Coconut Oatmeal Lace Cookies
The cookies continue around here and these crispy, delicate Coconut Oatmeal Lace Cookies may just be my new favorite! Read on and let me explain why…
First off, they taste ah-mazing!!! Every bite is buttery and caramel-y, enhanced by the crunch of oatmeal and coconut! YUM!! They will make your kitchen smell fantastic!
And they’re so light, you can practically see through them!!
Now, you may have noticed that I haven’t once referred to the chocolate aspect (white or dark) of these at all yet. That’s because, sacrilegious as it may sound, these elegant wafers are arguably just as good without any additional adornment. In fact, quite a few of my tasters said that they preferred them without any chocolate!!! (I know, I’m living with crazy people!!!)
Fortunately, there are others who fall into the chocolate-makes-everything-better camp, and for them (and me) the addition of chocolate (particularly bittersweet) and sprinkles, raises these to heavenly heights! Plus, everyone knows that sprinkles = happiness!!
Then, as they bake, the cookies magically transform into the thin lacy patterns that make them so unique and earn them the oohs and aahs they deserve. And all this happens in under 10 minutes!! We can handle that, right?!
The crunch is addictive, as is the way they melt in your mouth!! Truly cookie perfection!!
Gift somebody a tin of these and they’ll love you forever and really isn’t that what it’s all about?!!
Coconut Oatmeal Lace Cookies
Makes about 3 dozen
Prep Time: 15 minutes; Bake Time: 8-10 minutes; Decorating Time: 15 minutes
Ingredients
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter
½ cup light brown sugar, packed
¼ teaspoon salt
¾ cup sweetened shredded coconut
¾ cup old-fashioned oats
¼ cup unbleached, all-purpose flour
3-4 ounces white chocolate, chopped (optional)
3-4 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped (optional)
Sprinkles (optional)
The Recipe
1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line 2 large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
2. Fill a medium saucepan with a couple of inches of water and bring to a simmer. Place the butter, sugar and salt in the bowl of a double boiler (or any metal bowl that fits over the saucepan) and stir the mixture every now and then until the butter is melted. Stir in the coconut, oats and flour just until combined. Remove the pot from the heat but keep the bowl over the pot so that the batter stays warm.
3. Drop rounded teaspoonfuls of the batter onto the baking sheets, spacing the cookies at least 3 inches apart (these really spread) and use the back of a spoon or offset spatula to press the cookies down into 2-inch circles.
4. Bake the sheets one at a time for 4 minutes, then turn the sheet around and bake for another 4 minutes. If cookies are bubbly and golden brown, remove them from the oven, otherwise cook for another minute or so, keeping a close watch—these can go from just right to burned in a blink. Let cookies cool on the sheet on a wire rack until they firm up and then transfer carefully to the racks to finish cooling completely. Cookies keep for about a week in an airtight container at room temperature but these are fragile so I would not recommend mailing them.
5. These are amazing as is but if you want to make them a little more festive, you can go ahead and decorate. Melt the chocolates separately and then dip the cookies halfway or drizzle some of the chocolate across the tops and scatter some sprinkles across. Lay cookies down on a tray lined with wax or parchment paper to allow chocolate to set, or place in the fridge for a few minutes. Then peel off and store in an airtight container for up to one week
Enjoy!
Note: Recipe adapted from an old issue of Gourmet Magazine.
