White Chocolate Coconut Cookies

When my son asked me if we could bake cookies, I pretended not hear him as I lay in bed. "Mom, Mom wake up! Can we make cookies, please?"

Jetlagged from flying home from Asia, my physical body was present in Seattle but my internal sleep cycle was still somewhere over the Pacific Ocean. Uh, okay. Maybe in a little bit after I wake up? I tell him this in the most unenthusiastic way possible, hoping that maybe he would give me a pass for the day. 

"Sure, when should I come back and wake you up?" he says in the most hopeful yet matter of fact way. 

There was no way of getting out of this. Both he and I knew it. I had been gone for ten days and to him that was seven or eight days too long to go without homemade cookies. One of the primary reasons I cook and bake for my family is so they will grow and appreciate homemade meals and specialty treats. When I bake cookies with Eli, it isn't so much about getting to eat cookies as much as it is about spending time together and enjoying the process of creating something delicious from start to finish. 

Today I have a fantastic Spring-inspired White Chocolate Coconut Cookie recipe for you. Studded with white chocolate chips, this cookie is slightly crisp on the outside and soft in the inside. Complimented by sweetened shredded coconut, this cookie also has a subtle flavor of orange to it. By adding orange zest to the dough it enhances the overall flavor of the cookie without overpowering it nor does it try to compete with the white chocolate and coconut. Instead it adds just a little bit of something special to it that sets this cookie apart from similar types of cookies. For the record, I did get up and out of bed and baked these cookies with Eli. My sleep cycle is still over the Pacific Ocean but my heart is very much with my son.