Coconut Cookie Bars

These Coconut Cookie Bars are eggless coconut shortbread cookies baked in an 8×8 pan that will melt in your mouth with their buttery cookie texture. Serve straight from the pan or decorate with a coconut milk frosting.

Are you tired of winter yet?

The bundling up in multiple layers? The frigid wind chill making your eyes water? The grey slush outside?

Then it’s time to make my Coconut Cookie Bars!

One bite and you’re almost instantly transported to warmer climates, sandy beaches, and breezy palm trees. Their buttery texture almost melts in your mouth, as if the cold weather is melting away outside.

Similar to my orange shortbread cookies, they’re coconut shortbread cookies with a buttery melt-in-your-mouth texture.

Because these are shortbread cookies with coconut, there is no egg or baking powder needed, making it a part of my delicious eggless desserts collection.

Perfect for when someone has an egg allergy or egg prices are too high.

On top I frosted my coconut bar cookies with coconut frosting to ensure there is plenty of tropical nuttiness in every bite.

Although to be perfectly honest – I’ve also devoured them as is straight from the 8×8 pan. No frosting is needed if you don’t want the extra step but it certainly doesn’t hurt.

Ingredients For Coconut Cookie Bars

Here are the ingredients you’ll need to make coconut shortbread:

• Butter: The high fat content creates that melt-in-your-mouth texture
• Sugar: I used granulated vs. powdered because it creates a crisper texture while using powdered creates a softer texture.
• Lime zest: Optional but I love the freshness it adds
• Coconut extract: I wanted the coconut flavor to shine as shredded coconut alone is too subtle without it.
• Vanilla: I still like to add a touch of vanilla when using other extracts
• Flour: Brings the dough together
• Salt: Ensures the cookie bars aren’t bland
• Shredded coconut: I used sweetened flaked coconut because that’s what’s readily available in most stores.

What is coconut extract?

Coconut extract is a flavoring made from steeping coconut meat in alcohol (usually vodka as demonstrated with my homemade vanilla extract.)

Although I do try to limit specialty ingredients in my recipes, coconut extract is necessary if you want your desserts such as small coconut cake and chocolate coconut cookies to taste like coconut.

Without it, the coconut flavor is often to subtle.

I highly recommend buying a bottle then you can make my other recipes using coconut extract.

How To Make Coconut Cookie Bars

Ready to make your shortbread coconut cookies? Here’s what you need to do:

1. Beat together the butter, sugar, lime zest, coconut extract, and vanilla until light and fluffy. Because there are no eggs nor baking powder in this recipe, this is what’ll give your cookies some lift.
2. Add flour, salt, and coconut until a dough forms.
3. Pat dough into an 8×8 pan.
4. Bake at 350F for 25-28 minutes or until edges are lightly brown and middle doesn’t look wet (it’ll be soft and puffy).

Store coconut shortbread in airtight container (frosted or unfrosted) at room temperature for up to 5 days.

Frosting Coconut Bar Cookies

As this point you can eat your coconut bar cookies as is.

However, you can take it one step further and frost them then make it rain with additional coconut flakes on top.

As mentioned earlier, I used my coconut frosting to make sure you really get that coconut flavor.

If you feel that may be TOO much coconut, use my lemon buttercream frosting or strawberry frosting to complement the flavor.

You can also use strawberry cream cheese frosting or raspberry cream cheese frosting, but you’ll have to refrigerate your coconut cookie bars afterwards.

More Cookie Bar Recipes

If you loved this coconut shortbread recipe, check out my other cookie bar recipes:

• Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
• Snickerdoodle Cookie Bars
• Gingerbread Cookie Bars
• Brownie Cookie Bars
• Smores Cookie Bars

First published March 30, 2014