Coconut Meringue Cookies (Kokosky)

This is a Czech recipe for coconut cookies, made with only three ingredients. They are wonderfully airy inside and crispy on the outside. In the Czech Republic, we call them Kokosky, and they are one of the most popular Christmas sweets.

You only need three ingredients to bake these coconut cookies: egg whites, granulated sugar, and shredded unsweetened coconut.

The cookie base consists of egg whites and sugar whipped in a hot water bath. This snow-mass is called Swiss meringue, and I'll tell you how to prepare it later in the recipe.

MY TIP: Also try these vanilla crescents, Czech vanilkove rohlicky (they taste fantastic!)

➜ Pronunciation

The Czech name for these petite coconut beauties is "kokosky." To give you an idea of how this word sounds in Czech, I have recorded a short audio clip for you.

➜ Ingredients

To make coconut meringue cookies, you'll need:

• Egg whites; carefully separated from yolks
• Coarse sugar
• Dry/desiccated shredded coconut; unsweetened

Next, get some fat to grease the baking sheet + baking paper, and a tablespoon of flour to dust the baking sheet. I'll write more about how to prepare it correctly in a moment.

✅ You’ll find the exact amount of ingredients below in the recipe card, which you can also print out.

➜ Instructions with Photos

STEP 1: Prepare a water bath for whisking the egg whites: You need two stainless steel pots, one slightly larger than the other. Pour about 1 inch of water into the larger pot. Place the smaller pot in the lower larger pot; the bottom of the upper pot must not touch the water surface. Place both pots on the stove and turn it on to high heat. As soon as the water starts to boil, the rising steam heats the upper pot. Once the pot is hot, turn the heat down to a minimum and let the water just simmering.

STEP 2: Pour the egg whites into the top pot and start whisking with a handheld electric mixer. Whisk slowly at first, then increase the speed. Add the coarse sugar at the same time. Keep an eye on the temperature in the pot, so it's not too high; the egg whites would start to boil. The temperature of the egg whites should be about so that when you put your finger in it, it will be pleasantly warm.

STEP 3: Whisk until the sugar has dissolved and the white meringue mass is set and beautifully glossy.

STEP 4: Remove the top pot with meringue and fold in the shredded coconut. Stir the mixture by hand.

STEP 5: Take the baking paper and prepare the baking sheet: Lightly grease the surface of the baking sheet, especially around the perimeter. Place the paper on top and press it down. The fat base will make the paper stick well. Then grease the paper over the surface, and dust it thinly with flour. The coconut cookies will not stick to the bottom and can be removed from the paper after baking without any problem.

STEP 6: Using two spoons, form the meringue mixture into little snowballs - mounds about 1 and ½ inches in diameter.

STEP 7: Bake the cookies in a preheated oven at 340 °F (170 °C) for 5 minutes. Then turn the temperature down to 266 °F (130 °C) and bake for another 15 minutes until the cookies are lightly golden on top.

➜ Storage

Let the meringue cookies cool down completely. Store them dry and cool in an airtight container with a lid, where they will keep for about 14 days.

The cookies will soften and get even chewier but will still have a nice crunch on the outside.

➜ Useful Tips

• The cooking dish that comes into contact with egg whites (a pot, whisk attachment) must not be greasy. The egg whites would not whip well in that case.
• Egg whites whipped in a water bath over steam are called Swiss meringue. If you want to learn more about this technique, watch this instructional video.
• Don't try to cheat the meringue mass by taking away the sugar. Use about ¼ cup (50 g) of sugar for one egg white to make a firm and fluffy steam-whipped meringue.

More Czech cookies:

• Linzer cookies (linecke cukrovi)
• Masaryk’s cookies (Masarykovo cukroví)
• Pracny (bear paws)
• Coffin cookies (Rakvičky)