Pineapple Drop Cookies

These aren’t your standard butter cookies. Crushed pineapple folded into the dough gives them a soft, cakey texture and a subtle tropical sweetness that sets them apart from the usual cookie jar lineup. They’re small (dropped by the half teaspoon), so they bake up into tender little bites.

The dough is straightforward: cream the butter and sugar, beat in an egg, then fold in drained crushed pineapple along with the sifted flour, baking soda, baking powder, and chopped nuts. The pineapple adds moisture, so these cookies stay soft longer than drier drop cookies.

Drain the pineapple well. This matters more than you’d think. Excess juice makes the dough too wet, and the cookies will spread too thin and come out flat and greasy instead of puffy and soft. Press the crushed pineapple in a fine mesh strainer to squeeze out as much liquid as possible.

Drop them small. Half a teaspoon of dough per cookie means you get a lot of cookies from this batch, and the small size ensures they bake evenly and quickly. Watch them closely since the sugar and pineapple juice can cause the bottoms to brown fast.

Pro Tips

• Line your baking sheet with parchment paper. The sugar in the pineapple makes these stick more than average cookies.
• Use pecans or walnuts for the best flavor match with pineapple. Macadamia nuts also work if you want to lean into the tropical angle.
• Cool completely on a wire rack before stacking. They’re delicate while warm and firm up as they cool.

Variations

• Coconut pineapple cookies: Add ¼ cup shredded coconut to the dough for a more tropical flavor.
• Glazed version: Drizzle cooled cookies with a simple glaze made from powdered sugar and a splash of pineapple juice.