{Thirsty Friday} Toasted Coconut Fudge Malt

Relationships with food are just like any other relationship.  Sometimes it's love at first sight and sometimes it takes a little while for infatuation to set in.  

My relationship with coconut was the latter. 

At first, there was utter rejection.  He put up a tempting facade, sticking like fresh fallen snow to the outside of a marshmallow-coated cake.  I happily brought him up to my eager lips only to be instantly disappointed by the waxy, flavorless strands stuck in my teeth.  

For years, second chances were out of the question.  But I slowly got up the courage to give the humble coconut a second chance.  Samoa Caramel Popcorn was my rebound, and though I had to force myself to swallow several lose strands of coconut, I was falling in love with the fresh, tropical flavor that comes from quality coconut. 

Fast forward many dates later with my newfound love and I have learned to love this edible confetti.  

Mind you, it has to be very toasty to remove that waxy texture, and I still have not been able to tolerate a slice of coconut cake, but we are making progress.

If you are not utterly smitten with coconut already, I would like to offer this drink as proof that anyone and everyone can fall in love with coconut.  

I really do not know what to say.  It's just…SO GOOD...

Well, if I must be more descriptive, I would say that this tastes like the drink you would get if you put paradise in your blender with a cup full of ecstasy and blended them together.  

Oh, you think I am being dramatic?  Just toast yourself some coconut and then tell me this isn't the best thing you have ever stuck a straw into. 

The malt itself is a combination of coconut cream, whole milk, french vanilla ice cream, malt powder, and a whole lot of toasted coconut.  It really can’t help but be good. 

When I was little my father used to take me on dates for caramel nut sundaes. My favorite part of those sundaes was scraping the caramel down into the ice cream.  It would be slightly hardened because of the cold ice cream, making it thick and chewy.  The fudge sauce in this malt acts exactly like the caramel sauce in all those caramel nut sundaes.  As you drink the malt, you slowly scrape the fudge down into the glass, getting rich, decadent pockets of chocolate.

I think I would like to start drizzling the inside of every glass with fudge sauce from now on.

It’s been a long week, give yourself a treat, and put your feet up for a while.  Oh, and if you cannot find someone to share this with you, just dive right into seconds.  It is Friday, after all.

Sincerely, 

Pedantic Foodie

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Toasted Coconut Fudge Malt 

serves 2 

for the fudge sauce 

• 1 cup semisweet chocolate 
• 6 tablespoons heavy whipping cream 

In a small bowl, combine chocolate and heavy cream.  Microwave at 30 second increments, stirring after each, until melted.  Place in a squeeze bottle and set in a bowl of warm water until ready to use. 

for the whipped cream 

• 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream 
• 1/4 cup confectioner’s sugar

Use a hand mixer to beat heavy cream until soft peaks form.  Fold in confectioner’s sugar.  Reserve for later use. 

for the malt 

• 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons shredded, sweetened coconut
• 1/3 cup malt powder
• 2 cups french vanilla ice cream 
• 1/2 cup coconut cream* 
• 1/2 cup milk 

Place coconut in a small frying pan and set over medium heat.  Cook for 3-5 minutes, stirring often, until the coconut is deep golden and evenly toasted.

Combine malt powder, ice cream, coconut cream, milk, and 1/2 cup toasted coconut in the pitcher of your blender.  Blend on high speed until smooth.  

Use the prepared squeeze bottle to drizzle the sides and bottoms of two tall glasses with fudge sauce.  Fill each glass with the coconut malt and top with whipped cream and remaining coconut.  Serve immediately.  Enjoy!  

*Coconut cream is a very thick, creamy coconut milk.  If you cannot find it at your local grocery store, you could substitute unsweetened coconut milk, it just won't be quite as thick. 

Toasted Coconut & Macadamia Nut Brittle

This is a story about the things that can happen when you have half a pound of macadamia nuts in your freezer and an overly active sweet tooth.  

I think this recipe was contrived something like this... “Oh gosh, I still need to use those macadamia nuts... Macadamia nuts - Hawaii, ooh, I remember the wonderful coconut shrimp we had there - ooh! Coconut!  Coconut, macadamia nuts...white chocolate!  Hmm, a bark?  Nah, too overdone...  Brittle!  Aha!”  

That is pretty much how every recipe I post on this site begins - in the random ramblings of my food brain. 

This recipe was one of those things that surprised me.  I mean, I knew it would be good, but I didn’t expect it to be COMPLETELY RIDICULOUS.  Seriously guys, this batch, which wasn’t small by any definition, only lasted 36 hours.  You won’t be able to stop crunching on this stuff.

The macadamia nuts are so buttery and they add a softer crunch to the crisp, sugary brittle.  The coconut adds both texture and toasty, nutty goodness, and the white chocolate, well, it’s chocolate.  ‘Nuff said.

This brittle feels tropical and Summery, and it is incredibly addicting. 

Isn't toasted coconut so gorgeous? 

Though you would expect it to be very sweet, it strikes a good balance.  The rich macadamia nuts behave almost like a savory element which helps to counteract some of the sweetness of the brittle.

Dipping and sprinkling.  I am not an expert at either of these things.  I do try to be neat, but I always end up dipping my fingers too.

 It's okay if you get a bit messy, and it's also okay if you want to lick your fingers.  (Just be sure to wash your hands afterwards, seriously, let's be civilized.)

Use your friends as hand models, they won’t mind.  Especially if you reward them with brittle.

If you don’t have macadamia nuts on hand, just use whatever you have lying around.  I think pistachios would be excellent! 

Let’s make everything into brittle. 

Sincerely, 

  Pedantic Foodie

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Toasted Coconut & Macadamia Nut Brittle

recipe adapted from Bon Appetite Magazine 

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup light corn syrup
• 3 tablespoons filtered water
• 1 cup unsalted, dry roasted macadamia nuts, roughly chopped 
• 1 cup sweetened, shredded coconut, divided
• pinch of fine salt 
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup white chocolate chips

Liberally grease a nonstick baking sheet with butter; set aside.  

In a medium saucepan combine sugar, corn syrup and 3 tablespoons of water - whisk to combine.  Stir the mixture over medium heat until the sugar has dissolved.  Attach a candy thermometer to the side of the saucepan and bring the mixture to a boil.  Cook until the thermometer reads 290 degrees, about 3-5 minutes.  

Using a wooden spoon, stir in macadamia nuts, 1/2 cup coconut, butter, and salt.  This will cause the syrup to seize at first but it will melt down.  Cook the syrup, stirring often, until the syrup has reached 300 degrees and the pistachios have browned slightly, about 2-4 minutes.  The caramel will be a golden brown.  Remove from heat and quickly stir in baking soda.  As soon as the baking soda has been stirred into the caramel, pour out onto the greased baking sheet.  Use a heat-proof spatula to spread out the brittle.  

While the brittle is cooling, toast the remaining 1/2 cup coconut in a medium frying pan over medium heat.  Stir frequently so that the coconut browns evenly, and toast until the coconut becomes fragrant and deep golden in color.  Melt the white chocolate over a pot of simmering water, or in the microwave.*   

Once the brittle has cooled completely, break the brittle into pieces.  Dip the ends of each piece of brittle in white chocolate and sprinkle with toasted coconut.  Lay the dipped pieces out unto a cooling rack set over a piece of parchment paper.  Once the chocolate has set, serve or store at room temperature in an airtight container between sheets of parchment paper.  (This will keep the brittle from sticking together.)  The brittle will store for up to a week, if you can manage to keep it around that long!  Enjoy!  

*If you decide to melt your chocolate in the microwave, go slowly.  I like to microwave mine at thirty-second intervals, stirring after each, until the chocolate is just melted.