Oatmeal Coconut Cookies a.k.a. Dad's Cookies
Did you know that my parents both come from families with eight kids? Growing up, I didn't realize that other people didn't have big families like mine. It was pretty "normal" to have big holiday gatherings like Christmas and Easter at the local community hall down the road from my grandparents place. With all the cousins & aunts & uncles, we would crowd out a house pretty quickly!
One of my favorite things about the big family gatherings, was all the amazing food! With a big family, the spread of food was guaranteed to be epic and have so many of your favorites! With my sweet tooth, let's just say that I ALWAYS looked forward to the dessert table, lol. That dessert table was bound to have at least one plate of each of the following kinds of cookies on it:
- chocolate chip cookies
- gingersnaps (my Mom's are the bomb - I'll have to convince her that I can share that one soon!)
- boiled raisin cookies
- monster cookies with smarties or M&M's
- oatmeal coconut cookies - also known as Dad's cookies or Father's cookies
At some point in my childhood I developed a love for baking & cooking. My Mom worked as a teacher's assistant in town and I often arrived home on the bus before she made it home. It was always the perfect time to whip up a batch of cookies or some treat we could pack in our lunches. Cookies are a great packable snack for lunches making them a go-to around our house to this day.
Today, I'm sharing our recipe for oatmeal coconut cookies - also known as Dad's or Father's cookies. I'm pretty sure the name stems from the fact that a Canadian company called "Dad's" made an oatmeal cookie that was commonly found in people's homes since 1929. This homemade version is WAY better than the crunchy cookie version from a box! This recipe makes a soft, chewy oatmeal cookie anyone will love!
These cookies should be cooked until the bottom is just lightly browned so the cookies stay nice & soft!
Oatmeal Coconut Cookies Recipe
Ingredients:
- 1 cup butter, softened
- 2 cups brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 cups large flake rolled oats
- 1 1/2 cups short to medium flaked coconut
Instructions:
Blend butter & sugar until creamy. Beat in eggs until light and fluffy. Add in vanilla and salt & mix.
Add flour, baking soda & baking powder, oats, and coconut. Mix until fully blended. Batter will be fairly stiff to come together. Set in fridge to harden for about 15 to 30 minutes while the oven preheats.
Turn oven to 350F.
Roll mixture into balls and press them down with a fork. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, depending on the size of the cookies, until the bottoms just start to brown.
Let cool for 5 minutes on the pan before transfering the cookies to a cooling rack.
Enjoy!