Key Lime Cookies with Coconut

My father's birthday was two weeks ago, so I took him to the Bonefish Grill for dinner. It was a wonderful dinner; we got the key lime cake for dessert. I have always enjoyed key lime anything, but this cake was fantastic!

So, of course, my brain kicked in, thinking how I could make this a cookie. My first stop was Wegman's to see if they had key limes. They did, indeed. Now to plan out my cookie recipe.

Ingredients for Key Lime Cookie

KEY LIME COOKIES

• Cream Cheese
• Butter unsalted
• Sugar white
• Eggs
• Vanilla Extract
• Key lime juice
• Key lime zest
• All-purpose flour
• Baking powder
• Kosher Salt

Coconut Buttercream Frosting Ingredients

TOASTED COCONUT

• Unsweetened flaked coconut dry

COCONUT BUTTERCREAM FROSTING

• Butter unsalted
• Powdered sugar
• Coconut milk - I used unsweetened organic coconut milk by Thai Kitchen
• Vanilla extract
• Coconut extract
• Sweetened flaked coconut moist

Juice and Zest Key Limes

Key limes are not very big, but having the right tools will help to get the job done faster. First, you need a zester that has a fine grater. I use Microplane Master Series for my lemons, limes, and key limes.

When zesting, I do not zest the whole surface of the key lime. This is because you will lose any structure that the key lime has, which makes it harder to juice. So I hop around the key lime and zest maybe half of the outside.

I purchased my favorite juicer at my local grocery store (cheap). With the built-in reamer and juice collector under it, I find this type the easiest to capture as much key lime juice as possible. However, I have tried the kind in which you put the key lime half in between two curved shapes and squeeze, but this type does not work as well with key limes.

Mixing the Cookies

Juice and zest your key limes and set these bowls aside. Weigh or measure the sugar into a bowl and set it aside. Next, weigh or measure the flour, baking powder, and salt into a bowl, then run a whisk through to blend.

In a mixer bowl, add the butter and cream cheese. Mix on a medium mixer speed for about a minute until the two are blended together. Now, add the sugar and blend on medium-high speed for 2 minutes. You want soft peaks.

Scrape down the sides, add the vanilla extract, key lime juice, and key lime zest, and mix together. I add one egg at a time until incorporated before adding the flour mixture.

This is a soft cookie dough, so cover the bowl and place it in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C or 180°C) and add parchment paper to two cookie sheet pans. Add 12 scoops to the prepared cookie sheet pan using a medium cookie scooper. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Start to watch them at 10 minutes in the oven. The bottoms should be a pale color.

Once out of the oven, move them to a cooling rack. Of course, you want the cookies completely cooled before starting the frosting. But with the cookies baked and the oven still on, this is a perfect time to toast the unsweetened flaked coconut.

Toasting Coconut

This only takes a few minutes and adds great flavor to the top of the cookies. I take the cookie sheet pan and add a piece of parchment paper to cover the bottom. You can also use tin foil, but I prefer parchment paper.

Spread the coconut around the pan, so they are not clumped together.

Bake at 350°F (175°C or 180°C) for 2 to 3 minutes. Keep an eye on it because the coconut can get brown quickly. I pick up the parchment paper by two sides and lift it right out and slide the coconut right into a bowl.

Check if the cookies have cooled; it is time to start the frosting.

Making Coconut Buttercream Frosting

Add the butter to your mixer bowl. First, I ensure the butter is soft enough if it spreads around the bottom of the mixer bowl after turning the mixer on for a minute. Then I scrape down the sides and add the powdered sugar, coconut milk, vanilla extract, and coconut extract.

You want to start at a slow mixer speed and incorporate everything before turning the speed up to medium. Mix for about 2 minutes. It should be creamy and smooth looking. Finally, add the sweetened flaked coconut and mix for about 15 seconds.

Now, taking a butter knife, add the frosting to the top of a cookie and then add some of the toasted coconuts on top of the frosting. I press down a little on the toasted coconuts, so they stick to the frosting.

Enjoy the cookies!

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