coconut

Tropical Chewies

Leah Short — Fri, 22 Dec 2017 15:00:09 +0000

New to Cookie Baking Day were these Tropical Chewies. We usually bake only two of the same type of cookies from year to year, so it’s always fun to have something new on the menu. These cookies are full of goodies: white chocolate chips, almonds, macadamia nuts, and coconut. If you’re a white chocolate macadamia cookie fan, you’ll love these!

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Holiday Pantry Cookies

Leah Short — Fri, 25 Dec 2015 17:36:04 +0000

Merry Merry Christmas! I hope you’re all having a wonderful day celebrating with family and friends. These Holiday Pantry Cookies are the last from Cookie Baking Day 2015. The name is very fitting because the flavors in this cookie are what you’d find in your pantry around the holidays. Pistachios, cranberries, coconut, and white chocolate. It’s no surprise why they were a favorite this year!

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Clean Slate: Barley with Pineapple, Coconut, & Flaxseed

Leah Short — Sun, 15 Feb 2015 23:36:37 +0000

My mindset about food is very familiar this time of year. I’m always trying to clean up my eating from the holiday splurge and it can go well into spring. When the folks at Martha Stewart approached me about reviewing Clean Slate, I jumped at the chance. It’s not a diet cookbook at all. It focuses on clean eating and resetting your health. I’ve never jumped on the gluten-free, dairy-free bandwagon, so I was a tad bit skeptical going in, but not all recipes are that way and some include meat. I decided to test this cookbook by trying out a breakfast, lunch, dinner, and (yes!) dessert recipe. Every recipe has a beautiful photo with it, so it was hard to narrow it down.

For breakfast, I decided on Barley with Pineapple, Coconut, & Flaxseed. Coconut and pineapple this time of year? Yes, please! I can pretend I’m somewhere tropical as I start my morning. In the cookbook, they use millet, which I couldn’t find at my grocery store, so I substituted barley. Using millet would make this recipe gluten-free. I’m a fan of oatmeal, but wasn’t sure about a big bowl of barley.

So, how’s it taste?

This one really surprised me! It’s sweet, tangy and has such great texture! I made the barley ahead of time and scooped out what I needed for each serving. It was a cinch to put together in the morning before work. I already use almond milk instead of regular milk and I loved the maple syrup flavor in this. Fresh pineapple is one of my favorite fruits and it balances out the sweet. It was almost like eating dessert! I can’t wait to get my hands on millet to try it that way. I think this combo would work great with oatmeal, too.

For the next couple of posts, I’ll be sharing what I made for lunch, dinner, and dessert. I’ve got some photo teasers for you to get excited about! I was not disappointed with any of the recipes and I can’t wait to share the dessert with you. I don’t like to mess with dessert, so this was the biggest shocker of them all!

Lunch

Dinner

Dessert

The dishes you see in the pictures above are part of the Martha Stewart Collection white dishware available exclusively at Macy’s. I used the dinner plates, lunch plates, pasta bowls, and dessert plates. Fantastic dishware for everyday use, plus they’re dishwasher and microwave safe!

* GIVEAWAY CLOSED *

Congrats to Brenda, comment #1!
Winner chosen using random.org.

One winner will receive a copy of Clean Slate along with one bottle of Martha Stewart Essentials Multivitamin and one bottle of the Hair, Skin & Nails vitamin. Giveaway is open to U.S. and Canadian residents.

Mandatory: Leave a comment on this post telling me why you want to eat clean! One mandatory entry per person. Multiple entries (except for the optional entry below) will be removed.

Optional entry: For one additional entry, tweet the following: “Win a copy of Clean Slate, a cookbook for clean eating, from @SoHowsItTaste! Enter here: http://bit.ly/1zZu162” and leave a separate comment that you tweeted.

Contest ends Tuesday, February 24, 2015, at 10 a.m. central. Please make sure you enter a valid email address as an alternate winner will be chosen if I don’t hear from you within 48 hours. Good luck!

Yield: 4 servings

Barley with Pineapple, Coconut, & Flaxseed

Ingredients:

2 cups water*
pinch of coarse salt
1 cup barley*
1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk or coconut milk
1/2 cup chopped fresh pineapple
1/4 cup large-flaked unsweetened coconut, toasted
1 tbsp. plus 1 tsp. whole flaxseed (I used ground)
1/4 cup pure maple syrup

*Note: Use millet to make this gluten-free. If you use millet, increase water to 6 cups total.

Directions:

1. Bring water and salt to boil in medium saucepan. Whisk in barley (or millet). Return to a boil. Reduce heat to low, simmer uncovered, until water has been absorbed and barley (or millet) is tender but still chewy, 12 to 15 minutes for barley (30-35 minutes for millet).

2. Remove from heat; let stand 5 minutes then fluff with fork.

3. Serve topped with milk, pineapple, coconut, flaxseed, and maple syrup.

per serving: 316 calories, 7g fat, 56g carbs, 7g protein, 6g fiber

*Nutrition based on using millet, not barley.

Source: Clean Slate by the editors of Martha Stewart Living

Disclosure: I received a copy of Clean Slate: A Cookbook and Guide: Reset Your Health, Detox Your Body, and Feel Your Best and the Martha Stewart Collection white dishware at no cost. All opinions expressed here are solely my own, as always. This post contains affiliate links.

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Nutella Melt

Leah Short — Mon, 15 Dec 2014 16:01:58 +0000

I love hot cocoa. I have it year round regardless of the temperature outside, but I love it most when it’s this time of year and freezing out. I get all cozy on my couch under my heated throw and wrap my hands around a big, warm mug of it. Add a good movie and we’re talking Best. Night. Ever. If you’re a fan of hot cocoa, then I’m about to be your best friend for introducing you to the Nutella Melt. The recipe sounds amazing already, but it is nothing compared to the taste. This is the most decadent and luxurious mug of cocoa you will ever drink. It has Nutella, so enough said there, but it’s also spiked with Frangelico (hazelnut liqueur), topped with homemade espresso whipped cream, and garnished with a sprinkling of coconut and hazelnuts. <>

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Piña Colada Icebox Pie

Leah Short — Thu, 24 Jul 2014 14:05:40 +0000

♫ ♪ If you like piña coladas, and getting caught in the rain. ♫ ♪ Yep, sang that the entire time I was making and eating and writing this post about Piña Colada Icebox Pie. I can’t help it, it’s catchy! You’re welcome for the ear worm. This was our dessert after eating Beer-Brined Barbecue Chicken and Ranchero Corn on the 4th. I really couldn’t wait to dive in, but oh did we have to wait. I’ve mentioned a million times before how I’m notorious for not reading through a recipe until I’m actually making it. (You’d think I would learn my lesson by now.) So yeah, didn’t see that whole part about “chill four hours” until I was in the thick of making pie. So I made the pie and let it chill overnight because it was crazy late already. What torture! I’m telling you it was worth the wait and then some. It starts with a pecan shortbread crust speckled with coconut. Next is a gooey, thick layer of pineapple filling. On top of that is a coconut cream cheese layer. The final layer is coconut whipped cream. Just take my advice and plan ahead!

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Holiday Layer Bars

Leah Short — Wed, 25 Dec 2013 15:29:30 +0000

Merry Christmas! Today’s the big day! I hope you’re enjoying a wonderful holiday with family and friends. These Holiday Layer Bars are perfect for today. A gingersnap crust sprinkled with white chocolate, cranberries, candied orange peel, pistachios, and coconut. This is probably the easiest bar on the planet to make. You don’t even have to stir the butter and gingersnaps to make the crust!

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German Chocolate Cake Cookies

Leah Short — Mon, 16 Dec 2013 14:59:52 +0000

Another successful cookie baking day is in the books! Last Saturday mom and I did our annual cookie baking. Six different recipes of all kinds of cookies! First up were these German Chocolate Cake Cookies. You’ll notice there’s no actual German chocolate in the recipe, but it’s still got that fabulous combination of chocolate, pecans, and coconut. If you’re a chocoholic like me, you’re going to love these! We scooped our dough a little smaller than the recipe called for, so it made a lot of cookies. The more the merrier, right?!

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No Bake Oatmeal Bites

Leah Short — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 14:35:48 +0000

Ok, let’s all admit we pin things to Pinterest and may never actually get around to making them. I have recipes I pinned forever ago and they’ve just never made it to reality. Not these No Bake Oatmeal Bites. I had the ingredients on hand (which is rare) and made them hours after pinning them. They have all the ingredients I love in a snack: peanut butter, coconut, chocolate chips, but with a (sort of) healthy twist.

So, how’s it taste?

Oh. My. Gosh. Stop reading this and make these. Crazy, crazy good. Remember those unbaked fudge cookies that everyone eats? They’re similar to that, but way better. I liked the different textures of the ingredients, especially the crunchy chia seeds. I put (sort of) healthy above because they really aren’t to me. I know they’re full of the good for you fats and such, but they are pretty high in calorie count per bite…and they’re so insanely good that I had no problem devouring several at a time. So, healthy kind of went out the window with these for me. I also renamed them from energy bites. They didn’t give me a boost of energy, but probably because I sat on my couch eating them like bon bons. Since they are more like dessert to me, I thought a rename was fitting.

You can really play around with the ingredients and make it your own. I used crunchy peanut butter, but you could use smooth or another type of butter. This recipe comes from Gimme Some Oven and there’s a few flavor variations that sound just as scrumptious that I’m dying to try. I’m already brainstorming about a white chocolate chip-cranberry or butterscotch-walnut version! These are great for grab and go, but you’ve been warned of their highly addictive power!

No Bake Oatmeal Bites

by Gimme Some Oven
makes about 15-20 bites, depending on size

Ingredients:

1 cup old-fashioned oats
2/3 cup coconut flakes (toasted if you prefer)
1/2 cup peanut butter (smooth or crunchy)
1/2 cup ground flaxseed or wheat germ
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/3 cup honey or maple syrup
1 tbsp. chia seeds
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Mix all ingredients in a bowl until combined.

2. Chill in the refrigerator for about an hour, so mixture is easier to work with.

3. Roll into balls in whatever size you prefer. I found it's easier to knead a scoop for a bit and then roll into a ball. If you find the mixture becomes difficult to roll into a ball and won't stick together, rinse your hands with water and try again.

4. Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week. You can store them in the refrigerator or at room temperature. I found I enjoyed them both cold and at room temperature.

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German Chocolate Pecan Pie Bars

Leah Short — Fri, 19 Oct 2012 17:07:11 +0000

I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned my love affair with pecans before. They are in my top five list of food weaknesses. If I’m using them in a recipe, you can count on me eating a fair amount of them while I’m baking. I’ve also been known to buy a bag of pecans just to munch on! So any dessert that’s full of pecans is screaming my name. I jumped at the chance to make German Chocolate Pecan Pie Bars. It’s a merging of those flavors you love in German Chocolate desserts and Pecan Pie!

So, how’s it taste?

Oh gosh where do I start? For a pecan-lover like me, they are amazing. These bars have so many pecans in each bite! I like how some are pecan halves and some are bits and pieces. Pecans everywhere! The combination of the ooey gooey middle with crunchy pecans and sweet coconut. It’s that classic German chocolate trio. But wait, there’s more! Underneath the ooey gooey is a layer of chocolate. One and half cups of chocolate morsels are melted over the crust. That’s a lot of chocolate folks. The crust is similar to a chocolate shortbread, and I’m not a fan of shortbread, but it works here. The crust is kind of plain, but that’s ok with all the richness happening on top of it.

I added an optional kick of whiskey to my bars. The recipe calls for bourbon, but I usually use Jack Daniel’s Whiskey instead. Jack didn’t really work in this recipe. It added kind of a funny taste, instead of a yummy whiskey accent. I think a nice bourbon would have worked much, much better…or leaving out the alcohol would be great too. The mixture does get a bit thin adding in the extra liquid. My bars were more gooier.

Baking the crust threw me off a little, too. When you put the crust mixture into the pan, it’s loose and it doesn’t come together. I thought no way would this bake into a crust. But all that butter throughout it makes it come together. Only in a small part on the edge did I have some powdery areas.

A million thumbs up to this recipe! The flavors are perfect for Fall baking and a nice twist on pecan pie.

German Chocolate Pecan Pie Bars

Southern Living, September 2012
makes 24 bars

Ingredients:

3 cups pecan halves and pieces
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup powdered sugar
3/4 cup cold butter, cubed
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate morsels
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
3/4 cup light corn syrup
1/4 cup butter, melted
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup sweetened flaked coconut
1/4 cup bourbon, optional*

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Bake pecans in a single layer in a shallow pan 8 to 10 minutes or until lightly toasted and fragrant, stirring halfway through.

2. Line bottom and sides of a 13x9-inch pan with heavy-duty aluminum foil, allowing 2 to 3 inches to extend over sides. Lightly grease foil.

3. Pulse flour and next 3 ingredients in a food processor 5 to 6 times or until mixture resembles coarse meal. Press mixture on bottom and 3/4 inch up sides of prepared pan.

4. Bake crust at 350F for 15 minutes. Remove from oven, and sprinkle chocolate morsels over crust. Cool completely on a wire rack (about 30 minutes).

5. Whisk together brown sugar and next 3 ingredients until smooth. Stir in coconut and toasted pecans, and spoon into prepared crust.

6. Bake at 350F for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden and set. Cool completely on a wire rack (about 1 hour). Chill 1 hour. Lift baked bars from pan, using foil sides as handles. Transfer to a cutting board; cut into bars.

*If adding the optional bourbon, whisk it into the brown sugar mixture in step 5.

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Easter Kit Kat Cake

Leah Short — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 13:34:34 +0000

I’ve had this cake planned for weeks to bring to work for Easter. I couldn’t wait for them to see my Easter Kit Kat Cake. After my cousin posted a similar cake on Facebook, I thought it was the cutest ever. Almost too cute to eat! The inspiration for this cake came from one that had M&M’s as the topping. You could really almost use any candy bar you like as the outer edge, and top with any candy you like! For Easter, I thought it would be fun to make it look like an Easter basket. I colored some coconut and sprinkled the top with Cadbury Mini Eggs.

So, how’s it taste?

I used a box cake mix for this to make it super easy. My favorite box mix/tub combination is yellow cake with chocolate frosting. Feel free to make your cake and icing from scratch. You’ll need enough for a two-layer, 8″ or 9″ cake. Any flavor combination would work for this treat. Strawberry, coconut, German chocolate. Whatever you feel like pairing with a Kit Kat! My coworkers loved it. It was so pretty, no one dove into it like they usually do. I finally had to be the one to make the first cut. It was as delicious as it was pretty. Sure to be a hit at your Easter shindig!

Easter Kit Kat Cake

Ingredients:

your favorite cake
your favorite icing
22 (.49 oz. size) Kit Kat bars (I bought 3 packs of 8 of the snack size)
sweetened coconut flakes (I used about 1/3 to 1/2 of a 14 oz. bag)
green food coloring
Cadbury Mini Eggs
ribbon

Directions:

1. Bake your favorite cake recipe for a two-layer, 8" or 9" cake. (For this cake, I used Duncan Hines yellow cake mix.) Make sure to even out your layers so there's some room left at the top for your coconut.

2. Frost with your favorite icing. (For this cake, I used Duncan Hines chocolate icing.)

3. Press the Kit Kat bars around the cake gently.

4. Place the coconut in a zippered plastic bag. Add drops of green coloring (I used 4) and close the bag. Shake until the color blends evenly. Add more coloring if necessary.

5. Sprinkle the coconut over the top of the cake. Add the mini eggs.

6. Tie a ribbon around the Kit Kat bars.

inspired by Made in Melissa's Kitchen

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