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Soft, thick, and chewy Levain Bakery Caramel Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies made with rich caramel, sweet coconut flakes, and semi-sweet chocolate chips. Here are all of the secrets for making caramel coconut chocolate chip cookies at home.
Oh, you know how much I love Levain Bakery cookies. As soon as they release a brand new seasonal cookie flavor, I receive so many messages requesting the copycat recipe.
I get to my test kitchen as quickly as possible to start creating the recipe for you! When I was recently in New York City and Washington DC, I was analyzing and studying every aspect of the cookie.
Some cookies are good. And then there are Levain Bakery cookies, which occupy an entirely different category. If you’ve never had one, imagine a cookie that’s three times the size of a normal one, golden and slightly crispy on the outside, soft and almost underbaked in the center, and so packed with coconut, chocolate, and gooey caramel that every bite is different from the last. These Caramel Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies are a copycat of one of Levain’s most iconic flavors, and once you try them, you’ll understand why people fly to New York just for a bag of cookies.
Levain Bakery just released its new Spring cookie flavor and it is insanely good. As soon as I saw that it was a Caramel Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookie, I rushed to the store to pick up the ingredients. That is one heavenly combo! All of my recipe testers went crazy over these cookies, and I couldn’t wait another minute to get this recipe out to you.
These Carmel Coconut Chocolate Cookies are perfectly soft, thick, and chewy with bits of soft caramel, sweet and chewy coconut, and decadent chocolate throughout the cookie.
You can find more Levain Bakery copycat cookie recipes below. I have knocked off every single of their cookies and the very first recipe I ever posted was my recipe for Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Cookies.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Bakery-thick texture at home. The combination of cold butter and two types of flour gives these cookies that signature Levain height and chew that you just can’t get from a standard cookie recipe.
- Gooey caramel in every bite. Soft caramel pieces (Werther’s or Kraft work great) melt into the dough as they bake, creating little pockets of warm, buttery caramel throughout the cookie.
- The coconut makes them next-level. Sweetened flaked coconut adds a subtle chewiness and tropical sweetness that balances out the rich chocolate and caramel perfectly.
- No chilling required. Unlike many thick cookie recipes, this dough uses cold butter as the structural foundation, so you can go from mixing bowl to oven without waiting for the dough to chill.
- They stay soft for days. The cake flour and cornstarch keep these cookies soft and tender long after they come out of the oven — if they last that long.
- Seriously impressive. These cookies look and taste like they came from a bakery. They’re the kind of thing you bring to a party and suddenly everyone wants the recipe.
Ingredients
If you are familiar with my Levain Bakery Cookie recipes, you know they are unique and different. A few ingredients tweaks, oven temp, and a few tips and tricks make all of the difference.
- Butter — use cold butter cut into cubes. This helps the cookies keep their shape while baking and allows you to skip the chilling step.
- Brown Sugar — makes the cookies extra chewy.
- Sugar — gives the cookies crispy edges and helps to brown the cookies.
- Eggs — use large eggs in this recipe.
- Vanilla Extract — this is an optional ingredient as Levain Bakery doesn’t use vanilla in their recipes. I do like the flavor it adds to the cookie dough.
- All-Purpose Flour — I love to use a mix of all-purpose flour and cake flour. If you don’t have cake flour, you can use only all-purpose flour in this recipe.
- Cake Flour — helps to create a soft, tender texture in the cookies.
- Cornstarch — helps to thicken the cookies while still keeping them soft. Cornstarch helps to keep the cookies softer for longer.
- Baking Soda — helps the cookies to rise once they hit the oven.
- Salt — is a flavor enhancer and a must in all baked goods.
- Sweetened Coconut Flakes — use soft, sweetened coconut flakes, like Baker’s coconut in this recipe.
- Soft Caramels — use soft caramels cut into pieces or caramel bits.
- Chocolate Chips — I suggest using semi-sweet chocolate chips but you can use milk chocolate or dark chocolate too.
See the recipe card at the bottom of the post for quantities.
Instructions
- Start by creaming together cubed butter, brown sugar, and sugar for 4 minutes or until light and fluffy. Scrape the sides of the bowl with a spatula.
- Add eggs and vanilla and mix for 1 minute longer.
- Stir in all-purpose flour, cake flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt, just until combined.
- Fold in coconut and chocolate chips.
- Weigh the cookie dough into 6-ounce balls.
- Cut the soft caramel into small pieces.
- Place the cookie dough balls on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. I suggest using a light colored baking sheet.
- Place the caramel pieces in the center of the cookie dough ball. It is important to keep the caramels in the center of the cookie or they will spread on the sides of the cookie and stick to the pan.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes or until a light golden color. Remove from the oven and let set up for 10-15 minutes before removing from the pan.
Substitutions
What if I don’t have cake flour?
If you don’t have cake flour, you can use 3 cups of all-purpose flour.
What types of caramels should I use in this recipe?
I used the Werther’s Originals SOFT CHEWY caramels. Don’t use hard caramels in this cookie recipe. You can also use Kraft caramels or caramel bits.
Baking Tips:
- Don’t skip the cold butter. This is the single most important thing about this recipe. Cold butter is what keeps these cookies from spreading flat. If your butter warms up too much while you’re mixing, put the dough in the refrigerator for 10–15 minutes before baking.
- Use a light-colored cookie sheet. Dark pans absorb more heat and can cause the bottoms of your cookies to overbake or burn before the centers have a chance to set. A light-colored, shiny aluminum baking sheet reflects heat more evenly and gives you a much better bake — especially important at the high 410°F temperature this recipe calls for.
- Try a higher oven rack. Placing your cookie sheet on a higher rack moves the cookies closer to the top heating element and away from the direct bottom heat, which helps the tops and centers bake more evenly without over-browning the bottoms. This is a great trick if you find your cookie bottoms are getting too dark before the centers are done.
- Use a kitchen scale for portioning if you have one. Weighing the dough balls ensures consistent sizing and even baking. Aim for 5–6 ounces per cookie.
- Keep them rough on top. Resist the urge to roll the dough into perfect smooth balls. A rough, craggy top creates those beautiful golden peaks and gives the cookies that bakery-style rustic look.
- Don’t overbake. Pull the cookies out when they still look slightly underdone in the center — glossy and soft-looking. They’ll continue cooking on the hot pan for several minutes after you remove them from the oven, and the center will set up perfectly as they cool.
- The high oven temperature matters. Baking at 400-410°F (rather than the standard 350°F) sets the edges and outside quickly while keeping the interior soft and gooey. Don’t lower the temperature — it changes the texture.
- Cut the caramels small. Larger caramel pieces can create very large pockets of caramel that bubble out and burn at the edges. Cut each caramel into at least 4–6 small pieces for better distribution and cleaner results.
- Bake one sheet at a time in the center rack of your oven for the most even bake. If you bake two sheets at once, rotate them halfway through.
- Let them rest. These cookies are very soft and almost undone-looking fresh out of the oven. Give them a full 10 minutes on the pan before moving them — they need that time to firm up enough to hold together.
Storage
These Caramel Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies store very well. I suggest keeping it in an airtight container. The cookies will stay fresh for a few days.
If you would like to freeze these cookies, place them in a Ziploc freezer-safe bag.
More Levain Bakery Cookie Recipes:
Here is a collection of 15 Levain Bakery copycat cookie recipes…
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Levain Bakery Caramel Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup Unsalted Butter (cold, cut into cubes)
- 1 cup Brown Sugar (packed)
- 1/2 cup Sugar
- 2 large Eggs
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract (optional)
- 1 1/2 cups All-Purpose Flour
- 1 1/2 cups Cake Flour *
- 1 teaspoon Cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 1 1/2 cups Sweetened Flaked Coconut
- 2 cups Semi-sweet Chocolate Chips
- 16 Soft Caramels (Werther's or Kraft, cut into small pieces)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter, brown sugar, and sugar for 4 minutes or until light and fluffy. Scrape the sides of the bowl.
- Add eggs and vanilla and mix for 1 minute longer.
- Stir in all-purpose flour, cake flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt.
- Fold in coconut and chocolate chips.
- Roll the dough into 6-ounce large balls. Place on a parchment paper lined light colored baking sheet.
- Cut the caramels into small pieces. Place the caramels in and around the center of the cookie. This is important so the caramel doesn't get close to the outside of the cookie which may result in the caramel sticking to the pan.
- Space the cookies apart with only 4 or 5 on each baking sheet. Bake for 8 1/2 – 10 minutes or until a light golden color.
- Remove from the oven and allow the cookies to set up for about 10-15 minutes before removing from the pan.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
They are so simple and so delicious.
Recipe calls for a 6oz cookie but that was WAY too big for us so we did 3oz cookies (still monster cookies in my opinion), 2oz would also be a good size. I kept the oven at 400 and baked for about 10 and they were still soft and chewy on the inside and golden on the outside.
My only other note is abou the coconut. I found this was right amount of coconut for a non-coconut lover, but if you love coconut you may want to add a bit more.
These are my favorite cookies! INCREDIBLE.
I have made these twice, and both times people swoon over them! These are sophisticated, high end, out of this world cookies like no other I have ever baked. I learned from the first time making them that the cold butter should be cut quite small or shredded so it is easier to mix, and it took me longer than 4 minutes with my hand mixer to get the butter/sugar light and fluffy.
Second time making we split the batch and made half with white choc chips, and only used 1/2 cup. Those were phenomenal—the cookie flavor itself with the coconut and caramel and then a touch of white chocolate, oh my gosh. But I am here to say: The original recipe as it is, is perfection. My husband is a crunchy cookie fan, and he raved about these and could not get enough, warming in the microwave and adding ice cream on the side (he knows how to take it to the next level lol). I will add the only tweak I made to the recipe was size. I made 3oz cookies bc there are 4 of us to share with. The 3 oz were plenty large enough and I even made a few 2oz toward the end and those were nice too. At some point I want to make some 6oz bc I think that would be so cool, esp if I’m gifting these—which I 100% will be in the future. These are amazing, Melissa! Thank you for another outstanding recipe!
P.S. This marks the 5th year my daughter and I have been baking with your recipes. Our first was your coconut cake for my husband’s birthday, when she was 17. When have been baking together ever since, and your site is our go to. She bakes when she is away at University, and her friends often request her desserts. She is home now for the summer and we are planning to bake at least one recipe a week. So we will be trying some new recipes soon. Thank you for all you do!
Thank you for this excellent recipe. I made them for a group this week, with a couple modifications. I left out the caramel since I thought it would just be cloyingly sweet. I know it’s an integral part of a “caramel, coconut, chocolate chip” cookie, and I’ll use it in the future for a younger crowd. I also sub’d dark chocolate chips. After reading a different comment who said she used 3 oz. balls of dough for each cookie, I made them even smaller: 2 oz. Even at that, they were substantial cookies. They are so very good, especially when just a bit warm. Please, please, please use weights in your recipes. I had to do my own conversions.
Could I substitute some of the sugar for coconut sugar?
I found this recipe after seeing a Insider short on YouTube re: these cookies. In it, the founders of Levain say they use unsweetened coconut. Either way, I can’t wait to try them!
These will forever be some of my favorite flavors, especially in this cookie. They’re incredible!
Made these today and they are very yummy! I only make them 3 ounces because to me that’s the perfect size cookie! Most definitely going to make them again! Nice to throw them in the freezer and pull one (or two, let’s be honest!) out at night and eat them as I read the news in bed! HaaHaa!
When you say place the caramels in and around the center of the cookie do you mean press them into the top of the ball of dough? Or put them in the middle of the ball of dough?
Hi Stacy! Great question. There’s not really a wrong answer! You can place the caramel on top or put it in the middle of the dough. I personally think that the cookies look better when I put the caramel in the middle of the cookie. I also have found that sometimes the caramel can get a little crunchy or overcook when on the outside of the cookie. Hope that this helps! Happy baking!
You are the LEVAIN QUEEN!!!!
Do you think I could use toasted coconut in this recipe?
Hi! Love these. Wondering if you have an suggestions for baking as one skillet cookie? I think the dough will be fine as is but I’m unsure what to temp and time I should bake for.
Melissa, your Levain recipes are the only ones I follow. This latest one looks like a winner. Thanks so much for sharing.