Coconut Oatmeal Cookies
on Mar 30, 2023, Updated Oct 24, 2025
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This vegan Coconut Oatmeal Cookie recipe creates a delightful cookie that’s crispy on the outside with a chewy centre and plenty of coconut flavour. You’ll only need 8 simple ingredients, 20 minutes, one bowl and minimal effort to make theses delicious cookies – no eggs or dairy needed.
Featured Review:
Cheryl
These are super delicious and just the perfect amount of sweet. My new favorite cookie.
Why You’ll Love Coconut Oatmeal Cookies
If you love coconut, these cookies are the yummiest way to satisfy your sweet tooth! The star ingredient is coconut, which adds a subtle sweetness and delicious texture. Here are a few reasons why I think you’ll love them:
- The recipe is vegan so no eggs or dairy needed.
- They have crispy edges and a chewy centre.
- They freeze well.
- They’re easy to make in one bowl with 8 ingredients.
- They take just 20 minutes to make.
- The recipe is customizable, so feel free to add some chocolate chips, raisins, nuts, or lemon.
If you’re looking for more coconut desserts? Check out these Easy Coconut Macaroons, Chocolate Macaroons and Vegan Chocolate Coconut Bars too!
Ingredient & Substitutions
Below is a quick overview of what you’ll need to make the recipe and any substitutions you can make. Use the recipe card with the full list of ingredients and measurements at the bottom of the post when you’re ready to make the recipe.
- Vegan Butter: Use any brand of plant-based butter. I use salted butter sticks from President’s Choice or Melt Organic. If you’re using unsalted butter, consider increasing the salt to 1/2 tsp.
- Brown Sugar: You can use light or dark brown sugar. If you don’t have brown sugar on hand, granulated sugar works. For a refined sugar-free recipe, you can use coconut sugar.
- Flax: You’ll need 1 tbsp of ground flaxseed to make the flax “egg”. It’s important the flax is fresh otherwise it may not form the gel needed to bind the recipe.
- Flour: This recipe calls for all-purpose flour and has not been tested otherwise so please only substitute this is you’re confident making flour substitutions.
- Oats: Use rolled oats, old fashioned oats or large flake oats. Quick oats are ok to use but the texture is better with rolled oats.
- Coconut: I like unsweetened medium flaked coconut for this recipe but you could also use fine shredded coconut. Sweetened shredded coconut would also work but the cookies will be much sweeter and be higher in added sugar.
- Baking Soda: Note it’s baking soda, not baking powder.
Variations
The base for this recipe is versatile so you can have some fun experimenting. Here are some ideas for variations:
- Cinnamon Raisin: Add 1 tsp cinnamon with the dry ingredients and 1/2 cup raisins when you add the coconut.
- Cranberry Coconut: Add 1/2 cup dried cranberries when you add the coconut. White chocolate chips would be good here too!
- Nut and Fruit: Add 1/2 cup chopped nuts like walnuts or pecans and 1/2 cup chopped dried fruit like apricots or cherries when you add the coconut.
- Chocolate Coconut: Add 1/2 cup chocolate chips or chopped dark chocolate with the coconut.
- Matcha Coconut: Add 2 tsp matcha powder with the dry ingredients.
- Almond Coconut: Use 1 tsp almond extract instead of vanilla extract and mix in 1/2 cup slivered or chopped almonds.
- Lemon Coconut: Add 1 tbsp lemon zest and 2 tbsp lemon juice when you cream the butter and sugar for a tropical twist.
How to Make Coconut Oatmeal Cookies
Step 1: To make the cookies, start by mixing the ground flaxseed and water in a small dish, and let it sit for 5-10 minutes to form a gel that will act as the egg in this recipe.
Step 2: Add the softened butter and sugar to a large mixing bowl and beat with a hand-held electric mixer until it’s light, fluffy and fully combined.
You can also use a stand mixer here. If you don’t have either, you can use a wooden spoon and mix vigorously.
Step 3: Beat or stir in the flax egg and vanilla extract.
Step 4: Add the remaining ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix into a uniform dough.
Step 5: Form approximately 2 tbsp-sized balls of cookie dough and place them at least 2-inches apart on a baking sheet. You should get 20 cookies so you may need two baking sheets or have to bake them in two batches.
Press each cookie down with your fingers, a glass or wooden spoon.
Step 6: Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes until the edges are golden brown and then let them cool for 10 minutes on the baking sheet until firm.
Recipe FAQs
Absolutely! You can freeze coconut oatmeal cookies in an airtight container for up to 3 months. The cookies are actually delicious enjoyed straight from the freezer!
Medium unsweetened flaked coconut (desiccated coconut) is suggested. You can also use fine shredded coconut but it will blend more into the dough rather than have the distinct texture and appearance of a larger flake.
You may also use sweetened coconut for sweeter cookies.
No. You can bake the cookies directly on a baking sheet or use parchment or a silicone baking mat.
No, the cookies are made with all-purpose flour so they are not gluten-free. You should be able to substitute a gluten-free all-purpose flour but I have not tested it.
Expert Tips
- Measure accurately. Measuring your ingredients accurately is important for baking success. I highly suggest using a kitchen scale and following the weights listed in the recipe.
- Baking time. Be sure to preheat the oven to 350 F before baking your cookies for 10-12 minutes. The cookies are done when the edges start turning golden brown. The cookies will seem underdone when you pull them from the oven but will firm as they cool on the baking sheet. If you’re unsure, it’s better to err on the side of under baked than over bake them.
- Chilling the dough. I did not chill the dough for this recipe because I wanted the cookies to be thinner with crunchy exterior and chewy center. If you want the cookies to be thick and chewy, you can chill the dough for 30 minutes before baking.
- Toasting the coconut. For more flavour, you can toast the coconut before adding to the recipe. Spread the coconut on a baking sheet and toast in the oven at 350 F for 5-10 minutes until it’s light golden brown, watching closely as it can burn quickly.
How to Store
- Let the cookies cool completely before storing.
- Store in a sealed container at room temperature for up to 5 days or in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
- I like to freeze the cookies because they’re delicious enjoyed straight from the freezer! Store them in a freezer safe container for up to 3 months.
If you try these Oatmeal Coconut Cookies or any other recipe on Running on Real Food, don’t forget to leave a comment and a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating in the comment section below. It helps others who are thinking of making the recipe, and I love to hear from you. And don’t forget to tag me on Instagram @runningonrealfood so I can see your creation! Thanks for trying my recipes! – Deryn
More Recipes to Try!
Coconut Oatmeal Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp flaxseed meal + 3 tbsp water
- ½ cup vegan butter, softened (113 g)
- ½ cup brown sugar, 96 g
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup all-purpose flour, 120 g
- 1 ½ cups old-fashioned rolled oats, 135 g
- 1 ½ cups unsweetened coconut, 150 g
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350˚F (180˚C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a small bowl, mix together the flaxseed meal and water to make the flax egg. Let sit for at least 5 minutes to thicken while you gather the other ingredients.1 tbsp flaxseed meal + 3 tbsp water
- In a large bowl or using a stand mixer, beat together the softened vegan butter and brown sugar until evenly combined.½ cup vegan butter, ½ cup brown sugar
- Beat in the flax egg and vanilla or mix well with a wooden spoon.1 tsp vanilla extract
- Add the remaining ingredients and mix until uniform. If using a stand mixer, you may want to start mixing on low speed.1 cup all-purpose flour, 1 ½ cups old-fashioned rolled oats, 1 ½ cups unsweetened coconut, ½ tsp baking soda, ¼ tsp salt
- Roll dough into balls about 2 tbsp in size and place at least two inches apart on the baking sheet. Flatten dough balls with your hands or the back of a spoon until cookies are about ½ inch in height.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes, until bottoms are just starting to turn golden brown.
- Remove cookies from the oven and let sit on the baking tray for at least 10 minutes to firm up.
These are super delicious and just the perfect amount of sweet. My new favorite cookie
Thank you! Glad you enjoyed them.
Would I be able to substitute canola oil or the like for the butter (and adding a smidge of extra salt)? I don’t usually have butter (vegan or otherwise) on hand.
I haven’t tested with oil. I don’t think so because the butter helps with the binding and texture.
I had to add more moisture to make the dough stick enough to roll and flatten. Otherwise, it was a great recipe. I’m not vegan, but I wanted to make something that folks attending an event could eat, regardless of any dietary needs or concerns regarding gluten and animal products.
Instead of the flax/water mixture, I used 1/4 cup applesauce. The flour was a one-to-one ratio of gluten free flour. When it wasn’t coming together, I added another 1/4 cup of applesauce and about another 1/4 cup of coconut oil (what I chose as my vegan butter). That worked great!
I plan to tweak the recipe a bit to make it more my own, but I am super happy with how they came out for a first try.
Is the vegan butter salted or unsalted?
I used salted vegan butter. If using unsalted, you may want to increase the butter to 1/2 tsp. (I have that note in the ingredient notes in the blog post, so always good to check that!). Thanks.
Can an large egg be used instead of the flax meal/water combo? Thanks
Hi, I would think so but I’m not familiar baking with eggs at all so I can’t say for sure. Let me know if you try it.
These were really good. I hadn’t made anything with coconut in forever, kind of forgot about it! Really good though, the texture is spot on. Thanks for another great recipe!
I love your recipes! In this one the instructions tell me to add orange zest but it’s not on the ingredient list. Is it to be included and if so, how much should I use? Thank you!
Sorry, that’s a mistake! No orange zest.