Cookie Carnival: Black-Bottom Coconut Bars

I can't seem to get ahead these days, even when I'm ahead! I made these cookies for September's Cookie Carnival a couple of weeks ago and just now am finally getting them up. Whether they make it into the roundup or not, these little babies deserve their moment in the spotlight.

Bars with a chewy, roasty-toasty coconut top and a soft chocolately-chewy brownie-like bottom. What a great idea!

What did I love about these cookies? Pretty much everything. Granted, you have to really like coconut, because, well, of course there is a lot of it, but it is really good! I didn't make any changes to the recipe at all, even though several people who rated the recipe on Martha's website mentioned having different problems. I think if you just follow the directions and make sure you are checking your layers for the doneness clues given, and not just going by the time, then you'll be all set (and incidentally, so will your cookies).

My kiddos really loved these bars too - they loved the soft brownie-like bottom the most, but were also equally willing to eat the coconut top part. Thanks to Kate for choosing this recipe for us!

Full Recipe Here

TWD: Coconut Butter Thicks

Yes, Coconut Butter Thicks, not Thins. Why? I would like to tell you that I'm really smart and thought it would be cool to make these cookies nice and thick so that they end up more like shortbread instead of being thin and lacey. I'd like to tell you it was all a great plan of mine. I would be lieing. This ended up being at least one time for me though that my lack of clearly reading instructions all the way through because I was in hurry actually worked in my favor.

What a way to end my very first NaBloPoMo!

Clearly marked in the instructions for these cookies it says to roll them 1/4-inch thick. I didn't see that part. In fact, all I saw was the dimensions for the size of the rectangle to roll these cookies out. Add to that the fact that I made a half batch and then tried to roll my rectangle to half the size of the full batch and well, basically, this was a snafu of all kinds of mathematical errors on my part.

All I can to that is, it really didn't matter. In fact, I think I probably would still love these cookies in their thin and lacey form (and I will try again to make them that way now since I had a plan for that). That said, I loved, loved, loved these cookies as thick shortbread type cookies. They taste incredible. Other than my little snafu I didn't change the recipe at all.

I wanted to take a moment to send @doriegreenspan (that is where you can find our one and only Dorie on Twitter, in case you were wondering) for helping me through a couple of tweets to figure out what I had done wrong. Thank you Dorie for the technical support! You're the best!

This week's recipe for Coconut Butter Thins was chosen by Jayne, The Barefoot Kitchen Witch, which is where you can find the recipe for these awesome cookies, as well as in The Best Baking Book EVER. Don't forget to visit the Tuesdays with Dorie blogroll to see all the cookies made by people who can actually read directions!

This is the main reason why making these cookies thicker really worked in my favor. We had a little chocolate and fruit fondue last night with some friends while we played a little Catan (and no, I didn't win... this time!). These cookies dipped in a little chocolate, are nothing short of extraordinary!

Easy Chocolate Fondue
(This recipe makes about 3 cups)

16 oz. good quality bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Place the chopped chocolate in a large bowl. In a large Pyrex container or other heat-proof bowl, measure and heat the heavy cream until almost boiling. Pour the cream over the chocolate and let sit for 1 minute. Using a small whisk, stir the chocolate and cream together until it all comes together into a smooth sauce. Add the vanilla and whisk in. Serve warm.

Coconut Loaf Cake with Thick Lime Glaze and a Giveaway!

I have been reading the recipes in Tyler Florence's Real Kitchen cookbook for the past week and immediately bookmarked one for Coconut Bread. It intrigued me since I hadn't had or seen anything like that before. I decided I wanted to change things up a bit anyway though and make it into a cake. I used a 9-inch springform which worked beautifully.

It makes a beautiful kind of a brunch cake or something you could have as an afternoon snack. The original recipe uses lemon, but I decided to go with lime. It also used coconut milk as well as toasted coconut.

I was thinking of topping it with a white chocolate glaze of some kind, but since I was undecided, went ahead and twittered all my foodie friends to see what they thought. While the white chocolate glaze sounded good though, @MormonFoodie, suggested a glaze made with powdered sugar, lime and coconut milk. That sounded really good, but unfortunately I was all out of coconut milk at that point since I used it all in the cake.

I decided to go with a simple glaze out of lime juice, powdered sugar and heavy cream. I wanted something very thick and smooth, and I got exactly that.

Even with the use of the coconut milk and toasted coconut, this cake / bread doesn't have an overwhelming coconut flavor. It just has all the very best characteristics of the flavor and texture. My son, who is a coconut hater, loved it. Of course, I didn't tell him what it was until after he ate a piece though!

Since the recipe came from Mr. Florence, I thought it would be a good way to announce a little giveaway that my friends over at M80 are helping me giveaway a $20 Macy's gift card to one of my lucky readers.

The giveaway is to help let all our foodie friends know about some podcasts that are available from Macy's and Tyler to help everyone with some cooking skills and knowledge, as part of Macy's Keeps America Cooking Campaign. You can view the podcasts here. Here is what M80 had to say about the podcasts and the contest...

"Macy’s and Tyler Florence, have joined and created an exciting 12-series
podcast hosted at macys.com/keepitcooking that feature some of his favorite
recipes. Check out what gets Tyler cooking and try out some of his tasty meals!
Macy’s also wants to know what gets you cooking and is offering you the chance
to win a kitchen shopping spree with Tyler in San Francisco!"

The contest goes through April 3rd, so if you are interested, check it out here! You can even find out more about it from M80 here!

All you have to do to win that Macy's card is to leave me a comment here and tell me what keep's you cooking? I'll run the contest till this Thursday, March 26th at midnight (MST) then use Random.org to pull a number from the comments.

Coconut Loaf Cake with Thick Lime Glaze
Source: Tyler Florence - link to original recipe here

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted, plus more for greasing the pan
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup dark brown sugar, packed
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Zest of 2 limes, finely grated
1 - 14 oz. can unsweetened coconut milk
1 1/2 cups shredded coconut, toasted (see Note)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Grease the bottom and sides of a 9-inch springform pan with butter.

In a large bowl, mix the flour with the baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.

In another large bowl, whisk together the melted butter with the brown sugar, eggs, vanilla, and lime zest. Pour in the coconut milk and whisk together. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and fold everything together with a spatula until you have a smooth batter.

Gently fold in the shredded coconut until evenly distributed. Pour into the prepared pan and set it on a cookie sheet. Bake for 55 minutes to 1 hour or until a wooden toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the center of the bread. Rotate the pan periodically to ensure even browning.

Cool the bread in the pan for 20 minutes or so; then when cool enough to handle, remove the coconut bread to a cutting board and let it cool completely before glazing to keep the glaze nice and thick.

Note: To toast the coconut: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spread the coconut on a cookie sheet and bake for 15 minutes, stirring it periodically Toasting will fluff up the coconut and increase its volume (as well as make it taste better).

Thick Lime Glaze

2 cups powdered confectioners' sugar
1 1/2 Tablespoons fresh squeezed lime juice
1/4 to 1/3 cup heavy cream

Whisk ingredients together thoroughly in a large bowl til thick and smooth. Pour over the cake and use a rubber spatula to gently spread the glaze to the sides so that the weight just takes it down the sides of the cake. Add extra lime juice or cream, depending on the taste and thickness you want. The ratios above just have a light lime flavor.

Gooey Coconut Dream Bars

I am not going to complain here, but seriously, has everyone else's December been as busy and whacky as mine has? Wow. I keep waiting for things to slow a bit and give me a bit of breathing room, but it just doesn't seem to be happening.

Whew. Anyway, I promise, I haven't fallen off the face of the earth, and I have even been baking, and have things to tell you about, but finding some time to get a post written that doesn't just have a random picture and recipe has been a challenge this month.

So, here I am, and I finally have a few minutes to tell you about these Coconut Dream Bars we made the other day. I have been recording the Martha Stewart show the past few weeks and I was really happy I was when Amy Scherber was on the other day. Her latest book was their topic of conversation and I can't wait til I have a bit extra in the budget to get my hands on it. From the book they made Lemon Bars and these Coconut Dream Bars.

I have to tell you, these are ridiculously easy to make, and you only have to have a few easy ingredients on hand. If you are looking for something easy and fun to make with your kids, this recipe is the one. I pretty much let my five year old make these. I didn't have any chocolate chips on hand, so I just chopped some good chocolate. That was basically the most difficult part. Yeah. Awesome.

The only other thing I changed was to make only half the recipe, much to my dismay. The only reason I did that was because I couldn't get to the store and didn't have enough graham crackers to make the whole batch, which I have to tell you, is just very, very sad. This recipe is worth making the whole batch.

So, if you are stalling mon the decision to make these for some reason, then seriously, just go for it. These bars are not only easy, they are fantastic tasting too. If you want something fast and easy to make, but still want to impress someone, look no further. These even bumped some other items and made it onto my baking sheet for this year's Christmas treats gifts. More on that soon!

Gooey Coconut Dream Bars
Source: Amy Scherber, of Manhattan bakery Amy's Bread, from The Sweeter Side of Amy's Bread

Makes 20 bars

FOR THE CRUST
3 cups graham cracker crumbs (from about 20 crackers)
3/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/4 teaspoon coarse salt

FOR THE TOPPING
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
2 cups sweetened flaked coconut
1 3/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons sweetened condensed milk

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees with a rack in the center of oven. Butter a 9-by-13-inch baking pan and line with parchment paper; set aside.

To make the crust: In a medium bowl, mix together graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, and salt. Pour mixture into prepared pan and press into bottom of pan using your fingertips.

To make the topping: In another medium bowl, mix together chocolate chips and coconut; sprinkle evenly over crust.

Pour condensed milk evenly over coconut and chips, covering the entire surface. Transfer to oven and bake, rotating pan halfway through baking, making sure the milk does not get too brown or bubble over in the pan, 26 to 32 minutes.

Transfer baking pan to a wire rack to cool completely. Cut into 20 squares. Serve immediately, or wrap each bar tightly with plastic wrap and keep refrigerated until ready to serve.

Makes 20 bars

Inside Out German Chocolate Cake

Cake. Yes, I love cake. For all the baking I've done over the years though, it is really only the past few years that I have stopped using mixes though. My cakes don't always turn out the way I want, but it is just so fun to try. There are a lot of skills involved with cake baking though that I still need a lot of work on. Especially my decorating skills. That is why when Laurie (our Tuesdays with Dorie fearless leader and the Master Mind behind Cupcake Hero) decided to start up a new event called Layers of Cake I told her to count me in.

The challenge for me this time around was to think of something different than my normal frosting. I have so many layer cake recipes bookmarked, but for this first round I had a couple in mind. This one really caught my eye because of the filling as well as the ganache. Seriously, what is not to love about this recipe? It is a wonderful chocolate cake layered with a mixture of toasted pecans and coconuts and baked sweetened condensed milk (so essentially, dulce de leche) then enrobed in a thick layer of really good chocolate.

This is definitely the way to make a German Chocolate Cake as far as I'm concerned!

Inside Out German Chocolate Cake
Courtesy of the Bridge Street Bakery in Waitsfield, Vermont, from Owner and Chef Mary Laulis via Gourmet Magazine

For cake layers
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup whole milk
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
3/4 teaspoon vanilla
1/8 teaspoon almond extract
3/4 cup boiling-hot water

For filling
7 oz sweetened flaked coconut
4 oz coarsely chopped pecans (1 cup)
14-oz can sweetened condensed milk
1 tablespoon vanilla

For glaze
2 1/2 sticks unsalted butter
10 oz fine-quality semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
3 tablespoons light corn syrup

Special equipment: 3 (9-inch) round cake pans

Make cake layers:
Preheat oven to 350°F and oil cake pans. Line bottoms of pans with rounds of parchment or wax paper. Sift together sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl.

Whisk together whole milk, butter, whole egg, yolk, vanilla, and almond extract in another large bowl until just combined. Beat egg mixture into flour mixture with an electric mixer on low speed, then beat on high speed 1 minute. Reduce speed to low and beat in water until just combined (batter will be thin).

Divide batter among cake pans (about 1 1/2 cups per pan) and bake in upper and lower thirds of oven, switching position of pans and rotating them 180 degrees halfway through baking, until a tester comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes total.

Cool layers in pans on racks 15 minutes. Run a thin knife around edges of pans and invert layers onto racks. Carefully remove parchment or wax paper and cool layers completely.

Make filling:
Reduce oven temperature to 325°F.

Spread coconut in a large shallow baking pan and pecans in another. Bake pecans in upper third of oven and coconut in lower third, stirring occasionally, until golden, 12 to 18 minutes. Remove pans from oven.

Increase oven temperature to 425°F.

Pour condensed milk into a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate and cover tightly with foil. Bake milk in a water bath in middle of oven 45 minutes. Refill baking pan with water to reach halfway up pie plate and bake milk until thick and brown, about 45 minutes more. Remove pie plate from water bath.

Stir in coconut, pecans, and vanilla and keep warm, covered with foil.

Make glaze while milk is baking:Melt butter in a 3-quart saucepan. Remove pan from heat and add chocolate and corn syrup, whisking until chocolate is melted. Transfer 1 cup glaze to a bowl, reserving remaining glaze at room temperature in pan. Chill glaze in bowl, stirring occasionally, until thickened and spreadable, about 1 hour.

Assemble cake:
Put 1 cake layer on a rack set over a baking pan (to catch excess glaze). Drop half of coconut filling by spoonfuls evenly over layer and gently spread with a wet spatula. Top with another cake layer and spread with remaining filling in same manner. Top with remaining cake layer and spread chilled glaze evenly over top and side of cake. Heat reserved glaze in pan over low heat, stirring, until glossy and pourable, about 1 minute. Pour glaze evenly over top of cake, making sure it coats sides. Shake rack gently to smooth glaze.

Chill cake until firm, about 1 hour. Transfer cake to a plate.

Cooks' notes: Cake keeps, covered and chilled, 3 days. Bring to room temperature before serving. For easier handling when assembling cake, place bottom layer on a cardboard round or the removable bottom of a tart or cake pan.

Cherry Almond Coconut Bars

The recipe, mentioned in my Operation Baking GALS post - as promised!

Cherry Almond Coconut Bars

For the bottom crust (adapted from this recipe):

12 Tbs. (1 1/2 sticks) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup ground toasted almonds
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly butter a 9-by-13-by-2-inch cake pan (or line with foil and butter the foil). To make the shortbread, in the bowl of a food processor, combine the butter, flour, almonds, granulated sugar and salt and process until small lumps form. Sprinkle the mixture into the prepared pan and press evenly into the bottom. Bake until the shortbread is golden, about 20 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack. Increase the oven temperature to 375°F.

For the jam and coconut layers:
1 cup good cherry preserves or jam, pureed to be smooth (use more for a more moist bar)

1 cup heavy cream
1 1/2 cups sweeted shredded coconut

To make the coconut layer, combine the cream and coconut in a heavy saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a gentle boil and reduce heat slightly. Allow the mixture to boil until thick and soft, approximately 5-6 minutes.

Once the bottom crust layer has cooled slightly spread an even layer of the coconut cream mixture over the entire crust. Top this with an evenly spread layer of the pureed preserves. Top this with the crumb mixture below.

For the crumb topping (adapted from this recipe):

1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cold butter (1 stick or 4 ounces)
1 egg yolk, slightly beaten
1 to 2 Tablespoons heavy cream
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon almond extract

In a medium bowl, stir together sugar, flour, baking powder, and salt. Use a fork or pastry cutter to blend in the butter, egg yolk, almond extract and enough of the cream at a time to bring the dough together but remain crumbly - sprinkle the layer over the jam and coconut layers. Return the pan to the oven and bake 20-25 minutes or until top is golden. Remove pan from oven and allow to cool on a rack. Cool completely before cutting into squares.

Baking Bars with the GALS for a Great Cause

I'm sure most of you have already seen this lady around in the past few days. She has been making the food blogging rounds at a whirlwind pace as the spokeswoman (ok, the spokes-badge) for Operation Baking GALS (Give A Little Support).

When I received the call to arms - or in this case whisks and spoons - via this email on Sunday from Sus over at She's Becoming DoughMESStic I immediately jumped onboard.

My brother, Jason - fondly known as "Hank the Tank" (outlined in the picture below) by his buddies - is in the Army and has been to Iraq once already. He actually renewed his contract with the Army recently and will most likely be going back to Iraq just in time for Christmas this year (if not much sooner - I can't be sure). I have told him before how proud I am of him, not only for joining in wartime, but for seeing it through. It has not been an easy road for him and he has had to make a lot of personal sacrifices - as do all of our fighting men and women.

So, for obvious reasons, I am a bit chagrined that the thought of doing something like this never occurred to me before. I guess in part it is because when he was in Iraq before I wasn't blogging yet, and for the time being he is in Washington with his family. No excuse for not really finding a good way to do something positive to help before that I could do from home, but there you go.

That is why I am so grateful (actually just one of many reasons) to be a part of this food blogging community. Without it, I don't know when I would have found a way to do something positive and to say "thank you" to all of our soldiers in all the branches of our military. I also owe a big "thank you" to Sus for coming up with this idea in the first place. I look forward to throwing my brother's name in the hat as a recipient for some love when he goes back to Iraq for his second tour.

So, why did it take me so long to get this done since Sunday? Good reasons actually. you see, when my brother was in Iraq before my Mom was the unofficial 'Queen of Care Packages'. I, proud to be like my mother, felt that I needed to do my due diligence in research, on the best way and what to send (hopefully). What you see before you is the last five days worth of questions, research and planning. Whether or not this is the best way, I really don't know, but I really wanted to give it my very best shot so that when Jason, Susan's cousin and our first OP: GALS recipient, receives this package I can feel like and hope that I've done the very best I can to hedge all my bets on it getting there safely.

So, I approached all this a bit more methodically than I normally do because - well - this is so much more important than just my everyday baking for fun.

So, of course, for something so important, I needed help and I only wanted the best. For this project here were my recruits: Aidan "the crazy five-year old" (as he now refers to himself) seen climbing his first tree, and Cole, my sweet little peanut - seen here sitting with me in a parking lot checking out the steering wheel and finally sitting up like a champ.

Cole's duties were simple - sit in the booster chair and play while looking cute. Done. Mission accomplished. Aidan's duties were a bit tougher - play with Cole, help dump in ingredients and sample the baked goods to make sure they pass inspection - it is a tough job, but someone had to do it.

My duties - well, they were all a bit more complicated, but, we'll cover most of that with the recipes. Other than the actual baking though I wanted to share with you my thought process below that took all the planning - using information gleaned from my Mom, as well as the various sources Sus provided on the OP: GALS headquarters and my own (possibly over-analyzed) criteria.

Basically, for just under $10 ($9.80 to be exact) you can ship in a flat rate box a decent amount of baked goods (in this 36 big bars). You have to use the special box from the USPS (I think - at least to get this rate) and you have to complete a customs form. You also have to make sure that the box is packed tight with really no wiggle room.

This led to my mission to figure out, basically, how to get the most bang for the buck, so to speak - thus my criteria - in no particular order:

-- Nothing too soft or squishy - Hopefully something that will stay together
-- Portions that could be individually wrapped for ease of distribution (and hopefully this helps
keep things together) - I went with plastic wrapped, then foil packed groups
-- The most efficient use of space in the box to fill it as completely as possible - this is why I
went with three types of bar cookies (12 generous size servings of each kind)
-- The best ingredients I could get my hands on and generous portions as mentioned above-
because, what if that is the only treat that soldier gets - I want it to satisfy, not tease
-- Some kind of variety of the things I felt would be the most widely popular

UPDATE: I used a local newspaper and the most recent copy of TIME magazine to help fill the little space that was left in the box, as well as a letter from us that included our email address and blog address as suggested on the OP: GALS blog. In the future I want to include a return postcard where the troops can rate the goodies and let me know whether or not the recipe was a winner by the time it gets there

I think that covered all my criteria, which is why it took so long to get all this together. So, you will have to be patient with me because I will be posting these recipes seperately so this excessively long post doesn't become thelongestpostinthehistoryofmankindthankyouverymuch!

UPDATE: The recipes are now posted and you can link to them from their titles below!

So, without further ado, I give you....... [[drumroll please]].........

CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE BARS

CHOCOLATE FUDGE BROWNIES

CHERRY ALMOND COCONUT BARS

CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT HOW YOU CAN HELP!

Blog Party - Fried Foods - Coconut Shrimp & Red Pepper Jelly

Somewhere there is a party going on. Somewhere people are having a great time together. Me? I'm here with the kids, and that is pretty much always a party. A stressful one at times, but that is ok.

Stephanie, who is Dispensing Happiness with kitchen magic, is hosting a Blog Party, #31 to be exact, and this time it is all about fried foods. It just so happens that I have been making a favorite dish of my husband's a few times in the past few weeks (Super Bowl, and again at Valentines, and again last week - sheesh - I must be a nice wife!). Anyway, I got this recipe from one of my favorite Mexican restaurants in town (Cafe Pierpont - now owned by someone else though, and I haven't eaten there since the switch) and have been making it for years.

Coconut Shrimp with Jalapeno Jelly is the recipe, but since I made it with what I had on hand, this time it is a Red Pepper Jelly I offer you. I'll post the ingredients for both below. Frankly, the jalapeno version has more of a kick (of course), but I thought the all red version for Valentines (even though it didn't happen that way on purpose) was really pretty. The thing about this shrimp is that it isn't hard to do and there aren't a lot of ingredients, but if you do what my husband does and let the shrimp soak in the jelly for half a minute or so, then you'll find out what makes this version unique and addictive.

As for my beverage of choice, as I mentioned to Stephanie, I actually don't drink, and though you can offer up a mocktail as well, I really just drink water. I know, I know. I'm not kidding though. I really only like water and drink it probably 99.99% of the time. Every once in a while though I do get a craving for really good vanilla cream soda. There is another restaurant near here (about 45 minutes away) that makes their own version and it is my favorite (Maddox, Brigham City, Utah). Since I don't get up there that often and can't get my hands on it though, my other favorite is Henry Weinhardt's.

So, this is my suggestion for those other non-drinkers out there (store bought that it is). Otherwise, for me, I'll take a huge round of ice water and keep it coming! (You might think I'm kidding, but through both of my pregnancies and after, ice water was the only craving I had!)

Coconut Shrimp & Jalapeno or Red Pepper Jelly

2 cups shredded coconut
12 -- 16-20 or 26-30 shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 cup flour
2 eggs, beaten
canola oil

Lightly toast the coconut on a cookie sheet in a 350 degree oven for 8-10 minutes.





Butterfly each shrimp by splitting lengthwise down the center, cutting three-fourths of the way through. Dredge the shrimp in flour and then dip in egg.



Press the shredded coconut into the shrimp and then fry in 350 degree canola oil until golden brown.





Serve with the jelly.

Jalapeno or Red Pepper Jelly Ingredients:

1 cup red wine vinegar
1 cup water
1 cup sugar
2 green jalapeno peppers, seeded and minced OR 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 small red bell pepper, minced
1 package liquid pectin
orange slices for garnish



Place all ingredients, except pectin, in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Add the pectin and bring to a boil again. Remove from heat and cool to warm. (Note: It will be really runny and not "jellyish" at all. Also, I like to serve it warm with the shrimp so that it doesn't take away their heat. This jelly is also good on just about anything else you want to dip in it.)



Serve warm with the shrimp with a few slices of orange or a twist in the bowl.

As you can see the jelly recipe makes quite a bit more than you can eat with one preparation of the shrimp. It can be stored in an airtight contained in the refrigerator for up to two-weeks.

HHDD # 18 - Chocolate Coconut Raspberry Swirl Tarts

I was a little late finding out about this month's HHDD, but I really didn't want to miss it once I saw the pictures of the delectable little tarts made by Bordeaux over at Marita Say's announcing this round's recipe theme. Chocolate Coconut Tarts.

These looked like the macaroons of my dreams. Crispy and chewy on the coconut but not overpowering with, basically, a chocolate truffle filling. Oh, yea. I'm in.

I didn't want to stray too far from the original recipe because it looks so good and because as soon as I saw it I had a crazy macaroon craving that wouldn't let go. I chose to mix it up a little and add some white chocolate ganache to the mix and use turbinado sugar in the shells, and get creative with the decorating.

Also, as Bordeaux pointed out, these are simple to make. It was nice to make something that required fewer ingredients and steps and still ended up looking like a million bucks. I will definately make these again when I want to impress. They remind me of the old rice crispie commercial where the woman pretends that making a big tray of rice crispie treats was a monumental task and uses the time for time out for herself. She reads a book in the kitchen and then throws some water and flour on her face to look like she has been working so hard. A very nice recipe to have in my arsenal.

Thanks to Barbara for creating such a fun event and to Bordeaux for choosing the theme for this round.

Chocolate Coconut Tarts
(For the original version go to Marita Says!)

For the shell-
2 egg whites
1/2 cup turbinado sugar
2 cups sweetened flaked coconut

For the filling-
1 1/4 cups cream, divided (it is easiest to measure as 1/2 C + 1/8 C each - or just eyeball it)
150g dark chocolate, chopped
150g white chocolate, chopped
2 tablespoon seedless black raspberry preserves

Blackberries (or raspberries) to garnish

Make:
Preheat your oven to 180C (350F).

Mix the egg whites, coconut and sugar well. Scoop the mixture into the bottom of large (or regular muffin tins) muffin papers and with wetted hands (works best this way) press it out to create a base. Put into the oven to bake for about 10-12 minutes, or until it begins to lightly brown. Remove from the oven and let cool for one minute. Gently remove the cups from muffin tins but don't remove the papers if you only created a base.

While this is happening, heat 1/2 + 1/8 cups of the cream in a saucepan until almost boiling.

Remove from heat and pour over the chopped dark chocolate in a heat-proof bowl.

Stir until the chocolate has melted into the cream and you have a decadent and rich looking chocolate liquid.

Carefully, pour the dark chocolate halfway up each cup. Put the cups on a plate or tray in the freezer and leave it for 15 minutes or until set.

Heat the remaining 1/2 + 1/8 cup cream in the sauce pan and repeat the steps from above with the white chocolate. Take the shells from the freezer and fill the remainder of the way with the white chocolate.

Heat the raspberry preserves to liquify and drip a few drops into the white chocolate. Use a toothpick to swirl the drops into a marbled pattern. (Note: I actually stirred the raspberry preserves into a little bit of the white chocolate. I'm telling you the way I wish I had done it here. I think it may have kept some of the raspberry preserve color more vibrant.)

Replace the filled shells in the freezer another 15 minutes or until set.

Garnish with blackberries (or raspberries - I just had blackberries on hand) that are brushed with a little of the heated preserves.

Serve them to your guests, or if you are like me, wrap them carefully in plastic wrap and keep them in the refrigerator to hoard for days (ok, the rest of the afternoon anyway!)