This recipe is from one of my favourite books, A Kitchen Witch’s Cookbook, by Patricia Telesco. I’ve added notes on my own variations to the recipe.
Serendipity Cookies
Crust:
1/2 C. butter
1/4 C. white sugar
1 egg
1/2 tsp. vanilla (for love)
1 1/4 C. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
Topping:
2 eggs, beaten
1 1/4 C. packed brown sugar
1/2 C. shredded coconut
1 C. chopped pecans [I substitute walnuts here, because I dislike pecans. –Morag]
2 Tbsp. flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. nutmeg (for awareness)
1 tsp. vanilla
Powdered sugar. [Optional. — Morag.]
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9 X 13-inch pan. Beat the butter, white sugar, egg, and vanilla in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Mix in the flour and salt. Pat the dough into the pan. Bake for 15 minutes.
To prepare the topping, mix the eggs, brown sugar, coconut, pecans, flour, baking powder, nutmeg, and vanilla in a medium-sized bowl. Spread on the hot crust. Bake 25 minutes. Cool. Dust with powdered sugar. Yield: 32 bars.
Variation: For romance or prosperity, add 1 C. chocolate chips to the topping. [I always do this. Chocolate is life. –Morag.]
Magical attributes: Luck, love, joy, diversity, practicality.
Celebrations: May Day, Summer Solstice, Kamehameha Day, Aloha Week.
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When I lived in Hawaii I made this recipe all the time. It got to the point where I had it memorized. I’d make it for church events a lot.
Serendipity cookies are delicious. I recommend them. And the entire book, actually, because it’s full of other awesome recipes. I once cooked a Christmas dinner entirely with recipes from this book (except the turkey; mom taught me how to cook that).