These oatmeal cookies are chewy and sweet. The flavors of coconut, gumdrops and pecans are blended to perfection.
Great cookie! When cutting up your gumdrops, place them in a bowl and cover with sugar. Then use a pair of scissors to snip them in half. The sugar will stick to the new edge and will keep the drops nice and seperated. Then just strain out the sugar and you are left with perfectly sized gumdrops. Enjoy!
Read MoreForget the gumdrops! I made these twice; once with gumdrops and once without. My family did not care for the gumdrops at all but without the gumdrops the cookies are very good; cookies had a chewy/crunchy texture.
Read MoreGreat cookie! When cutting up your gumdrops, place them in a bowl and cover with sugar. Then use a pair of scissors to snip them in half. The sugar will stick to the new edge and will keep the drops nice and seperated. Then just strain out the sugar and you are left with perfectly sized gumdrops. Enjoy!
These were very tasty... I added more gumdrops than 1 cup, and make sure to get the really spicy ones to give this cookie more kick! I used butter rather than shortening and it worked well. Also, make sure to toast the pecans before adding them in, since that really brings out their flavor. Finally, I'd recommend pre-mixing the nuts, gumpdrops, oatmeal and coconut together before adding these ingredients into the dough... otherwise you have to stir the dough too much in the end and the cookies aren't quite as tender. Tasty cookies!
I loved these cookies. I omit the pecans (just b/c I do not like them). Use baking gums in the cookies, they come in just red,green,orange and yellow. These gumdromps are small so all you have to do is snip them in two with a pair of scissors~very quick! I used margarine instead of shortening and the cookies came out fine. Also I flatten them slightly with a spatula just as they come out of the oven, while still on the bakingn sheet, I find this makes them chewier (is that even a word?)then I remove them to cool as directed. Exactly as I remember from childhood~thanks for sharing an excellent recipe.
Awesome base recipe! The recipe called for shortening as an ingredient, but butter in the directions - so I used half of each. I used chopped gumdrop orange slices in this that I had bought for another project and didn't end up using. I'm not a huge gumdrop fan, but they're good in this. I will probably use the recipe over and over with different additions, though, replacing the gumdrops with dried fruit or another candy. The base cookie is excellent, crispy and chewy, perfectly sweet. Thanks!!!
I make these every year for Christmas. At first, I was hesitant to use all shortening instead of butter, but I decided to follow the recipe exactly. The cookies came out awesome! The only mistake I made was to be a little too generous with the oatmeal, coconut, pecans, and gumdrops; there was barely enough dough to hold everything together! But now I just add scant cups of these things and the cookies are still loaded! EXREMELY TASTY!
These are great cookies. My family fought over them. My daughter took some to her Christmas party and they were the hit of the party. I used red and green spiced gumdrops. The only thing I would do different next time is chop the gumdrops smaller (I chopped them in half).
This recipe has been number one with me for years. I am so excited to find it on here. My gramma made these when I was a child, and I lost her recipe. I would call them Christmas light cookies, and hold them to the light. They are chewy from the gum drops, yet crispy, and the coconut adds sweetness these are a wonderful addition to a Christmas tradition. This is a top notch cookie. Bake with confidence and enjoy! mmm is all I can say!
These are so good .They are chewy and very tasty. I omitted the pecans which didn't effect the recipe at all. Definetly to be recommended.
Butter flavored shortening works best. My family has been making these for 30 years, but have never added nuts (kids prefer without!). We always at least double the amount of gumdrops it calls for. Cut the gumdrops into quarters using kitchen scissors dipped in water, then toss the cut pieces into granulated sugar to re-coat. Be sure to weed out the black gumdrops! These are very festive and a must-have for Christmas!
I was a little worried at first because the cookie mixture seemed a little dry, but if you lightly bake them they come out moist and chewy. They do no spread in the pan much at all, which is nice. I followed the recipe exactly, but after the first batch came out of the oven (not as pretty as i would have liked) I decided to top each dough ball with two (cut up) peices of gumdrops. I pressed the candy gently into the cookie so it made a nice presentation but would not fall off after baking.Very pretty!!! Oh and the cookies taste amazing! If I make them again I will add some vanilla and maybe a T of milk to moisten them up a bit.
These are even better with a few tweaks...I prefer to use butter over shortening and then also add a tsp. of grated orange zest...also I roll them into a log, refrigerate overnight and then slice and bake the following day.
The unique combo of ingredients caught my eye, and since I love my Mom's special gumdrop bread and coconut I thought this recipe would be a hit. And it is! The cookies baked up nice and crisp on the outside and chewy in the center with abundant flavor in every bite. These will be added to my "must bake" Christmas list from now on!
Excellent! My mom was trying to find an "old" gumdrop recipe she use to make when i was a child - a long time ago. This tastes just like it!
These tastd good, but I had a hard time getting the batter to stick together and really had to work with it by hand to make these. I made them for Christmas, so I used red and green spice gumdrops, which were a good contrast with the sweet coconut.
These cookies are delicious! I used dark brown sugar, lessened the baking powder and soda to 3/4 teaspoon each, left out the salt (my husband has to restrict his sodium), and added 1/2 teaspoon coconut flavoring. I used crystallized ginger instead of gumdrops, and cut it up into tiny pieces, using about 1/2 cup. The ginger really compliments the coconut and pecans. Excellent cookies!
My mom made these for years. Now I do. When cutting gumdrops dip scissors in warm water so no sticking.
Really nice cookies. The butter/shortening confused me. I used shortening and 2 tbsp of water in my second batch and they came out better
They Will spread some on the pan - but they won't last long once they're off. Fruit slice gumdrops make em Extra Wonderful.
These were fun, and very good. I used jelly beans instead of gumdrops, but I'll try it with gumdrops instead. They were a tad crunchy when all was said and done, but I put them all in a plastic bag to freeze and after a day in the bag they are softer but still taste good. I so goofed and forgot the coconut, but I didn't realize it until just now when I went to review them and they came up as coconut gumdrop cookies. Oops! I'll try them again with gumdrops AND coconut next time. Thanks for the recipe!
These were yummy. I didn't have any pecans on hand, so I omitted them. I used chopped-up lemon "fruit slices." I chilled the dough a bit & skipped the fork & just flattened the dough balls a bit w/my palm. If you're like me & obsess a bit about ingredient distribution, I'd suggest chopping your gumdrops pretty small.
YUMMY!!! I substituted cherry flavored craisins for the gumdrops (personal preference). Also, per another suggestion, I used butter flavored shortening. Turned our perfect!
Very good! Careful not to be too generous with the nuts or the dough will fall apart!
One of the most delicious, colorful, and fun recipes to make. My children love it and so do I!! Reminds me of a childhood recipe. The ingredients mellow out the gumdrops so even if you don't like the lime or lemon ones they are still delicious!! AAA++++
My family's new favorite cookie! I used spiced gum drops and omitted the nuts. Will definately be making these again and again!!
Used small baking gums snipped in half, no pecans, added half cup dried currants. Dropped from tsp and didn't flatten with fork. Made perfect little cookies. Easy and quick.
GREAT COOKIES FOR CHRISTMAS I SKIP THE COCONUT THOUGH
This recipe is just like my mother’s. The time to cook is much less. Start watching the cookies at 9-10 minutes. Very yummy!
Made these this AM, they are gorgeous. Gumdrops are hard to find in UK (american hard gums) BUT had some in cupboard and made these. Don't feel guilty about eating them, cos you get a work out mixing all the ingredients together..nice and chewy, even cold they don't go hard, but stay lovely and soft.
These cookies practically have all the food groups! Superb!!!! The only thing that would have made them better for me is if my Sister baked them. They would have erected a monument in her honor for worlds best baker if she had whipped these up! Absolutely delectable!!!
Good recipe, I made with all butter so it spread nicely... Next time, I'm going to try skipping the flattening step. I also like them with just the pecans and coconut... The gum drops, though pretty, didn't enhance the flavor for me
I made these with my kids, adding in a few extras, they loved them. Actually we all loved them.
Forget the gumdrops! I made these twice; once with gumdrops and once without. My family did not care for the gumdrops at all but without the gumdrops the cookies are very good; cookies had a chewy/crunchy texture.
These are a family tradition for almost 60 years. My mom made them every year before her passing and now I make them for the family. The only difference is that we use Spice Drops and add the rind from an orange. Whenever someone peels an orange around me the aroma reminds me of my mom and Christmas. Sweet memories.
I love these cookies! I do use butter instead of shortening, and I don't bother to cut up the gum drops just throw them in whole, also I really prefer black walnuts to pecans but whatever works for you. Fantastic goodies!
I left out the gum drops this time. They turned out fantastic and were a hit with my coworkers.
I actually had this recipe handed down to me by my mother- in- law who got it from her mother- in -law. I needed clarification on some of the instructions so I Googled it and was pleasantly surprised to find it on here. The only difference in the two recipes is that her's calls for butter instead of shortening and no pecans. I use orange slice candies instead of gumdrops because my family doesn't care for gumdrops. The orange flavor is really nice with the coconut. After I cut the candies into small pieces with kitchen scissors, I dust them with confectioner's sugar to keep them from sticking together. This helps them incorporate more evenly into the dough. In the past I used sweetened coconut but most recently only had unsweetened and I liked the unsweetened coconut version more. They are almost too sweet when made with the sweetend coconut. I drop them on the cookie sheet with a 1" dough scoop and they come out perfectly...slightly crisp on the edges and chewy in the center. I don't flatten them at all. I do notice that they need to sit for a minute or two after coming out of the oven to firm up. I then transfer to a cooling rack. Stored in Tupperware, they stay moist and chewy. These were my husband's favorite cookies as a child. His mother and grandmother are no longer alive to make them for him so it brings me pleasure to make him a big batch on his birthday and at Christmas time. These are definitely a family favorite and will surely be passed down
I just made a batch. So delicious. Can't wait for the kids to get home from school and try them!
Really good cookies - my husband said it is one of the best I ever made. The only thing I omitted was the nuts. Next time I think I would substitute the gumdrops with chocolate chips just for a change although I did think the gumdrops were really good too. Janice
This is one of the best cookie recipes I have ever made. I was searching for a recipe with the ingredients coconut, pecans and oatmeal and this recipe was on the list. I didn't have gum drops so I used chopped up dried apricots. I have never purchased gum drops before but I am going to so that I can make this recipe as written. Yum.
Really good cookies - my husband said it is one of the best I ever made. The only thing I omitted was the nuts. Next time I think I would substitute the gumdrops with chocolate chips just for a change although I did think the gumdrops were really good too. Janice
A Keeper For Sure! I was looking for something crispy and chewy, and these turned out just perfect. I made a couple of changes - used 1/2 butter, 1/2 shortening - I didn't use gumdrops because I didn't have any. I chose not to use any nuts. I was worried about the lack of flavour since I wasn't using gumdrops, so I added zest from an orange and squeezed some juice of the orange in. They turned out delicious. Be careful not to cook them too much, or I imagine they might get too crunchy and loose their chewiness. Also, they seem to need a good minute to set before you remove them from the cookie sheet. I used wax paper and then lifted it off the sheet .
