Coconut Icebox Cookies to the Rescue for “Sweet” Emergencies

Preview: This recipe for Coconut Icebox Cookies makes a thin, crispy, and chewy shortbread-type cookie. Keep a roll of dough in the freezer at all times for emergencies.

Icebox cookies sound like something your grandma would make, don’t they? Think of them as the original slice-and-bakes, but fresher and tastier.

Thankfully, you can store the dough in your fridge or freezer instead of an icebox. In addition, shaped cookie dough logs are handy for “sweet” emergencies like unexpected company, a last-minute cookie tray, or a sneaky sugar attack.

Come a little closer because I need to whisper this little secret. Even the raw dough satisfies, but you didn’t hear it from me. So please keep reading to the end of this post for my story about cookie dough.

Homemade slice-and-bake coconut cookies are guaranteed to wake up any coconut cravings you’ve neglected lately. The fragrance of toasted coconut combined with rich buttery shortbread will make your house smell better than any scented candle.

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Why these coconut cookies should be in your freezer right now:

When you keep logs of prepared cookie dough in your freezer, you can have fresh warm cookies in the time it takes to preheat your oven and bake them.

With only five ingredients, you can throw the dough together in a hurry. However, the prepared dough MUST be refrigerated (or frozen) before baking, so plan ahead.

Add this super simple cookie to your collection if you are a coconut lover. They’re great on their own, but they also play nicely with a simple dessert like ice cream, pudding, or creme brulée. We like to crumble them to sprinkle on our homemade yogurt.

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Ingredients and substitutions:

• BUTTER: Next to coconut, butter is the star ingredient. No substitutes exist.
  
• SUGAR: Granulated sugar is best here. Anything else will change the texture and taste which isn’t all bad. Just different.
  
• VANILLA EXTRACT: Try almond extract if you prefer or don’t have vanilla on hand. Use half as much almond as you would vanilla.
  
• FLOUR: All-purpose flour is recommended. Bleached or unbleached–it doesn’t matter.
  
• COCONUT: This recipe was formulated for flaky sweetened coconut. Substitute unsweetened coconut if your sweet tooth is better controlled than mine.

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How to make Coconut Icebox Cookies:

Oh yes, my cookie dough story.

My mom was ahead of her time when she engaged in aversion therapy with my pre-teen self.

I asked her if I could make an entire recipe of Butterscotch Refrigerator Cookies for the sole purpose of eating the dough.

She said, “yes.” I did. I never made that recipe again.

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