May 2, 2024

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pineapple coconut crescent cookies on a plate dusted with powdered sugar.

Pineapple Coconut Crescents – Jo Cooks

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These Pineapple Coconut Crescents are sweet, flaky and buttery little morsels that are the perfect addition to your holiday table. Loaded with chunks of pineapple and coconut flakes, these cookies are a crowd pleaser!

pineapple coconut crescent cookies on a plate dusted with powdered sugar.

Delicious Pineapple Coconut Crescents Recipe

This is a super old recipe that I’ve originally posted over 10 years ago, but it’s one of my favorite cookies that I make every year for the holidays. These pineapple coconut crescent cookies are flaky, butter and just packed with pineapple chunks and coconut flakes.

I love these cookies because they’re really easy to make, I just let my mixer do all the work and then shape them up into crescents and bake. I love to lightly dust these with some powdered sugar for a little extra sweetness and that’s all there is to these delicious cookies.

pineapple coconut crescent cookies on a plate dusted with powdered sugar.
ingredients needed to make pineapple coconut crescents.
  • Butter – Always use unsalted butter to control the amount of added salt. It needs to be at room temperature for this recipe. You can also use shortening as a substitution needed. 
  • Vanilla – Pure vanilla extract is the best choice if you have it on hand.
  • Flour – Simple all-purpose flour is all you need.
  • Salt – An important ingredient that is used to balance the sweetness.
  • Cornstarch – I add a little bit of cornstarch to these cookies to create a crumbly and tender texture.
  • Sugar – You’ll need granulated sugar to sweeten our cookies, plus some powdered sugar to dust our cookies with.
  • Pineapple And Coconut – You’ll need canned crushed pineapple and some coconut flakes.

These cookies are incredibly easy to make, the hardest part is shaping the cookies into crescents. But once you master that, just bake them and enjoy them!

process shots showing how to make pineapple coconut crescents.

To begin, you’ll need to cream the butter, sugar and vanilla together. In order to do this, make sure your butter is softened to room temperature. Then beat everything together using the paddle attachment until the mixture is light and fluffy. You’ll also need to combine the flour with the cornstarch and salt in the bowl of your mixer.

process shots showing how to make pineapple coconut crescents.

Now it’s time to add all the goodies. Add the crushed pineapple and coconut and mix in your mixer until well incorporated. To finish the cookie dough, all you have to do is add the flour mixture to your mixer bowl and beat it until it forms into a dough. The dough should come clean from the sides of the bowl.

process shots showing how to make pineapple coconut crescents.

Form the dough into a ball and wrap it up in plastic wrap. You’ll want to chill the dough for about an hour to solidify the fats in the cookies. You’ll want to do this, to prevent the cookies from spreading as they bake, so patience is key.

Before starting to shape your cookies you’ll want to preheat your oven to 325°F (163°C) so that it’s nice and hot and ready for us to bake our cookies.

process shots showing how to make pineapple coconut crescents.

This is the fun part you can do with kids. Start by dividing the dough in 2 pieces then roll each one into a log. Next cut the log into equal strips, you should get about 30 strips from both pieces.

Now, gently roll out each strip, thinning out the ends a bit and bend into crescents.

process shots showing how to make pineapple coconut crescents.

Place the cookies on baking sheets, making sure they’re about 2 inches apart. You don’t need to grease your baking sheet because there’s lots of butter in the cookies. Transfer the baking sheet to the oven and bake for about 20 minutes or until the edges of the cookies start to brown.

process shots showing how to make pineapple coconut crescents.

Once the cookies are baked, you’ll want to gently transfer them to a cooling rack and allow them to cool until they come to room temperature. Now, if you wish, dust them with some powdered sugar and go ahead and enjoy!

pineapple coconut crescents on a cooling rack dusted with powdered sugar.

Frequently Asked Questions

How Do I Keep My Cookies From Spreading?

The key to keep your cookies from spreading is to chill the cookie dough before shaping it, to solidify the fats. Also, make sure you don’t grease your baking sheet, you want the cookies to grab on to the baking sheet as they bake to keep them from spreading.

How Do I Know When My Shortbread Cookies Are Done?

You’ll know your cookies are done baking when they start to slightly turn brown at the bottom and around the edges, then is the time to remove them from the oven. If you like your cookies crunchier, go ahead and leave them in for a couple more minutes, but don’t forget that cookies continue to cook while on the baking sheet after you take them out of the oven.

pineapple coconut crescent cookies on a plate dusted with powdered sugar.

Storage

Store these cookies plain or decorated in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days or up to 10 days in the refrigerator.

These cookies will last in the freezer for up to 3 months stored in an airtight container. You can thaw them in the refrigerator or at room temperature.

You can also freeze the dough properly wrapped in plastic wrap for up to 3 months.

pineapple coconut crescent cookies on a plate dusted with powdered sugar.

Pineapple Coconut Crescents

Prep 30 minutes

Chilling Time 1 hour

Cook 20 minutes

Total 1 hour 50 minutes

These Pineapple Coconut Crescents are sweet, flaky and buttery little morsels that are the perfect addition to your holiday table. Loaded with chunks of pineapple and coconut flakes, these cookies are a crowd pleaser!

Instructions 

  • In a large bowl, beat the butter, sugar and vanilla until nice and creamy. In another bowl mix flour, cornstarch and salt.

  • Add the pineapple and coconut to the butter mixture and mix until well incorporated over medium to high speed. Gradually add the flour mixture to the butter mixture until well blended.

  • Form the dough into a ball and wrap it up in plastic wrap. You’ll want to chill the dough for about an hour to solidify the fats in the cookies. You’ll want to do this, to prevent the cookies from spreading as they bake, so patience is key.

  • Preheat oven to 325°F (163°C).

  • Start by dividing the dough in 2 pieces then roll each one into a log. Next cut the log into equal strips, you should get about 30 strips from both pieces. Gently roll out each strip, thinning out the ends a bit and bend into crescents.

  • Place the cookies on baking sheets, making sure they’re about 2 inches apart. You don’t need to grease your baking sheet because there’s lots of butter in the cookies. Transfer the baking sheet to the oven and bake for about 20 minutes or until the edges of the cookies start to brown.

  • Gently transfer them to a cooling rack and allow them to cool until they come to room temperature, then dust with powdered sugar, if preferred.

Notes

  1. Bake your cookies on the middle rack of your oven and only one cookie sheet at a time, for even baking.
  2. Traditionally these cookies are very pale in color, you don’t want them golden brown. In order to do this, we have to use a low oven temperature, which is why we bake these cookies at 325°F.
  3. Allow the cookies to cool completely before dusting with powdered sugar.
  4. Store these cookies plain or decorated in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days or up to 10 days in the refrigerator.
  5. These cookies will last in the freezer for up to 3 months stored in an airtight container. You can thaw them in the refrigerator or at room temperature.
  6. You can also freeze the dough properly wrapped in plastic wrap for up to 3 months.

Nutrition Information

Serving: 1cookieCalories: 118kcal (6%)Carbohydrates: 12g (4%)Protein: 1g (2%)Fat: 8g (12%)Saturated Fat: 5g (31%)Cholesterol: 16mg (5%)Sodium: 41mg (2%)Potassium: 27mg (1%)Fiber: 1g (4%)Sugar: 4g (4%)Vitamin A: 191IU (4%)Vitamin C: 1mg (1%)Calcium: 4mgIron: 1mg (6%)

Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.

pineapple coconut crescent cookies on a plate dusted with powdered sugar.

Did You Make This?

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Enjoy!