coconut - One Sweet Appetite

Lemon Coconut Bread

May 11, 2013 by Jesseca · 13 Comments

I really hate to waste any leftover ingredients. Last week I had to enlist the help of several family members to get a can of coconut milk open… when I didn’t end up using the entire thing I just couldn’t let myself pour it down the drain. I covered it up and stuck it in the fridge.

And that got me thinking… what could I make with this milk?

Something not too dense… maybe have a nice summer flavor… like… citrus? Yeah… citrus!

That’s about the time I remembered that my lemon bread has milk that could easily be substituted with the coconut milk. I was sure the two flavors were going to combine into a mouth full of awesomeness!

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Filed Under: Breads, Cake · Tagged With: bread, cake, coconut, lemon

Coconut Blueberry Pancakes

February 10, 2013 by Jesseca · 2 Comments

We are a pancake loving family. If my son had to pick one thing to eat for the rest of his life… it would be pancakes. Pancakes with a lot of butter and absolutely NO syrup.

Weird… I know. Especially for an almost 4 year old.

Taking away they syrup leaves me with a challenge. A lot of the flavor from my previous pancake recipe relied heavily on the syrup for any sweetness. After failed attempts at adapting the ingredients, I decided to ADD to the list.

And that, ladies and gentleman, is how the Coconut Blueberry Pancake was born.

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Filed Under: Breakfast · Tagged With: blueberry, Breakfast, coconut, freezer friendly, pancakes

My love/hate relationship with German Chocolate

June 18, 2012 by Jesseca · Leave a Comment

I love the flavor of coconut.

It’s actually at the top of my favorite frosting recipe flavors. The texture, however, is not my favorite.

Once, while on my honeymoon in Hawaii, my husband insisted that I try the fresh stuff. He swore that it was nothing like the kind you buy in the store, and that I would fall in love. I don’t know what he was thinking because it had the SAME texture at the stuff you buy in the store!

To this day I think he just wanted to see the face I would make when I crunched down on that first bite.

I also have a serious love for caramel.

That is why German Chocolate Cake should be a favorite. It has soooo many of my favorite things inside…

But no… I love to make this cake for others, but just don’t like to eat it. If you are a fan of this gooey cake, you will want to try to make it from scratch! You’ll never get a better tasting coconut topping! {Or so I’ve heard}

German Chocolate Cupcakes
{Cupcake recipe from the Martha Stewart cupcake book, frosting adapted from Epicurious}

1/4 + 1/8 C. Dutch-process cocoa
1/4 + 1/8 C. hot water
1-1/2 C. flour
1/2 t. baking soda
1/2 t. baking powder
3/4 t. salt
1-1/2 sticks of butter
1{heaping} C. sugar
2 eggs, room temp
2 t. vanilla
1/2 C. sour cream, room temp

PREP WORK: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Line your muffin tin with paper liners. Set aside.

MIX IT UP: Whisk together the cocoa and hot water. Set aside. In a medium sized bowl, whisk flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

-Melt the butter and sugar in a medium sauce pan over low heat. Transfer to a mixing bowl & beat for several minutes. {It is VERY important that you beat the butter until it has completely cooled! Otherwise you’ll end up with greasy cupcakes!}

Add the eggs, one at a time, to the butter mixture followed by the vanilla and cocoa mixture. Mix until well incorporated. Mix 1/2 of the dry ingredients, followed by 1/2 of the sour cream. Once the batter looks well mixed, add the remaining dry ingredients & sour cream.

BAKE: Spoon into your prepared muffin tin, and bake for 20 minutes. Rotating half way through cooking. Cool completely.

German Chocolate Frosting

10 ounces sweetened flaked coconut
1-1/4 Cup coarsely chopped pecans
Two 14-ounces cans sweetened condensed milk
1 tablespoon vanilla

PREP WORK: Take your cans of sweetened condensed milk and remove the labels. Place the cans on their side in a large pot, and fully cover with water. Bring to a boil, and boil for two hours. Check on it constantly. The cans need to stay fully submerged with water, so it’s ok to add some if it starts getting low.

Allow to cool before opening!

HEAT THINGS UP: Spread your chopped nuts on a baking sheet. Do the same with the coconut on a separate sheet. Preheat your oven to 325 degrees, and place the coconut on the bottom 1/3 of the oven, and the pecans on the top 1/3. Stir every 5 minutes until the nuts are fragrant, and the coconut is lightly browned.

MIX IT UP: Mix the caramel, coconut, pecans, and vanilla in a large bowl. Spread onto your cupcakes, or cake.

**TIP** If the frosting starts to get too hard, pop it in the microwave for 20 seconds.

I hope that you read through the entire recipe before attempting to make it. It can really be a lot of work. Especially if you aren’t prepared.

But it is so worth the work!

I’m linkin up @: Market Yourself Monday, Making the World Cuter Monday, Show Me How, Lil’ Luna Link Party

Filed Under: Cupcakes · Tagged With: caramel, chocolate, coconut, Cupcakes, German Chocolate, pecans

What’s your favorite summer flavor?

June 13, 2012 by Jesseca · 1 Comment

When I think of summer, the very first flavor that pops to mind is lemon.

The rich yellow color combined with the tangy citrus flavor just makes me feel like I’m outside enjoying a nice sunny day. So when I was trying to come up with a great guest post for I heart naptime in April, Lemon Cupcakes were the first thing that popped into my mind!

But I couldn’t make just any ol’ lemon cupcakes. I needed to give them a little bit of pizzazz. My favorite frosting of all time is a coconut buttercream, and I knew the two flavors would pair well!

Lemon Coconut Cupcakes

For the Cake:
3 cups self rising flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup soft butter
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 heaping tablespoons lemon zest
1 cup milk
2-1/2 tablespoons lemon juice

For the lemon curd filling:
zest of 2 lemons
3/4 cups sugar
1/4 cup butter, room temperature
2 extra-large eggs
1/4 cup lemon juice
pinch of salt

For the frosting:
1 cup unsalted butter
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1/3 cup reduced coconut milk, room temperature
Seeds scraped from 1 split vanilla bean or 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt

REDUCING THE COCONUT MILK: Open one can of milk, and pour it into a medium sized skillet. Heat to a boil, then reduce to low heat. Cook for about 25-30 minutes, or until your milk has reduced to about half. Place in the refrigerator to cool.

THE CUPCAKES: Line two muffin tins with paper liners. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Whisk together your flour and salt in a small bowl. Set aside. In another small bowl, smash together the sugar with your zest.

Cream together your butter, zest, and sugar low for 3 minutes. Scrape the sides of your bowl, and then add the eggs along with the vanilla. Stir in the lemon juice. Alternate between the flour and milk, pouring each into your egg mixture slowly. Scrape the side of the bowl, and give it one last good mix. Divide the batter between you liners, each should be 3/4 full, and bake for 15-20 minutes. Each oven is different, so make sure you keep a close eye on them. The cupcakes are done when they spring back when touched, or a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Place your cupcakes on a cooling rack to cool completely.

THE CURD: In a small bowl, smash together the sugar and zest.

Cream your butter and zested sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer. Add the eggs, one at a time, followed by the lemon juice and salt.

Pour your mixture into a 2 quart saucepan, and heat over medium heat until thickened. (about 10 minutes). Cool in the refrigerator. Adapted from here.

THE FROSTING: Start by creaming together your butter and powdered sugar. Scrape the vanilla bean, or add the vanilla extract, along with the coconut milk, and salt. Whip until your desired consistency has formed. Adapted from here.

LETS WRAP THINGS UP: Using a paring knife, or a large piping tip, remove the center from each cupcake. Fill with the lemon curd, and pipe on your frosting.