Golden Coconut Cookies

Looking for a way to use up four egg yolks? It happens, every so often. And since way back, I actually look forward to having leftover egg yolks, knowing that a batch of Golden Coconut Cookies will soon emerge from the oven. They're sweet and crisp, a little chewy in the center. They're cinnamon-y too and in fact, remind me of snickerdoodles.

A Simple Cookie, Sweet & Crisp, Bright with Cinnamon. Handy for Using Leftover Egg Yolks.

~ Skip Straight to the Recipe ~

The Usefulness of 3x5 Recipe Cards

Does anyone else feel wistful about our old 3x5 recipe cards? I still love the intimacy of their quick notes, somehow personal in a way that the Internet is not, cannot, will never be.

Take a hand-written recipe for Golden Coconut Cookies, one taken from my own huge 3x5 collection started when I was about age 10, continuing until I began blogging in 2005 and my recipe collection moved online.

The corner reads VVG, that's code for "very very good". Beneath it is the reminder why this otherwise simple recipe is so useful, 4 egg yolks. This was tagging for the analog world of recipe cards, a quick reminder that this simple cookie uses up a full four extra yolks!

A Sweet Way to Use Up Four Egg Yolks

Yes, Golden Coconut Cookies call for four egg yolks, that's what gives the cookies a pretty golden color. For anyone looking for good ways to use up leftover egg yolks, this knocks out four yolks at a time! That's a lot!

Golden Coconut Cookies are also (what's that code?) VVG, crispy on the outside and slightly chewy on the inside. Even without the telltale cream of tartar, they remind me of snickerdoodles! They're quite sweet, for it's sugar that delivers the crisp texture.

Coconut comes through when, before baking, the cookie dough balls are rolled in ground coconut spiked with cinnamon. Not into coconut? No problem, use ground nuts, almonds, pecans, even walnuts.

Both coconut and nuts work well. Choose whichever one sounds good, happens to be on hand – or better yet, like the egg yolks, needs using up.

More Ways to Use Up Extra Egg Yolks

Frugal cooks know that one big way to save money on groceries is to use absolutely everything that's on hand. That means throwing the bones of a chicken into a pot for No-Big-Deal Homemade Chicken Stock; using up odd bits of leftovers before shopping for groceries, what my mom called Saturday Soup.

It's using what you have on hand that gives commitment to this labor of love, Recipes by Ingredient. Whatever you have on hand? My sites have recipes to help you use it. Whatever is especially pretty or maybe inexpensive or even unusual at the grocery store? My sites have recipes to inspire you to cook with it.

But what about those egg yolks? What can you make with extra egg yolks? And for that matter, the whites too?

WHO NEEDS RECIPES?
• Scrambled eggs or omelets can always use an extra yolk or six
• Cooked eggs for breakfast burritos
• Mashed potatoes (whisk with a little milk first)
• Bread dough (whisk with milk or water first)
• Smoothies (skip this idea if eating raw egg is a concern)
• Cook first, then toss into potato salad
• Fried rice

OKAY, SOME ACTUAL RECIPES
• Banana Cream Pudding (6 yolks)
• Coffee Pots & Lemon Pots (5 yolks)
• Chocolate Malt Ice Cream (4 yolks)
• Herbed Goat Cheese (3 yolks)
• Recipes calling for egg yolks
• Recipes calling for egg whites

What Happens to Your Extra Egg Yolks?

My 3x5 recipe cards want to know! Just leave a quick comment or send a quick email.

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GOLD COOKIES

Very very good, especially at using up egg yolks

Hands-on time: 10 minutes to mix, 20 minutes to roll
Time-to-table: 2 hours
Makes 4 dozen small cookies but easy to halve

• 1/2 cup (1 stick, 8 tablespoons, 112g) butter, softened to room temperature
• 1-1/2 cups (300g) sugar
• 4 large egg yolks
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 tablespoon (yes, tablespoon) vanilla
• 1-1/2 cups flour (187g or fluffed to aerate before measuring)
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon table salt

• 3/4 cup (45g) unsweetened coconut, ground fine in a small food processor
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon

MIX In a large bowl with an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the yolks, milk and vanilla, beat in thoroughly. Sprinkle the flour, baking powder and salt evenly across the top of the bowl, then mix in thoroughly. (The dough is so simple, it really needs to be well combined, be careful to scrape the bowl two or three times, gathering up extra bits of butter and flour.) Cover the bowl and chill the dough in the refrigerator for at least an hour and up to 24 hours.

BAKE Heat oven to 400F, line baking sheets with parchment. Stir together the coconut and cinnamon in a small bowl. Form dough into small balls (it'll be slightly sticky, it helps to rub your fingers with a little soft butter), roll each ball in the coconut-cinnamon mixture, covering evenly. Place on baking sheet with plenty of space between, about 12 cookies for a large sheetpan. Bake until golden, about 10 - 13 minutes (11 minutes is perfect in my oven), turning the sheetpan front to back after 7 or 8 minutes. Let cool a bit, then transfer to a rack or a paper towel to finish cooling.

ALANNA's TIPS The original recipe called for shortening instead of butter so if you have Crisco around, go for it. It also called for ground nuts instead of ground coconut, they also work well. Just be sure to toast the nuts first, then cool them completely before grinding. The cookies rolled with coconut have a lighter, more golden color; those rolled in nuts a darker, more caramel color. Cookie sheets vary so much in performance! I've also tested this recipe with a good non-stick baking sheet and with a silicone mat, parchment is preferred. The last couple of batches, I've had trouble with the cookies baking unevenly. It helps to mix the dough extra well, incorporating all the butter and flour. Keep an eye on the oven, it helps to turn the baking sheet halfway through baking.

NUTRITION INFORMATION Per Cookie: 65 Calories; 3g Tot Fat; 2g Sat Fat; 22mg Cholesterol; 44mg Sodium; 10g Carb; 0g Fiber; 6g Sugar; 1g Protein. WEIGHT WATCHERS Old Points 1 & PointsPlus 2 & SmartPoints 3 & Freestyle 3

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More Easy Cookie Recipes

(hover with a mouse for a description; otherwise click a photo to view the recipe)

~ more cookie recipes

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Shop Your Pantry First

(helping home cooks save money on groceries)

~ egg yolks ~
~ coconut ~
~ nuts ~

~ All Recipes, By Ingredient ~
~ How to Save Money on Groceries ~

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Kitchen Parade is written by second-generation food columnist Alanna Kellogg and features fresh, seasonal dishes for every-day healthful eating and occasional indulgences. Quick Suppers are Kitchen Parade favorites and feature recipes easy on the budget, the clock, the waistline and the dishwasher. Do you have a favorite recipe that other Kitchen Parade readers might like? Just send me a quick e-mail via recipes@kitchen-parade.com. How to print a Kitchen Parade recipe. Never miss a recipe! If you like this recipe, sign up for a free e-mail subscription. If you like Kitchen Parade, you're sure to like my food blog about vegetable recipes, too, A Veggie Venture. If you make this recipe, I'd love to know your results! Just leave a comment below.

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