Kitchen Corners: Search results for coconut

Orange Coconut Polenta Cake {sugar free}

posted on: Wednesday, May 11, 2011

It has now been 11 days since we've gone sugar free, and by sugar free I mean refined sugars (white and brown) and by we I mean mostly Christian, Baby Maria and I. Enzo is trying his best. I'll talk more about that in another post.

When I tell people about our sugar free month the first thing I get asked is, "are you craving sugar?" and my answer is "no." But yes, I'm just as surprised by my answer as maybe you are. However, I have been craving baking.

So yesterday I spent all morning researching recipes, experimenting, and finally coming up with a sugar free cake I was satisfied with. This polenta cake has a kiss of sweetness that comes from the fresh orange juice and coconut. And also from a prune sauce I made to go on top. I'm also smitten with the crumbly texture of this cake. It's pretty perfect with yogurt.

While the cake was in the oven the smell of sweet corn reminded me so much of my grandmother, Vo Aurea. It may be because she made a lot of polenta and corn bread when I was growing up, or it may be just the saudade, a deep longing, for her company.

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Manjar {Brazilian Coconut Custard}

posted on: Wednesday, June 30, 2010

One of those easy desserts, you know

unlike cherry pie.

Manjar is a Brazilian coconut custard/pudding. Think flan, now add coconut taste to flan. That is a manjar. Except that it's way easier to make than flan because you don't need to bake it. It's goes from stove top to fridge to mouth in less than an hour.

Manjar

3 cups milk
4 tablespoons corn starch
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 can coconut milk (not to be confused with coconut water)
1 cup coconut flakes, unsweetened.
prunes.
1/4 cup water
2 tablespoons sugar

Add all the milk and corn starch to a medium sized pan.
Dissolve the corn starch completely in the milk. This is really the most important step. You want to mix until the corn starch is totally dissolved otherwise you're going to get nasty corn starch lumps.
Add the sweetened condensed milk and the coconut milk and mix until everything is well incorporated and dissolved.
Turn the stove top on to medium heat and start stirring. You will probably stir for a good 20 minutes until the mixture starts to thicken.
Mix until the mixture starts pulling away from the bottom of the pan.
Remove from heat and mix in the coconut flakes.
Put in your favorite serving dish and let cool completely. If the dish is shallow it will cool faster. However, if you put it in the fridge it really should settle and be ready to serve within 1/2 an hour.
While the manjar is cooling make your prune sauce. Add the prunes, water, and sugar to a small pan and bring to a boil. Let simmer for 5 minutes and remove from heat. Let cool completely. Serve on top of the manjar.

The reason why I am posting this recipe is because I had every intention of making cherry pie for the 4th of July but Christian told me that it would take me at least 3 hours to pit the cherries. Is he right? I mean, I've never made cherry pie before but 3 hours seems insane. Is it just me or do Brazilian recipes seem so much easier to make than American recipes?

What's your favorite easy American recipe? I need some ideas for this weekend.

Simple Tropical Fruit Salad | Day 15 of 31 Days of Salad

posted on: Sunday, January 15, 2012

Sunday's are a day of rest around here. And after all the resting is done it becomes a day of planning. Tomorrow I'm planning on buying more food, hitting up the fruit market, loading up on bananas because it seems like no matter how many bananas we buy we never have enough. Today we had one very ripe papaya, half of a coconut (so happy that there are coconuts in our backyard), and one lonely orange. Now all our fruit is gone but we have a fruit salad, a simple fruit salad but delicious none the less - smooth papaya, crunchy coconut, and the orange squeezed on top. I love living in warm tropical places.

Simple Tropical Fruit Salad

(printable version)

serves 2

1 large ripe papaya seeded and peeled

1/2 of a coconut

1 ripe orange

Cut the papaya in large pieces. Cut the coconut in think slivers. Gently add the two together and squeeze orange on top, soaking the papaya and coconut in the orange juice. Serve immediately.

Can you believe we're practically half way through with January? We're 15 salad recipes down. A shout out to all the guest bloggers who have made this possible, thank you to the moon and back and back again. I'm having so much fun with this series and I really hope you've been enjoying it too. It's so great to see all the different tastes and writing styles and photography.

Since today was a short recipe and because I enjoy sharing fun internet finds with you here are some things I've been enjoying this week.

// perks of blogging

// learning more about food waste

// everything on this blog

// granola cups, who would have thunk it?

// lots, and lots, of grilled cheese sandwiches

// Just read the current issue of Saveur and guess what was on the first pages? Brigadeiros. Thanks to zinio I can now subscribe to my favorite mags again and have them on my iPad. I'm happy and trees are happy. Win!

// Tomorrow we officially start homeschooling Enzo and I feel like this will be a much used and appreciated resource.

// this talk by Pres. Monson. I feel like I could and probably should read over and over again.

One month from today Christian and I will be celebrating 9 years of having met each other at the Last Chance Valentine's Dance. This year it's my turn to plan our Valentine's celebration. I'm so excited and eager to start planning. At the ways things are going it will probably just creep up on me. Yikes.

Day 1- Green Papaya Salad

Day 2- Avocado and Mango Salad

Day 3- Eggplant Vinaigrette

Day 4- White and Green Salad: Escarole, Pear, Avocado

Day 5- Salpicao

Day 6- Grated Raw Beet Salad

Day 7- Poppyseed Salad Dressing

Day 8- Orange, Honey, & Coconut Dessert Salad

Day 9- Quail Egg Salad

Day 10-Radish Salad
Day 11-Apple, Parmesan, and Pesto Salad
Day 12-BLT Quinoa Salad
Day 13-Poke Salad
Day 14-Spinach Salad

Tropical Smoothie

posted on: Friday, October 14, 2011

This past Wednesday was Children's Day in Brazil. Enzo was ecstatic. Maria was ecstatic too, not because she knew what Children's Day was but because her big brother was excited therefore she had to be excited as well. Siblings are the best.

I like the idea of Children's Day a lot and I like it even more that it usually falls on a weekday, giving the kids a day off from school. It's fun to feel special, it's even better to feel special collectively. It felt like every kid in the town shared a birthday.

Thanks Vovo Cecilia for the presents!

On Wednesday I asked you about your favorite childhood memory. I loved reading the comments. I wonder if your parents knew that what they were doing would turn out to be something you remembered so fondly.

Sometimes I let myself think about the future and wonder what my kids will be like as adults. I wonder what sort of happy thoughts they'll take with them as they grow up, hopefully there will be many to pull from.

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Orange, Honey, & Coconut Dessert Salad | Day 8 of 31 days of Salad

posted on: Sunday, January 8, 2012

I met Amber at Food Blog Camp this time last year. We hung out by the pool and talked about food, a good recipe for creating a friendship. This summer I had the opportunity to visit Amber at her house in California, where she showed me her breath taking garden, her famous backyard, and then made me a mean tomato salad. I knew Amber would be perfect as a guest blogger for the 31 days of salad series and I'm so glad she is joining us today. You can follow Amber at her blog Awake at the Whisk and at California Food Literacy Center. You can also follow Amber on Facebook and Twitter. Thanks Amber for your delicious dessert salad, I can't wait to try it.

In the doldrums of winter, nothing quite perks up the mood like bright, juicy citrus! I love my orange tree, dripping with ripe, flame-colored globes against an otherwise grey sky.

In winter, I like to serve lots of spicy, bold foods to enliven the dark days: Indian curries, Thai stir fries, and Mexican fajitas all packed with veggies and heat. Thus, dessert calls for something to tame the fire, something light and juicy. Enter: my Orange, Honey & Coconut Dessert Salad. The cheerful colors brighten the night, and cool the palette after a spicy meal. If you’re looking for a midday snack, this is also a great, healthy pick-me-up.

Orange, Honey & Coconut Dessert Salad

(printable version)

yields 2-3 servings

1 large orange, peeled and sectioned
1 teaspoon wild flower honey
1 teaspoon shredded, unsweetened coconut flakes
1 teaspoon sliced almonds

Place half of the orange slices on a plate.
Drizzle half the honey over the orange slices.
Sprinkle half the coconut flakes and half the almonds over the oranges.
Repeat with a second plate.
Serve.

Day 1- Green Papaya Salad
Day 2- Avocado and Mango Salad

Day 3- Eggplant Vinaigrette
Day 4- White and Green Salad: Escarole, Pear, Avocado
Day 5- Salpicao
Day 6- Grated Raw Beet Salad
Day 7- Poppyseed Salad Dressing

Pumpkin Seed Granola

posted on: Monday, February 16, 2009

I've been on the search for a good granola recipe for years now. I had one that always burnt and another that tasted so nasty it was impossible to eat. A couple weeks ago, in Enzo's preschool, a mom brought the most tasty granola I have ever had. I think it's the coconut and the salted roasted pumpkin seeds that makes this so delicious. She gave me the recipe and Enzo and I made it together. It's easy to make and yields about 8 cups. We go through a bag of Trader Joe's granola, which is about 4 cups, every week so I'm glad this recipe will last us a little more than the usual.

Crunchy Granola

4 cups oats
1 cup coconut slices
1 cup raw sunflower seeds
1/2 cup raw sesame seeds
1 1/2 cups raw almonds
1/2 cup flax meal
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup coconut oil (I used melted butter because I was all out of coconut oil but I recommend using coconut oil. It's so much better for you and has a nice taste)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup roasted salted pumpkin seeds
1 cup raisins

preheat oven to 250*
mix all the ingredients together in a large bowl except for the pumpkin seeds and the raisins. (this is the part that Enzo could do all by himself)
Place the mixture on a cookie sheet bake for 1 1/2 -2 hours mixing EVERY 2o minutes.
When done add the pumpkin seeds and the raisins.
Let it cool down completely before storing in an air tight container.

Check Out Friday

posted on: Friday, February 1, 2013

This is //
FOCO 100% Pure Coconut Water with a Splash of Tropical Fruit Flavors

Why I like it //
Ever since I had my c-section and lost a lot of blood, I've been on a green smoothie kick with coconut water. After living in Bahia Brazil and drinking fresh coconut water every day I can barely stand the boxed up kind. I put it in my smoothie because I know it's good for me but I hate the taste. I don't know how FOCO does but their coconut water is different from the other ones I have tried, FOCO tastes fresh. The tropical flavors help sweeten my green smoothie, and bonus - it's sugar free!

I would change //
I would love to have an Açai flavored FOCO. Yum!

Where can you get it //
Right now you can only purchase unflavored FOCO coconut water, starting in March you'll be able to get the flavored kind. Make sure you try the lychee and the pink guava. Those two were my favorite. To check if your local supermarket carries FOCO go here.

This is //
Nature Box, a subscription service where you get a box with 5 healthy snacks delivered to you for $19.95 a month.

Why I like it //
If you like carrot chips, country ranch peas, and chipotle maple almonds, this subscription service is for you. I like how diverse the snacks are. I like how all of the ingredients are natural, with no trans fats, no artificial sweeteners, no artificial flavors or colors. These are the kinds of snacks I like feeding my kids.

I would change //
The price. I don't think $19.95 is necessarily a bad deal, but it feels like a luxury to spend almost twenty bucks on snacks when you have a family of 5. On that note, I could see this as a treat my kids would enjoy, specially the surprise aspect of it. If I told them every month we would get a new surprise box with snacks inside they would be all over it. Less money going towards goldfish crackers and more money going towards dried pears - it could happen.

Where can you get it //
You can subscribe online here. You can also give a subscription to someone as a gift. Shipping is free.

This is //
FarFaria, an iPad app with over 300 stories, 5 new stories added weekly, and all with the read-to-me feature for $3.99 a month.

Why I like it //
I don't like it, I love it! Since we don't have a TV we let the kids use the iPad for entertainment. Enzo and Maria each get 30 minutes a day to play or watch something on the iPad. Normally they go straight to Netflix and watch an episode of My Little Pony. These days they've been going straight to FarFaria. The app is beautifully illustrated and very intuitive. The read-to-me feature is great for little Maria who is still learning how to read. Also, there are some super cute foodie stories, my fave!

I would change //
I would love to see some stories in Spanish.

Where can you get it //
Get a subscription here. If you'd like to give it as a Valentine's gift go here.

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Some other fun things to check out

// Instagram for Chrome, my new favorite way to check out my Instagram feed.
// Superbowl recipes with the Foodie app.
// This great interview with Mrs. Patmore from Downton Abbey about life in that TV kitchen.
// This super cute blog and this super cute blog too.

Have a great weekend. We're off to Santa Barbara to celebrate our nieces first birthday. We're excited to be with family again.

xoxo, Da

ps- Some of the products mentioned in this post were sent to me for reviewing purposes. I was not compensated to write this post. Opinions expressed on my blog are always my own.