Wednesday 13 May 2015

Coconut Cream Pie

 I hope all you Mommies out there had a beautiful Mother's Day weekend!  I spent the weekend making sure my Mom and Mother in Law had a nice day!  I baked bread, made salads and baked pies.  It was worth it to make 2 very special ladies smile.  :)
One of my favorite bloggers, www.momontimeout.com, posted this recipe last week.  It looked so amazing I simply had to make it for Mother's Day.  It tasted so incredible I had to share it!
I made a Whole Wheat and Oat pie crust for this, but believe me the crust is no where near center stage for this amazing pie!  Feel free to "cheat" and use a premade crust.  No one will even notice.
This coconut custard is so incredible, I could have easily just eaten the entire bowl before it ever touched the crust!!!  (good thing it was for company!)  I will absolutely be making this on a fairly regular basis, many times as a pudding (again, who needs crust??)

To make Coconut Cream Pie, you will need:

  • 1 can coconut milk
  • 1 1/2 cups half and half
  • 2 eggs + 1 egg yolk, beaten
  • 3/4 cups granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup cornstarch
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 2 cups sweetened, flaked coconut, divided
  • 2 tsp coconut extract, divided (vanilla will work if you have no coconut)
  • 1 baked pie shell
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 2 Tbsp powdered sugar
Combine coconut milk, half and half, eggs, sugar, corn starch and salt in a large microwave safe bowl (I used my 8 cup pyrex measuring cup)  Stir.
Microwave on high for one minute, stir and repeat until a thick custard has developed, 5-7 minutes.
Stir in 1 1/2 cups coconut and 1 tsp coconut extract.
Pour custard into a cooled pie shell.
refrigerate for a minimum of 2 hours.
preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Spread remaining 1/2 cup of coconut on a baking sheet and bake tor 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally until golden brown.  Coconut burns easily, so keep a close eye on this step!
Whip the heavy cream until soft peaks form.  Add powdered sugar and remaining coconut extract and continue whipping until stiff peaks form.
Spread whipped cream over the coconut custard and garnish with toasted coconut.
Keep refrigerated.
Should you be interested in making your own pie crust, here is my recipe for a whole wheat and oats pie shell:
  • 3/4 cup all purpose whole wheat flour
  • 1/2 cup ground oats (Simply measure 1/2 c. oats and pulse in a food processor until finely ground)
  • 2 tsp granulated sugar
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/3 cup cold butter cut into small pieces
  • 2 - 3 Tbsp cold water
Combine all dry ingredients in a medium bowl.  cut in butter with a pastry blender or 2 knives until mixture is crumbly.
Sprinkle with water and blend together with a fork until mixture holds together
Shape the dough into a ball, and place on a sheet of wax paper.
 Top with another sheet of wax paper and roll out dough until 1/8 thickness.
Remove top sheet on paper and invert dough into a 9 inch pie plate.
Slowly peel away wax paper.  Trim excess crust and bake @ 400 degrees F for 8 - 10 minutes, until golden.  Cool on wire rack

Thursday 7 May 2015

Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies

I decided to splurge a little this week, with the whole Cinco de Mayo thing... I had been wanting to try out these cookies for a long time, and this week just seemed like as good a  time as any.  I never bake sweets during the week, so it was a great surprise for my kiddies :)
I am the first to admit... these are not the healthiest treat I have ever made, but they are homemade, which means no preservatives or chemicals, they are whole grain, and, as my kids say, made with love.. that has to count for something, right???
You will notice there is chili powder in the ingredients... that is not a mistake!  It is supposed to give these cookies a little heat, and honestly, I did not find them very spicy, No one did, but I think it may have made the chocolate a little more decadent. If you would prefer more heat, I would recommend adding 1/4 tsp more chili powder until you reach perfection.

To make Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies, you will need:

  • 2 1/2 cups whole wheat all purpose flour, spoon and sweep measured
  • 1/2 cup cocoa powder. The better quality, the richer your cookies will be
  • 2 tsp cream of tartar
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp each: salt and chili powder
  • 1 cup softened butter, unsalted.  if you only have salted butter, just reduce your salt to 1/4 tsp
  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 tsp cinnamon
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a medium bowl, sift all dry ingredients together and set aside.
In your stand mixer bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy (2 minutes).
 Add eggs.
 Gradually add flour until combined, but do not overmix!
scoop out 1 Tbsp of dough at a time and roll into a ball (a cookie scoop makes fast work of this)
Place on a parchment lined cookie sheet  about 2 1/2 inches apart and bake in center oven for 8 - 10 minutes.
 Allow cookies to cool for 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Pour yourself a glass of milk and enjoy!

Happy Mothers Day to all the Mommies out there!  I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!