Mimi's Organic Eats » Recipes » Cookies » Lemon Curd Coconut Thumbprint Cookies
Lemon Curd Coconut Thumbprint Cookies
Cookies • Naturally Colorful Desserts • No Seed Oils • Gluten Free • High Altitude • Summer | Published August 6, 2022 by Mimi Council
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Buttery coconut shortbread cookies are filled with Homemade Lemon Curd for a light and sweet cookie that just screams summer! Pair these Lemon Curd Coconut Thumbprint Cookies with a cold glass or milk or even a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream.
If you're looking for more thumbprint cookies, check out my The Best Jam Thumbprint Cookie Recipe, Blackberry Lemonade Thumbprints, or my Gluten Free Jam Thumbprints.

Table of Contents
These buttery thumbprint cookies are bursting with coconut flavor and loaded with real coconut. And, they are filled with a sweet and tart homemade Lemon Curd, making them perfect lemon cookies!
If you made my Lemon Curd, then you may be wondering what you can do with it besides put it on toast, waffles, or pancakes. And, making lemon cookies is one of my favorite things to bake. These easy thumbprint cookies combine coconut and lemon for a light and refreshing cookie that's perfect for summer!

Why You'll Love This Recipe
Summery AF: These thumbprint cookies are the epitome of summer! They are light and zesty. The combination of sweet coconut with zesty lemon curd is perfect for a summer dessert. Not to mention these are beautifully colored thanks to the bright yellow, naturally colored, lemon curd!
Buttery & Sweet: These lemon cookies are a coconut shortbread base, so they are buttery and sweet. The addition of coconut in the cookies gives these a great texture, combined with the smooth lemon curd is so delicious! If you're a lemon fan, you will love these!
Make Ahead: Thumbprints are a great make ahead because they are usually made of a shortbread base. You can easily make these ahead of time for a backyard barbecue.

Ingredients
- Butter: I use Organic Valley Salted Butter, as it's a favorite of mine. Just be sure to use a high quality butter that you like. These thumbprint cookies are made up of mostly butter, so the butter really matters!
- Cane Sugar: I use Costco Kirkland Organic Cane Sugar. If you bake often, I highly recommend checking out Costco as they have amazing organic sugar that's budget friendly.
- Coconut Extract: I use Flavorganics Coconut Extract in these cookies.
- Eggs: I use Organic Valley Large Eggs.
- All Purpose Flour: My favorite is Cairnspring Mills Organic All Purpose Flour.
- Coconut: I'm using organic unsweetened fine shredded coconut. Make sure to use a fine shred coconut as these are smaller cookies, so you really want that fine shred so it's easy to ball them and also eat them.
- Lemon Curd: I'm using my Homemade Lemon Curd, but you can also use store bought if you prefer.
Tools Needed
- Scale: Always use a digital food scale for the best results.
- Stand Mixer: I use my stand mixer for ease, but you can also use a hand mixer if you prefer.
- Baking Sheets: You'll need two half sheet pans to bake the cookies.
- Parchment Paper: I always use Kana nontoxic parchment paper as I think cookies bake best with it.
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Step by Step Instructions
Step 1
Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the butter, cane sugar, and coconut extract. Mix on low until combined, then set a timer for 5 minutes and mix until the mixture is light in color and fluffy.
Step 2
Add the egg, and mix until combined. Add the flour and coconut, and mix on low until combined into a smooth dough.
Step 3
Using your hands, form the dough into 30 balls and place on the prepared cookie sheets. Press your thumb into the center to create an indent.
Step 4
Refrigerate the cookie sheets for 25 minutes. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Step 5
Bake for 19 minutes, or until lightly browned on the bottom. (Make sure to check the Notes at the bottom of the recipe for high altitude baking instructions). Immediately after the cookies come out of the oven, use a teaspoon and press it into the center of the indent to make it more prominent. Let cool completely on the cookie sheets. Once cooled, fill each cookie with lemon curd.

Baker's Tips
- Make sure your butter is soft. I like to leave butter out on the counter to soften naturally, and that works really well this time of year when it's so warm out! I use organic salted butter, my favorite being Organic Valley. If you are using unsalted, just be sure to add 1/4 teaspoon of salt to the recipe.
- I use organic coconut extract, my favorite one being from Flavorganics.
- The cookie will puff up a little bit as they are baked with no filling. That's why I use a teaspoon to just press them down right after they come out of the oven. This will allow you to have the largest cavity to fill in with the lemon curd!
- These need to be stored in the fridge, because of the lemon curd. So, be sure to keep them in the fridge so the lemon curd won't sour. You can put them just on a plate or also put them in a tupperware if you want, they will be fine either way. If you are stacking them, be sure to add a layer of parchment paper.

FAQ's
Yes, if you are using unsalted butter you can add ½ teaspoon of salt to the recipe.
If you don't have coconut extract you can replace it with vanilla extract or even almond extract. Both would make this recipe delicious in their own way. You'll still get the coconut flavor from the fine shredded coconut in the cookies!
Yes, if you don't want to make Homemade Lemon Curd for this recipe, you can buy it if you prefer.
These should be stored in the fridge because of the lemon curd.

Craving More?
- Homemade Lemon Curd
- Toasted Coconut Bundt Cake
- Strawberry Lemonade Sandwich Cookies
- The Best Jam Thumbprint Cookie Recipe
- Lemon Ginger Crumb Bars

Lemon Curd Coconut Thumbprint Cookies
Mimi CouncilIngredients
Dough
- 226 grams salted butter (softened)
- 170 grams cane sugar
- 1 teaspoon coconut extract
- 1 large egg
- 350 grams all purpose flour
- 57 grams fine shredded unsweetened coconut
Filling
- 170 grams Lemon Curd
Instructions
- Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the butter, cane sugar, and coconut extract. Mix on low until combined, then set a timer for 5 minutes and mix until the mixture is light in color and fluffy.
- Add the egg, and mix until combined. Add the flour and coconut, and mix on low until combined into a smooth dough.
- Using your hands, form the dough into 30 balls and place on the prepared cookie sheets. Press your thumb into the center to create an indent.
- Refrigerate the cookie sheets for 25 minutes. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Bake for 19 minutes, or until lightly browned on the bottom. Immediately after the cookies come out of the oven, use a teaspoon and press it into the center of the indent to make it more prominent. Let cool completely on the cookie sheets.
- Once cooled, fill each cookie with lemon curd.
- Store in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Notes
Nutrition
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I made the lemon curd coconut thumbprint cookies and everyone loved them. The body of the recipe calls for eggs, but the ingredient list doesn’t mention eggs. I only used one, but thought my dough was a little stiff. How many eggs does the recipe actually require?
hi Erin! So sorry about that typo! You were right though, it is just 1 egg, and I have updated the ingredient list. The dough should be stiff here, as we want it to keep its shape in the oven, so that is correct. If you feel it’s very dry, make sure you are weighing your ingredients as that makes a big difference, and you could accidentally have too much flour or coconut. Also, all eggs are not always equal, you can also weigh those. 1 large egg should weigh 50 grams, if you find you’re under then that could also be why. You can crack 2 eggs in this cake, whisk together to combine, then weigh out 50 grams to get the exact amount (use the extra eggs for breakfast 🙂 Let me know if you have any other questions!