Sunshine & Citrus Sugar Cookie
Lemon and lime zest, toasted sweetened coconut folded into the dough, and every ball rolled in turbinado sugar before it goes in the oven. The turbinado creates a crackled, caramelized crust. The coconut is a deliberate ingredient — if you love it, this is your cookie.
Ingredients
Instructions
Toast the coconut
Spread the shredded coconut in a dry skillet over medium heat. Stir constantly until golden and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate and cool completely before using — warm coconut will melt the butter in the dough.
Whisk the dry ingredients
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
Cream butter and sugar
Beat the room-temperature butter and granulated sugar on medium-high speed for 3 minutes until light and fluffy. Don't rush — the aeration created here affects the final texture.
Add eggs and flavor
Add the whole egg and egg yolk one at a time, beating well after each. Mix in the vanilla extract, coconut extract, all the lemon and lime zest, and 1 tablespoon of lemon juice.
Combine and fold
Add the dry ingredients to the wet in two additions, mixing on low until just combined. Fold in the cooled toasted coconut with a spatula.
Chill
Cover the bowl and refrigerate for 60 minutes. Do not skip this step — the chill controls spread and firms the dough enough to roll cleanly in the turbinado sugar.
Preheat and prep
Preheat your oven to 175°C (350°F). Line two baking sheets with parchment. Put the turbinado sugar in a small bowl.
Scoop and roll
Scoop the dough into 2-tablespoon balls. Roll each one in the turbinado sugar to coat completely, then place 2 inches apart on the prepared sheets.
Bake and cool
Bake one sheet at a time on the center rack for 12 minutes. The edges will be set and the centers will look underdone — remove them anyway. They finish cooking on the pan. Cool on the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack.
Baker's Notes
- Toast the coconut until it's actually golden — pale toasted coconut has very little flavor. Stir constantly and watch it closely because it goes from golden to burnt quickly.
- The 60-minute chill is what allows the turbinado rolling to work. Unchilled dough is too soft to hold the coating and will spread too much in the oven.
- Turbinado sugar has larger crystals than granulated sugar, which is what creates the distinctive crackled crust. Standard granulated sugar won't give you the same result.
- The coconut flavor is intentional and central to this recipe. If you're serving people who dislike coconut, know that going in — the flavor is present and real.
- For a more tropical variation: swap the lime zest for orange zest. For unexpected warmth: add a pinch of cayenne to the dry ingredients.