cookies, tweaked the recipe a bit and created this bar cookie. I left the moisture ingredients unchanged but added 1/4 cup chia seeds, 1/4 cup raw hemp seeds, (this amps up the protein and fiber of the cookie) 1/2 cup dried cranberries, 1/2 cup dried apricots chopped, 1/2 cup pistachios and a 1/2 cup sliced almonds. Pressed this dough into a lined 12"x17" rimmed baking pan. (allow the parchment paper to over hang the ends of the pan to aid in moving the cookie to a cutting board and then to a cooling rack) Bake at 325 for about 25 minutes or until it starts to brown, allow to cool for 5 minutes in pan then lift out and place on a cutting broad. 31/2"x 11/2" cuts will weigh in at about 1.2oz, a nice serving size. Move to a cooling rack to cool completely then wrap. Great for traveling and after a workout. These freeze well. Enjoy!
Just pulled my first batch from the oven....they are SO yummy! I made two modifications: I added white chocolate chips and dried cherries with the pecans.
Hi Vicki: After baking, allow cookies to cool completely. Place the cookies in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet to freeze them,. After about an hour, remove from the pan, and store the cookies in a freezer-safe zip-lock bag. Date the bag. The cookies will last about 4 months. Thanks for writing. Cheers, Char
I observed that there are 5 ingredients in the description but 6 mise en place in the photo, is the missing listed ingredient baking soda or is it just a little mistake?
Yes, good question asked by Kate G back in 2021 with no reply. Is there a 6th ingredient? Baking soda? Mise en place picture shows 2 tiny dishes. One is salt, what’s the other one?
My experience after making these... more time needed to bake. After 15 min at 350F these were still very doughy. I did have the dough in the fridge for 30 - 40 min before forming which may have been partly responsible for this result. I added another 8-10 min. and got an amazing result. A bit crunchy on the outside but still soft inside. I may reduce the amount of chocolate chips next time to 1 cup. 1 1/4 cups was just too many imo and I love chocolate.
I've been making this recipe for 5 years now and people loved it. Can I take the sugar out as one person asking me not to use any sugar or dates. Will it still hold?
Also what's the 6th ingredient as one person said 5 in the recipe but 6 in the photo.
Hello Hazel, if you remove the sugar from this recipe, you'll need to test it to see if you like the results. And, I see six ingredients listed in Steps 1 & 2 that align with the ingredients in the photos. Enjoy the process of experimentation! ~Eric
Ken R • Rouxbe Staff •Jennifer- You can try to use any other neutral flavored oil (not olive oil) you prefer in place of coconut oil. In place of cane sugar, use any other sweetener. If it's a liquid sweetener (like honey or maple), you will want to reduce the water just a bit. Good luck~ Ken.
Harry L •Had a sweet tooth the other night and went searching for something but the cupboard was bare. Went searching in the recipes here at Rouxbe and found this recipe. Fantastic! Made the recipe and used a 2Tbsp measured scoop. Got 3 dozen cookies and my sugar fix. I am thinking of trying this recipe only adding more dried fruits and nuts and then pressing it into a making pan and turning this into a fruit and granola bars.
Dawn T •So glad that you liked the recipe Harry. If you do try making them in the pan, please feel free to report back to let us know how they/it turned out — sounds like a good idea. Cheers!
Jacqueline A •I made these, handed them out at work, and was met with demands for the recipe. Success!
Kirk B •Thanks so much Jacqueline and thanks for learning with Rouxbe! All the best, Chef Kirk
Barb P •Just pulled my first batch from the oven....they are SO yummy! I made two modifications: I added white chocolate chips and dried cherries with the pecans.
Char N • Rouxbe Staff •Hi Vicki: After baking, allow cookies to cool completely. Place the cookies in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet to freeze them,. After about an hour, remove from the pan, and store the cookies in a freezer-safe zip-lock bag. Date the bag. The cookies will last about 4 months. Thanks for writing. Cheers, Char
Kate G •I observed that there are 5 ingredients in the description but 6 mise en place in the photo, is the missing listed ingredient baking soda or is it just a little mistake?
Terry F •Yes, good question asked by Kate G back in 2021 with no reply. Is there a 6th ingredient? Baking soda? Mise en place picture shows 2 tiny dishes. One is salt, what’s the other one?
Hazel M •I've been making this recipe for 5 years now and people loved it. Can I take the sugar out as one person asking me not to use any sugar or dates. Will it still hold? Also what's the 6th ingredient as one person said 5 in the recipe but 6 in the photo.
Eric W • Rouxbe Staff •Hello Hazel, if you remove the sugar from this recipe, you'll need to test it to see if you like the results. And, I see six ingredients listed in Steps 1 & 2 that align with the ingredients in the photos. Enjoy the process of experimentation! ~Eric