Toasted Coconut Ice Cream

I can't believe that my last ice cream post was more than four months ago! Yup, did not make any ice cream at all during these four months .... until my son requested me to buy some ice cream!!  So I told him, why don't I make some....well, promise is a promise and here it is, creamy and delicious Toasted Coconut Ice Cream.  

There's no coconut milk in this ice cream, the coconut flavours are from the shredded coconut flakes. They are first toasted till brown, crispy and fragrant. These are then added into the mixture of warmed milk, cream, sugar, vanilla seeds and pod and some salt, cover and leave for about an hour to infuse the flavour. I left mine for about 3 hours as I needed to go out for an errand that day, but I think that it really makes the flavour more pronounced by soaking it longer. The mixture is then strained over a strainer set over another bowl with the remaining cream. The egg based custard is then cooked as per instructions in the recipe below, I use only 4 egg yolks instead of 5.

 

David says to discard the strained coconut flakes, but when I tasted the flakes, they are sweet and the coconut flavour are still very "coconut-ty", they are in fact still very tasty, why waste it? I kept the strained coconut flakes in a container and store it in the fridge to eat it together with the ice cream later. 

The Toasted Coconut Ice Cream sprinkled over the top with the coconut flakes speckled with vanilla seeds and some canned pineapple cubes which I bought for something else, but seems perfect with this ice cream! A perfect pairing for a tropical flavoured ice cream! The ice cream is creamy, with just the right amount of coconut flavour and it really is delicious!  I did reduce the sugar to 1/3 cup and I can taste the sweetness alright, but not overly sweet, just right. And do not skip the salt, I think the salt really brings out all the flavours together. Another wonderful ice cream dessert from David Lebovitz!

I'm sharing this with :
Cookbook Sundays hosted by Couscous & Consciousness
Full Plate Thursday hosted by Miz Helen's Country Cottage


Toasted Coconut Ice Cream
(adapted from "The Perfect Scoop" by David Lebovitz)
1 cup (70gm) dried shredded coconut, preferably unsweetened
1 cup (250ml) whole milk
2 cups (500ml) heavy cream
3/4 cup (150gm) sugar (I use 1/3 cup)
Big pinch of salt
1 vanilla bean, split in half lengthwise
5 large egg yolks (I use 4)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract, or 1 teaspoon rum

1. Preheat the oven to 350F (175C). Spread the coconut on a baking sheet and bake for 5 to 8 minutes, stirring it frequently so it toasts evenly. Remove it from the oven when it's nice and fragrant and golden brown.
2. In a medium saucepan, warm the milk, 1 cup (250ml) of the heavy cream, sugar, and salt and add the toasted coconut. Use a paring knife, and scrape all the vanilla seeds into the warm milk, then add the pod as well. Cover, remove from the heat, and let steep at room temperature for 1 hour.
3. Rewarm the coconut-infused mixture. Set a mesh strainer over another medium saucepan and strain the coconut-infused liquid through the strainer into the saucepan. Press down on the coconut very firmly with a flexible rubber spatula to extract as much of the flavor from it as possible. Remove the vanilla bean pieces (rinse and reserve them for another use), and discard the coconut.
4. Pour the remaining 1 cup (250ml) heavy cream into a large bowl and set the mesh strainer on top. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly pour the warm coconut-infused mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly, then scrape the warmed egg yolks back into the saucepan.
5. Stir the mixture constantly over medium heat with a heatproof spatula, scrapping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula. Pour the custard through the strainer and stir it into the cream. Mix in the vanilla or rum and stir until cool over an ice bath.
6. Chill the mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator, then freeze it in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.

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There will be a new baking event starting from April 2012. You are welcome to join us, to find out more, please click The Home Bakers.

Char-Grilled Corn And Spiced Chicken Salad and A New Baking Event !!

Donna Hay is a famous Australian food stylist and the author of many, many cookbooks. Her cookbooks can be found easily over here, but I have never thought of buying any of her books. So when my baking buddy, Zoe from Bake For Happy Kids organized a blog-hop event "Cook Like A Star" featuring Donna Hay as the celebrity chef of the month, I took a second glance at Donna Hay's recipes online.  There are quite a few that I have bookmarked to try, and this salad is one of them.

It so happens I have two cob of corns in my fridge and seems perfect for this salad. Instead of using the pan to char-grill the corns, I grilled them in my oven. The kernels are then sliced off from the cobs.

Went to the supermarket to get some asparagus, saw a few bundles of asparagus on the shelf, thought I get it later, while I went looking for some cherry tomatoes. Made a turn later to get the asparagus, it was all gone! I grabbed some Japanese cucumbers instead, definitely not going to grill these cucumbers! Could not find any Romaine Lettuce, so I use some regular lettuce instead.

I sliced the chicken breast fillet in half horizontally for thinner pieces, marinate with the paprika and cumin powder, though I did add a little bit of salt (the recipe does not call for salt), and pan-fry on both sides until cooked and light brown. It was very tasty, I ate a piece or two while cutting it to slices. :)

The yoghurt dressing is simple and very good and would be suitable for any salad, which I'll make again, especially since I'm using my own homemade yoghurt.

Overall review : Delicious plate of salad! The spiced chicken, the grilled corns, veggies and the yoghurt dressing blends well together, love the taste! Yum!

I'm linking this with "Cook Like A Star" blog-hop featuring Donna Hay as the celebrity for the month of March, hosted by my friend, Zoe of Bake For Happy Kids. Please drop by Bake For Happy Kids for the full details, you have a whole month to cook or bake any of Donna Hay's recipes and join in the blog-hop!

Char-Grilled Corn and Spiced Chicken Salad
(source from : Donna Hay, magazine issue 43 or here)
2 cobs corn, husks and silks removed
1 bunch asparagus, trimmed (I use cucumbers, cut to thick julienned strips and add to salad)
200gm chicken breast fillet, trimmed
olive oil, for brushing
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
125gm cherry tomatoes, halved
1 (100gm) red onion, thinly sliced
1 baby cos (romaine) lettuce, leaves separated


Yoghurt Dressing :
1/2 cup (150gm) natural yoghurt
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon water
seas salt and cracked black pepper

To make the yoghurt dressing, place the yoghurt, garlic, vinegar, water, salt and pepper in a bowl and stir to combine. Set aside.

Heat a char-grill pan or barbecue over a high heat. Char-grill or barbecue the corn for 10-12 minutes, turning occasionally. Slice off the kernels. Char-grill or barbecue the asparagus for 3-4 minutes or until tender. Set aside.

Brush the chicken with oil and sprinkle with the paprika and cumin. Char-grill or barbecue for 5 minutes each side or until cooked through. Slice the chicken and asparagus and place in a bowl with the corn, tomato, onion and lettuce and toss to combine. Spoon over the dressing to serve. Serves 2.

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AN ANNOUNCEMENT : NEW BAKING EVENT "THE HOME BAKERS"

Starting from April 2012, I'm starting a new baking event, where we will be baking entirely from one book.
We are The Home Bakers (THB), a group of bakers who bakes from home and we all love baking and collecting cookbooks. Most of us would probably tried out about 2 or 3 recipes from most of the books that we own and these books somehow got pushed back or "forgotten" as we collect more cookbooks along the way! So, at THB, we will bake from one cookbook only, until every recipe has been baked. This will not only fully utilized your cookbook to the maximum, but it will widen your baking skills, and learn more about baking as we share our experiences together. For a start, we will be baking from this wonderful cookbook, Coffee Cakes by Lou Seibert Pappas. This is a beautiful book containing 60 simple recipes, which are perfect for a tea-time snack, picnic or simply as a breakfast treat.  
For more information about joining in, please do visit the new blog, The Home Bakers. Everyone's welcome! Hope to see you!
Thank you!

Emergency Blender Cupcakes : ABC March 2012

This is my third bake with ABC, and we are currently baking from "The Weekend Baker" by Abigail Johnson Dodge. And I love all three recipes that I've tried so far! When this cupcake was chosen for this month's bake, I was pretty curious, as these cupcakes are called "Emergency Blender Cupcakes"! Yes, the batter is mixed in a blender!

The dry ingredients, like the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda are all whizzed in the blender to mix evenly and the wet ingredients, egg, oil, hot water and vanilla extract are then added in,  make sure you scrape the sides two or three times and blend until the batter is evenly mixed. Pour the batter into the muffin pan lined with cupcake cases and bake for about 17 to 19 minutes. Mine was done in exactly 17 minutes. Leave to cool in pan for about 10 minutes and remove to wire rack to cool completely. 

Though these cupcakes can be done without using the blender, I decided to follow as it is, as I was really curious about using the blender for the cake batter, first time I've tried with this method!

The fudge frosting is heavenly! I frosted some of the cakes when the fudge was still gooey and silky. Look at how silky and smooth it is, and the addition of salt makes it so yummy! I only made half the fudge recipe, and it was more than enough. I frosted the rest of the cupcakes when the fudge has thickened, last picture below.

This cupcake is really good!

The fudge frosting and the cupcake makes one perfect combination.

The texture of the cake is really moist, soft and tender, almost brownie-like, and it is not too sweet, the sweetness is just right! If you are looking for a good chocolate cupcake, quick and easy, this is it! Would you like to give this a try? You can get the recipe from the book "The Weekend Baker" or here.  Abby has made this with another frosting, Marshmallow Buttercream Frosting, which can be found in her blog, here. Whichever frosting you choose, I'm sure you'll enjoy this cupcake, as much as we have!

Frosted the rest of the cupcakes when the fudge has thickened. Either thickened or silky smooth, it's yummy! You'll be licking your fingers clean!

Please visit  my fellow bakers at Avid Bakers Challenge (ABC) to see their delicious cupcakes. Want to join in? Visit ABC to find out more!