I’ve been in quite the baking mood recently. As some of you may have noticed, I tend to use coconut products in my baking (when I can). I love finding healthy alternatives to ingredients or just mixing things up a bit. I found a recipe on Taste Of Home called Coconut Loaf and I just knew, I had to try it. It had the name Coconut Loaf but the only coconut ingredient was the flaked coconut. I turned it up a notch or two and added more coconut loveliness. Now I can really call it Coconut Loaf!
In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugars until well combined
Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition
In a medium bowl, add all-purpose flour, coconut flour, baking powder and salt Combine with a whisk
Add flour mixture alternately with the coconut milk
Pour combined mixture evenly into three greased mini loaf pans
Bake for 35 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean
Notes
This recipe makes 3 mini loaves or one standard loaf pan baking for an hour
3.2.1199
This bread was fragrant, sweet, crumbly and dense. Having something like this every now and again should be mandatory. I decreased the amount of shredded coconut from the original recipe. I figured since I was using coconut sugar, coconut flour as well as coconut milk…holding back seemed like a good idea.
Coconut Loaf Slices
I baked three of these loaves and was able to give 2 away. One young lady that I gave a loaf to, ate almost half of it in one go. These loaves are fairly small so I guess it can be a single serving….
Mini Coconut Loaf
This is certainly a good treat for coconut lovers. Enjoy!
Welcome to the first #SundaySupper of 2013! I’m so grateful when I am able to participate and I’m more than happy to jump right on in at the start of the new year. Today’s theme is Whats on your recipe bucket list? My recipe bucket list is quite long. There were a few things I wanted to start off with but then I remembered that I promised myself that I’d make Blue Drawers. It’s a very simple sweet pudding that has been around for decades in Jamaica. I only knew about it as an adult and was surprised to know that some of my friends have only heard about it, but have never had it. I guess its something that our grandmothers would make. I’m no grandma, but I love exploring my heritage and learning about the food from the land of my birth. So let’s go!
Please check out all the exciting recipes that the #SundaySupper family have to share. I’m looking forward to seeing the dishes that we are all making for the very first time! I’ll consider this the post to kick off my bucket list recipes.
Blue Drawers (you might also see it as Blue Draws) has a few aliases … Tie-A-Leaf, Duckoono/Dokunnu and Boyo. It is originally a West African dish (Dokunu) that was traditionally made with plantains, but modern versions are made with cornmeal, sweet potato, green banana, cassava, or a combination of your preference. Blue Drawers is essentially a boiled pudding that is considered a treat because it is sweet as opposed to savory. Along with the selection of ingredients mentioned previously, grated coconut is always added. Consider this a mandatory ingredient. What really got me interested in making Blue Drawers, was that each portion is boiled in a banana leaf secured with thin strip of banana bark. Something about it just seems so rustic, and pure. I love that in Jamaica, it is pretty much still prepared that way. I always wondered about how this pudding ended up with the name “Blue Drawers”. Well, according to the National Library of Jamaica, it was given the nickname Blue Drawers because the banana leaves apparently have a blue hue once they are cooked. Well. Okay then! Who knew?
The fact that I did not have banana leaves did not stop me from preparing this pudding. I used the alternative…foil! It doesn’t look as rustic and earthy but it’s what I have access to. And it worked just great. I also added my very own special touch to this Jamaican treat ~ a simple coconut glaze with a hint of citrus to break up that coconut essence just a little bit.
In a medium bowl, combine cornmeal, mixed spice, shredded coconut and raisins
In a small bowl, add coconut milk, sugar and vanilla. Mix to combine
Add the coconut milk mixture to the cornmeal mixture and mix with a spoon until combined
Prepare 12 sheets of foil, 12" X 8"
Using a standard ice-cream scoop, place a scoop of batter into the center of the foil sheets, and fold the foil around each scoop to form parcels
Place the parcels in pot enough boiling water to cover them completely
Cook on medium high heat for about an hour
Remove each parcel with tongs and place on a bowl.
Carefully unwrap each parcel over a few sheets of paper towels as some water may drip out
For the glaze: In a small bowl, add coconut milk, and confectioners sugar. Whisk until well combined and smooth. Add orange extract and combine.
Add glaze on top of each pudding once cooled
3.1.09
I took this photograph in August for 2012 while I was visiting Jamaica during the Jamaica 50 celebrations (Jamaica celebrated its 50th year of independence). I only knew of Blue Drawers by name. I had not had it at this point. Then a friend of mine gave me some that his mother had made. I knew that even if it was just once, I would make Blue Drawers. So keep in mind that this is how they would have been presented if I had banana leaves.
Jamaican Blue Drawers
In terms of the main ingredient, I did make a very slight change. I used golden raisins instead of regular raisins.
Golden Raisins
I combined the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients to make a moist batter.
Combining ingredients to make Blue Drawers
Combining the batter was easy, and so was the parcel preparation. There was no particular way in which to fold the parcels, so I just made them the best I could. Utilizing the scoop ensured that each pudding would be identical in size. I got exactly 12 scoops using this recipe. I made my parcels fairly small. I cut the ingredients in half in order to keep the servings small.
Jamaican Blue Drawers – Preparing the parcels for boiling
Cooled Blue Drawers
Jamaican Blue Drawers
I think adding the glaze gave it a modern touch. I enjoyed it with the glaze. The orange essence is very subtle.
Jamaican Blue Drawers with an Orange Coconut Glaze
I hope you enjoyed this item from my bucket list. Whats next on your recipe bucket list?
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Recently, I’ve developed this fascination with coconut products that are out there. There are a lot of course, jumping on the coconut health food band-wagon. The use of coconut and its by-products has been well established in the Caribbean. I have only been using Coconut Oil and Coconut Milk for the past few months due to my growing interest in all things “natural” and healthy. Recently, I attended the Good Food Festival in Toronto and found the best thing I’ve ever tasted!! Okay, perhaps I’m going a tad bit over board. But I can honestly say I love what I found. I had no idea that it existed.
Have you ever heard of Coconut Jam? If you are familiar – kudos to you. If you are like me, and this is a new phenomenon to you… welcome! From the moment I tasted the samples at the booth, I knew I found something really cool. It comes in a few flavours – plain, vanilla and mango. The difference was really subtle between them, but I went with the mango. I’ve had it on toast and english muffins, but I wanted to do something extra special so I adapted a basic muffin recipe and created my very own Coconut Jam Muffin. I should actually call it Triple Coconut – Jam Muffins because I used some Coconut Flour. And some Coconut Milk too. This is my first time cooking with coconut flour as well as the coconut jam. It came out very well. Certified AWESOME. I need to contact the company and secure some more of this good stuff. I’m hooked!
A coconut infused muffin with coconut jam in the centre
Author: Lyn of The Lovely Pantry
Recipe type: Muffin
Ingredients
1½ Cups All Purpose Flour, Unbleached
½ Cup Coconut Flour
1 Tbsp Baking Powder
⅛ Tsp Salt
¾ Cup Superfine Sugar
2 Large Eggs
1 Cup Light Coconut Milk
6 Tbsp Melted, cooled unsalted butter
1 Tsp Vanilla Extract
4 Tbsp Coconut Jam
2 Tbsp Turbinado Sugar (Raw Sugar)
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 400F
Grease a 12 cup muffin pan or line with paper liners
Sift flour, baking powder and salt into a large bowl
Stir in the coconut flour and superfine sugar
In a medium bowl, lightly beat the eggs. Beat in the coconut milk, butter and vanilla extract
In the bowl with the flours, make a well and pour in the liquid ingredients. Stir gently to combine and take care not to over mix
In either the muffin liners, or greased muffin cup, fill each cup half way. Add about a teaspoon of jam into the centre of the batter of each cup.
Fill each cup with the remaining batter to cover the jam.
Sprinkle the batter with some Turbinado sugar
Bake for about 20 minutes until muffins are golden brown and firm to the touch
Notes
Adapted from the book "100 Muffins from 1 Easy Recipe"
2.2.6
I need to contact these people. We need to be friends. VERY good friends.
Coconut Jam with Mango
I used some teaspoons to drop a small amount into the batter. I like that a little goes a long way. This jam smells so good. The kids loved it too – on toast, on crackers, in a sandwich and in muffins!
Teaspoon of Coconut Jam
I placed a dab of jam in the centre of the batter… just like this…
Coconut Jam in half a muffin cup of Coconut Muffin Batter
Then I covered it with more batter, then sprinkled it with my topping of preference if I am not using a streusel ~ Raw Sugar! I love that little crunch!
Batter and Turbinado Sugar
This one is mine!!!
Coconut Jam oozing out of the muffin
Allow muffins to cool for a few minutes because the jam will be hot. Don’t ask me how I know this.
Coconut Jam Muffins - ready
Aside from the amazing aroma these muffins gave my home, I really love a few things about these muffins. Just looking at them, they look like ordinary muffins. Nothing special, at a glance. A few crunchy bits on the top, and a tender but firm exterior. But then there’s that one muffin where the jam started to ooze out. That is what drew me to that muffin, that slight difference. A slight imperfection, perhaps? Many times, there is goodness in the ordinary. We just have to take a chance and dig deep. See beyond what is right before us. Only then, will we see and experience that beautiful sweetness and goodness that a muffin can offer.
Coconut Jam in the middle
Biting into that jam was the business! LOL! Happy Monday everyone!
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