Coconut Cranberry Chews

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups Challenge Butter, at room temperature (3/4 pound)
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 tablespoon grated orange peel
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 large egg
• 3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups dried cranberries
• 1 1/2 cups sweetened flaked dried coconut
  

Instructions

1. In a large bowl, with a mixer on medium speed, beat 1 1/2 cups butter, sugar, orange peel and vanilla extract until smooth. Beat in egg until well blended.
2. In a medium bowl, mix flour, baking powder and salt. Add to butter mixture, stir to mix, then beat on low speed until dough comes together, about 5 minutes. The mixture may look dry until it comes together as a dough. If its too crumbly to form into balls, the dough need to be mixed longer; it should be a smooth homogeneous mass.
3. Mix in cranberries and coconut.
4. Shape dough into 1-inch balls and place about 2 inches apart on buttered 12 x 15-inch baking sheets.
5. Bake in a 350 degrees F regular or convection oven until cookie edges just begin to brown, 11 to 15 minutes (shorter baking time will yield a chewier cookie; longer baking time will yield a crispier cookie). If baking two sheets at once in one oven, switch their positions halfway through baking.
6. Let cookies cool on sheets for 5 minutes, then use a wide spatula to transfer to racks to cool completely.

Recipe and photo credit: Challenge Dairy