These are old-fashioned thumbprint cookies with two upgrades: shredded coconut in the dough and all over the outside, and a halved glacé cherry pressed into the middle. The coconut toasts golden at the edges while the cookie underneath stays soft and buttery. A little almond extract gives them that bakery-holiday flavor. They’re my own holiday bake, not a Ramsay recipe, and they take about 20 minutes of hands-on time.
Ingredients
- 1 cup (227 g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3/4 cup (150 g) granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup (50 g) packed light brown sugar
- 1 large egg yolk, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
- 2 1/4 cups (280 g) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 1/2 cups (140 g) sweetened shredded coconut
- 1 cup (90 g) sweetened shredded coconut, for rolling
- 24 red glacé cherries, halved
Why glacé cherries, not fresh
Fresh or frozen cherries leak juice in the oven and leave soggy, pink-stained centers. Glacé (candied) cherries hold their shape and shine. Well-drained maraschino cherry halves are the next best thing. Halving them matters too: whole cherries roll off and overpower the cookie.
Method
- Cream the butter and sugars. Beat the butter with both sugars on medium speed for about 3 minutes, until pale and fluffy. The butter should be soft enough to dent easily; cold butter gives dense, greasy cookies. Beat in the egg yolk, vanilla and almond extract.
- Make the dough. Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt in another bowl. Add it to the butter mixture in two parts, mixing on low just until a soft dough forms. Fold in the 1 1/2 cups of coconut with a spatula.
- Shape and coat. Roll the dough into 1-tablespoon balls. Roll each ball in the remaining coconut, pressing gently so it sticks, and space them 2 inches apart on parchment-lined trays.
- Press in the cherries and chill. Press your thumb deep into the center of each ball; re-roll any that crack badly. Set a cherry half, cut side down, into each dent. Chill the trays for 15 minutes so the cookies hold their round shape in the oven.
- Bake. Heat the oven to 350°F (175°C) while the cookies chill. Bake one tray at a time for 12–14 minutes, until the coconut edges are deep golden but the centers still look pale. Watch the last 3 minutes closely; coconut goes from golden to burnt very quickly. If your oven has convection, turn it off for these.
- Cool. Leave them on the tray for 5 minutes, then move them to a rack to cool completely. The centers finish setting as they cool.
Making them ahead
- Freeze the dough: freeze the coconut-coated balls on a tray before adding the cherries, then bag them for up to 2 months. Add the cherries and bake from frozen, adding 1–2 minutes.
- Freeze baked cookies: layer them with parchment and freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw at room temperature.
- At room temperature: they keep in an airtight tin for up to 5 days.
For a gluten-free version, use a 1:1 gluten-free baking blend and chill the shaped balls for 30 minutes instead of 15, since the dough will be a little softer.
If you like filled cookies, try my Biscoff cookie butter stuffed cookies.
Gordon Ramsay Coconut Cherry Cookies Recipe
Soft, buttery thumbprint cookies rolled in sweet shredded coconut and crowned with glossy red glacé cherries — a festive holiday cookie tray favorite.
20 minutes
14 minutes
50 minutes
24 cookies
Ingredients
Instructions
Chef Tips
- Use truly room-temperature butter so it creams pale and fluffy instead of staying dense and greasy.
- Halve the glacé cherries — whole ones roll off and overwhelm each cookie, while halves nestle snugly into the thumbprint.
- Chill the shaped cookies for 15 minutes before baking so the coconut coating sticks and the cookies keep their round shape.
- Watch the last 3 minutes of baking — shredded coconut goes from toasted gold to burnt fast, and carryover heat finishes the centers.
More cookies and treats
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