All posts tagged coconut

monday bites: toasted coconut + pecan bread.

by shannon on February 18, 2013 in breakfast, brunch with 26 Comments

toasted coconut + pecan bread.

It’s official: my annual brunch obsession has started. I experience this every year, and I think it’s because I begin thinking about Easter. I host it every year (party alert!) and it gets very brunchy around these parts. I know some people eschew the idea of brunch as ridiculous, but I have always been a big fan of the breakfast/lunch combo, especially when it’s well thought out and gives a nod to both meals equally. Don’t give me a bunch of lunch stuff and some eggs; alternatively, keep your full breakfast spread with some salad thrown in for good measure away from me. A good brunch should blend the best of both meals together; it’s not always to do, and that’s why my planning for Easter begins early.  Continue reading →

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seven-layer bar crunch.

by shannon on October 18, 2012 in snacks with 26 Comments

It’s true; I enjoy turning things into other things. This compulsion is why I made the cornflake chocolate chip marshmallow cookie into an ice cream. Or a favorite fall salad into a pizza. In my hands, beloved snickerdoodle cookies transform into ice cream vessels. Other times, I shove classic chocolate chip cookies into a muffin tin. Whatever. But it’s about time I take on something much more serious: turning the mythical seven-layer bar into a snack mix.

Fair warning: many of the photos in the links above, as well as some of these original seven-layer bars, are gross. I was just learning about light and food photography back then, and it basically looks like I took my pictures in a cave during a massive thunderstorm. Forgive my early blog photo attempts; the food is good, but the pictures don’t, in all cases, do it justice. Continue reading →

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farmers’ market monday: mango pineapple salsa + toasted coconut.

by shannon on July 16, 2012 in appetizers, sides, snacks with 12 Comments

 It’s finally here; the last day of vacation. True to form, it has gone way more quickly than it should have. That’s okay; it means we had a great time. Today is my last day: my last day to swim under palm trees, take the Wee One for a walk on the beach, and generally do nothing. I’m going to take full advantage of that in a minute, but before I get back to my book and my pool floatie, here’s a little something I made a few nights ago for you. Continue reading →

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chocolate-dipped triple coconut macaroons.

by shannon on April 16, 2012 in desserts with 12 Comments

That’s right; I said triple coconut macaroons. These things are packed with not one, not two, but three types of coconut deliciousness, baked up, and then dipped in chocolate. How could I resist sharing this with you? Well, obviously I couldn’t.

I was, shall we say, tardy to the coconut party. I don’t know why, and maybe it’s that phenomenon where they say your tastes and preferences change over time (I mean, I used to rock out to Richard Marx and Debbie Gibson, too), but I never really craved coconut. I never hated it, but I never sought out desserts which contained it, either. Those days are over, in large part, because of these macaroons. Continue reading →

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island carrot cake + toasted coconut cream cheese frosting.

by shannon on January 23, 2012 in desserts with 1 Comment

Carrot cake is one of those strange desserts which resists being defined by a particular season or holiday. Sure, some people think, “oh, carrot cake…spring, bunnies, Easter!” but that’s not necessarily true, is it? Carrot cake is just as appropriate in the fall as a spice cake as it is in the spring, or summer, for that matter. How many times have you seen carrot cake at a summer wedding? And then there’s the winter carrot cake; could anything be more inviting than a plump slab of carrot cake bursting with flavor? I don’t think so.  Continue reading →

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