Coconut Shortbread
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Coconut shortbread is a tropic twist on an Highland shortbread recipe. With toasted coconut, this shortbread recipe is a tried and true treat!
Is bread really bread if it is made of nearly two sticks of butter? Sure, why not. It’s got carbs. It counts.
Shortbread (more cookie than bread, why lie…) makes sends my heart a flutter, like none other. See what I did there? Rhyming. It’s all about the timing. And the hoak. I’m a big fan of hoak.
Last year after months of searching, I found my wedding dress at Costco. Yes, Costco. (It’s one of them in this collection I just won’t tell you which one – gotta wait ’til August for the big reveal!). It fit like a glove. Mom cried. Beka cried. I got all teary. The end.
As soon as I was out of that gorgeous silk confection and on my merry way my mom, Beka and I hit up Panera Bread and I needed carbs. They were well earned, and I required a shortbread cookie STAT. Carbs and I are star crossed lovers. We go together like Joanie and Chachi, scarves and fitted v-neck tees, and my spoon in a jar of Biscoff. It’s just destiny.
I choose to ignore the part about them being half butter and my ass growing at a disproportionate rate…but that’s neither there nor there.
Shortbreads always seemed like it would be one of those desserts that would be difficulty to make. How did it get so dense, yet so tender? So dry but so melt-in-your-mouth? Butter, duh. They’d never been far from my mind, always on the “make it or bake it” list, just lacking the time to bring them to fruition.
After my recent weekend adventure to the tulip fields of Skagit Valley, I sunk my teeth into a freakishly thick and sinful coconut shortbread, I concluded it was time to make my own shortbread. I had to have my way with it, then learn to stand on my own two feet like a big girl and bake it myself.
#weddingdietfail at it’s finest.
Step in America’s Test Kitchen Best Shortbread, with a Cleaver twist…
Pulse 1/2 cup of rolled oats in a food processor until floury consistency. All I had on me was 1 packet of instant regular oatmeal and it worked like a dream. It wittled down to about 1/3 cup of oat flour.
The into my Kitchen Aid went the rest of the dry ingredients, mixed to combine and then dun-dum-DUM, The Butter.
All 14 tablespoons of it.
Last but not least 1 cup of toasted shredded coconut was added and the whole lot was mixed until it just combined and pulled away from the sides of the bowl.
For baking, the mix was spread out into a closed springform pan. Once it was shaped the pan was released but left in place to ensure the bread didn’t spread too far. Gotta keep this baby reined in a bit! Can’t have these carbs galavanting all over the place.
To ensure the bread didn’t rise to much in the middle either, I gave it an escape route to the middle of the pan by removing a 3″ circle out of it. But don’t go wasting this. Just set it on the outside of the spring-form pan and bake as directed. It’s a guaranteed “wrecked” piece. If you’re the kind of person that needs to justify eating the “broken” cookie so no one else has too….darn.
Then bake in a preheated 450 degree oven for five minutes, reducing it to 250 and then allowing to make an additional 10-15 until golden brown. Score and let it cool in the oven and when it’s done you can devour it. I won’t judge if you eat it straight off the pan… I did. And then I had a cup of tea.
Priorities.
Print
Coconut Shortbread
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cooling Time: 1 hour
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 40 minutes
- Yield: 16 wedges 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: Scottish
Description
Coconut Shortbread. What more do I need to say?
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup plain Oats
- 1 1/2 cup Flour
- 1/4 cup Cornstarch
- 2/3 cup Powdered Sugar
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 14 Tbsp Butter, cut into pieces 1/4″ wide
- 1 cup toasted shredded Coconut, sweetened or unsweetened
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
- Place oats and shredded coconut into food processor and pulse until they become a fine powder. About 5 pulses. Set aside.
- In stand mixer, place all dry ingredients, turn mixer on low to combine.
- Add in butter and mix on low until dough forms and pulls away from the sides of the bowl. About 5 minutes.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place a closed spring-form pan on top. Spread dough into spring-form pan, evenly. Unlock spring form pan but leave it in place on baking sheet. This will ensure the dough doesn’t spread too far.
- Using a round cookie cutter, remove a circle of the center of the shortbread dough. Set disk of dough outside the spring form pan and bake as directed.
- Bake shortbread for 5 minutes at 450 degrees. Reduce temperature to 250 degrees and continue to bake for an additional 10-15 minutes until golden brown.
- Remove baking sheet from oven and remove spring-form pan from baking sheet. Using a sharp knife score the shortbread into 16 wedges.
- Place baking sheet with shortbread back into the oven. Turn OFF the oven, leaving shortbread in there to cool. Make sure the oven is propped slightly open to allow to cool. About 1 hour.
- Place shortbread on cooling rack after one hour and allow to finish cooling to room temperature.
- Break shortbread along the scored lines you created previously.
- Repeat with remaining shortbread. Serve with tea, or coffee.
Notes
Adapted from America’s Test Kitchen Best Shortbread

Intriguing…American shortbread seems quite different to English shortbread. I’m obviously going to have to conduct a very serious scientific taste test. Just for science obviously.
Oh, this looks fabulous! I love the coconut in this shortbread. Very different from the regular flavors. Hey, you’re not the only one on #weddingdietfail…I haven’t even started mine and I feel like it’s going to catch up with me!
I love this shortbread!
Oat flour.. I’ve never done that with my shortbread. Love it! And the coconut.. just lovely!
So lovely! You made it all fancy & authentic with the circle cut out of the middle. Go you! 🙂
I love coconut, I’m always on the lookout for new ways to uses it, this one’s a winner, had to pin!
Coconut shortbread is where it’s AT! Love!
I have some leftover coconut just begging to be used for this shortbread. It looks delicious!
Your post has reminded me of two things:
1 – I really need to get myself to a Costco one of these days.
2 – I adore shortbread and should have more of it in my life, especially when it’s all jacked up with fun stuff like coconut.
I love shortbread in all its buttery amazingness. You are amazing for this!
oooh yum, these look fabulous
I really love shortbread. Oh, all that butter is just heavenly! I really like the addition of coconut! Definitely not something you normally see with shortbread!
I seriously love that you found your wedding dress at Costco. Love it. And I love that you added coconut to shortbread, gorgeous.
Ummm yes please!! You should totally mail me some of this! 😉
Oooh, despite the butter (lemme tell you….I <3 butter…), this looks like a pretty healthy shortbread recipe! I love the oats and coconut together!
I had no idea costco had wedding dresses. I can’t wait to see pics! You must share. Please send me a slice of this too 🙂
oh yes. i want, no need, to make these like yesterday.
I can’t believe I’ve never made shortbread before. Ah, now I’m so antsy to make them! I mean 2 sticks of butter? That says it all 🙂
Btw congrats on getting the wedding dress, especially at a place like Costco. You must have gotten such a great deal!
Oh, Megan, Megan… you know you had me at coconut.
PS – Costco wedding dresses? Gorgeous! I had no idea.
Can’t wait to see you in yours.
It’s NEVER a bad idea to put two sticks of butter in anything!! Especially something that involves oats. Gorgeous!
Coconut must me the theme today over @ TK. Congrats on being featured! Great recipe 🙂
Adore coconut everything anything! The shortbread looks wonderful.
Did I ever tell you that I was a coconut addict??? This would be so perfect to dunk in my morning coffee.
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Looks Awesome. The spring form pan is genius!!