Friday, April 15, 2011

Coconut Macadamia Shortbread Cookies

I feel it my duty to tell you about these cookies I made today.  They are great!  They are buttery, coconutty, Macadamia-nutty, slightly chewy, but crisp and pretty much everything shortbread should be.

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I found these cookies while flipping through Martha Stewart’s Cookies looking for ideas.  I bought some macadamia nuts a few months ago and every time I would open the freezer I would see them staring at me just begging to be used.  I adapted the recipe a little.  In the Martha Stewart’s Cookies book they are on page 148.  I didn’t use coconut milk or coconut extract as I didn’t have any, but these have plenty of coconut flavor that I don’t think it was missed

Coconut Macadamia Shortbread Cookies, adapted by Katrina, Baking and Boys! from Martha Stewart’s Cookies

1 cup macadamia nuts (about 3 oz.), toasted

3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar

1  1/2 cups sweetened shredded coconut (divided use)

3/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

4 tablespoons coconut oil (coconut milk was suggested and would have been great, but I didn’t have any)  Could also just use butter, also suggested by MS

2 teaspoons pure coconut extract (I also omitted this since I didn’t have any)

2 cups (240 grams) all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon coarse salt

1 egg white, lightly beaten

Toast nuts on a baking sheet in a preheated 350 degree oven about 10 minutes.  Let cool. 

Process nuts and 2 tablespoons sugar in a food processor until finely ground; set aside.  Process 1 cup coconut until coarsely ground.  Set aside.

Cream butter, coconut oil, and remaining 3/4 cup sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer.  Beat about 2 minutes until pale and fluffy.  Scrape sides of bowl.  Mix in extract (if using).  With mixer on low, add flour, salt, nut mixture and ground coconut.  Mix just until combined.

Halve the dough.  Shape each halve into disks, wrap in plastic wrap.  Refrigerate until firm, about one hour.  Let dough soften before rolling, about 15 minutes.  Roll out each disk on lightly floured parchment paper to 1/4 inch thick.  (I rolled it in between sheets of plastic wrap, which worked well.  Cover with wrap, refrigerate until firm, 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Cut dough using any 2 inch shaped cutters you’d like.  Reroll scraps.  Space about 1 inch apart on baking sheets lined with parchment.  Lightly brush tops with beaten egg white.  Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup coconut.  Bake about 20 minutes, until golden.  Let cool on baking sheets on wire racks.  Store cookies in airtight container.

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These cookies are dangerous for me to have around.  Good thing I made them mostly to give away!  Tis the season for coconut, I’ve been seeing it all over blogland.  Most notably, these Tropical Coco-Cabana Bars that Megan at Megan’s Cookin’ just posted.  Coconut and lime—yum!

I think these shortbread cookies would be good if all you can get your hands on to try them is almonds, too.

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14 comments:

Rylan said...

Katrina, nice to see your blog again! As usual, I've been gone for half a year! Haha. Anyways, I love anything macadamia...and with your recipes, I'd love it even more!

Lisa Ernst said...

I love shortbread cookies and these look outstanding with the coconut and macadamia addes. I have so say that I'm surprised, though, that you didn't find a way to add chocolate to some of them. I'll volunteer to take that job when I make these. :-)

stephanie said...

They're too pretty to eat. Seriously.

Nutmeg Nanny said...

These look amazing! I love coconut and I of course love macadamia nuts. This would be a huge hit in my house :)

Emily said...

Oh wow, those look delicious Katrina!

P.S. I'm glad you liked the bread! :)

Unknown said...

I bet those are melt in your moth divine. have a super nice weekend.

Lisa said...

They certainly look like some delicious little bites.

Jennifer said...

Those look delicious! I'm seriously tempted, but I'm the only person in my family that will eat coconut, so I bet I'd end up consuming them all!

Oh, and I don't have coconut extract, but I do have a bottle of clear vanilla that tastes oddly coconut-y, so I think it would work well in a coconut recipe.

Shelby said...

Yummy! If I hadn't already baked two different treats this week, I'd be baking these. I just can't afford to bake again this week though! Maybe in another week or two! However, the macadamia and coconut are calling my name rather loudly! ;)

cookies and cups said...

oh yes! These would be phenomenal!!
Shortbread + coconut = happy tummy

Erin said...

These sound absolutely delicious!

Maria said...

My kind of cookie!

Aussiemuminthekitchen said...

You should join the Hive. It is a community of food bloggers from Utah. One of my dear friends Holly from Phemomenon.blogspot.com started it. Thought you might be interested. She is a big TWD fan too. A great way to connect with other Utah food bloggers.

Megan'sCookin' said...

Oh yum Katrina! Coconut + macadamia nuts in a shortbread = Major Yum! I've been on a coconut kick lately and these babies are lookin mighty fine to me right now. Not to mention I need more recipes to use up my coconut extract. Bookmarked!

Thanks for the shout out! Your a gem. :)