Have you been baking with coconut sugar? These Coconut Sugar Cookies are based on a classic chewy sugar cookie recipe, but are made with all coconut sugar instead of granulated sugar. The result is a sweet cookie with a deeper caramel-like flavor than the typical sugar cookie.
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What do you do when you discover a large bag of coconut sugar in your pantry, but can't remember why you bought it?
Make sugar cookies, of course!
Coconut sugar cookies are incredibly easy to make and a delicious sweet treat that your whole family will love. And they're the perfect way to experiment with coconut sugar in baking!
I should be clear that these cookies are not coconut flavored. They are sugar cookies that are made with coconut sugar instead of granulated sugar. And coconut sugar does not taste like coconut at all.
I will say that despite these being pretty classic sugar cookies, the sugar swap does make these taste a bit different than a regular sugar cookie. As you can tell from the photos, coconut sugar is brown and definitely has more of a deeper, caramel-like brown sugar flavor to it.
But that is a very good thing!
🥥 What is coconut sugar?
Coconut sugar comes from the sap of the coconut palm tree (it's also sometimes referred to as coconut palm sugar). It's plant-based and minimally processed (you may not realize that granulated sugar and brown sugar are not vegan as they often contain bone char for coloring).
Coconut sugar isn't chemically altered in any way and it doesn't contain any artificial ingredients or synthetic substances.
It's also one of the most sustainable sugars since the sap comes from the actual tree rather than the coconuts and tapping the tree doesn't harm it. Also, coconut trees don't require very many resources to grow! (source)
Nutritionally, it's just as caloric as granulated sugar, though it does retain the nutrients found in the coconut palm (iron, zinc, calcium, potassium, etc.). It also contains inulin, which means it has a lower glycemic index than granulated sugar and may slow glucose absorption (source).
I've been using the Wholesome brand of coconut sugar, which seems to be a popular choice.
👩🍳 How to bake with coconut sugar
You bake with coconut sugar just like you would with granulated sugar and you can use a 1:1 substitute (so for every cup of granulated sugar, replace with a cup of coconut sugar). This makes baking with coconut sugar SO easy!
Note that coconut sugar is brown in color, but it acts more like granulated sugar in baking (it has no molasses in it and isn't wet like brown sugar).
However, it has a deeper flavor than typical white sugar and is almost caramel-like in taste. Despite its name, there is no disernable coconut flavor in the sugar.
🗒 Ingredients
This recipe requires pretty simple ingredients; basically the same ones you'd use to make regular sugar cookies.
Here's what you need (please see recipe card at the bottom of this post for ingredient amounts and full recipe instructions):
- Unsalted butter
- Coconut sugar
- Large egg
- Vanilla extract
- All-purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Salt
🍪 How to make coconut sugar cookies
I was excited to experiment with this conventional sugar alternative and ended up being really happy with the results.
These are easy to make; just like a traditional sugar cookie. Simply mix together the dough, roll into balls, coat with more sugar (obviously), and bake.
To start, preheat oven to 375 degrees and line a couple baking sheets with parchment paper.
In the bowl of a stand mixer (or in a large bowl with a hand mixer), cream together the butter and coconut sugar until light and fluffy, 3-4 minutes.
See how nice and golden it is?
Add egg and vanilla and mix until combined.
In a separate medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
With mixer on low, gradually mix in the dry ingredients until just combined
Place remaining ¼ cup coconut sugar in a small bowl. Using your hands, form balls with about 1 ½ Tbsp of dough at a time.
Roll balls in sugar until well-coated. The more sweetness, the merrier, right??
Place dough balls on parchment paper-lined baking sheets about 2 inches apart. Use a drinking glass or the palm of your hand to gently flatten the dough balls a bit.
Bake cookies for 9-11 minutes until they're just turning golden on the bottom, but are still soft.
Let cool on pan for a couple minutes before moving to a cooling rack to cool cookies completely.
The results are delicious and the stuff my cookie dreams are made of!
Obviously they have a bit of a different look to them than the traditional sugar cookie. They're more golden in color and almost look like a molasses cookie.
And the taste is definitely more caramel-like and a bit nutty. Definitely more complex than other similar cookies.
They're still soft and chewy, just like you'd expect the perfect sugar cookie to be. But they also have nice crisp edges, which I love.
I really loved these cookies, but was actually a bit shocked by how much Chris liked them. He told me he wanted all of them to myself!
⏲️ How to store
These cookies should stay fresh for about about 2 weeks when kept in an airtight container in a cool spot. I recommend separating the cookie layers with sheets of waxed or parchment paper.
If you prefer, you can also freeze these coconut sugar cookies to enjoy later. Keep them stored in an airtight container or big Ziplock bag (it's best if you pre-freeze them by freezing them on a cookie sheet first... that way they won't all freeze together!).
🌴 What if I want coconut flavor?
If you came to this recipe because you wanted coconut cookies with actual coconut flavor, there are certainly ways you can add the flavor to these cookies!
I recommend either using a little coconut extract or mixing coconut flakes into the batter.
Or do both! Then you'll have triple coconut cookies with coconut sugar, extract, and flakes!
🥣 Can I use other flours?
I've only made this coconut sugar cookie recipe with all-purpose flour, but you can certainly experiment with other flours... Even coconut flour!
Just note that you may need a different ratio of flour and can't always use 1:1 with all-purpose.
In general, almond flour can be used at a 1:1 ratio, though you may need to add another egg. Coconut flour is much drier than all-purpose, so you'll likely need to use less of it or more liquid.
You can generally use spelt flour like you would all-purpose, but oat flour requires some adjustments. When using whole wheat flour, it's often best to use it in combination with all-purpose.
😋 More cookie recipes
While I don't have any other recipes for cookies using coconut sugar (yet!), I do have plenty of other fabulous cookie recipes here on We are not Martha. Here are some of my favorites:
- Strawberry Shortcake Cookies
- Mexican Chocolate Cookies
- Molasses Ginger Cookies
- Fruity Pebbles Cookies
- Peanut Butter Toffee Cookies
- Grapefruit Crinkle Cookies
- XL Peanut Butter Cookies
- Milk Bar's Cornflake Chocolate Chip Marshmallow Cookies
- Funfetti White Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies (from Fresh April Flours)
- Salted Brownie Cookies (from Sweet Rustic Bakes)
Is there anything better than baking a fresh batch of cookies and having a little sweet afternoon snack with your tea or coffee?
Now that I've discovered how awesome coconut sugar is, I can't wait to utilize it in even more recipes. I think it would be delicious in cookies dough and in blondies, too!
Have you ever baked with coconut sugar?
📖 Recipe
Coconut Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 ¼ cups coconut sugar, plus additional ¼ cup for rolling
- 1 large egg
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp salt
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees and line baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer (or a large bowl with a hand mixer), cream together the butter and coconut sugar until light and fluffy, 3-4 minutes.
- Add egg and vanilla and mix until combined.
- In a separate medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- With mixer on low, gradually mix in the flour mixture until just combined (taking care not to over-mix).
- Place remaining ¼ cup coconut sugar in a small bowl. Using your hands, form balls with about 1 ½ Tbsp of dough at a time. Roll balls in sugar and place on prepared baking sheets about 2 inches apart. Use a drinking glass or the palm of your hand to gently flatten the dough balls a bit.
- Bake for 9-11 minutes until cookies are just turning golden on the bottom, but are still soft. Let cool on pan for a couple minutes before moving to wire racks to cool completely.
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Kau says
Looks so yummy! Can I use a cookie cutter to get shapes or is the dough quite wet?
Sues says
Hi Kau!The dough is a little bit wet, but I think if you roll it out on a floured surface, you should be able to do it!
Mira says
Did you write the degrees in C or in F?
Sues says
Hi Mira- My temperatures are written in Fahrenheit.