Hawaiian Bread

1 c softened butter
2 c sugar
4 eggs
1 c mashed bananas (2-3 bananas)
1 (15 oz) can crushed pineapple with juice
4 c flour
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 c shredded coconut

Preheat oven to 350 degrees; lightly grease 2 loaf pans.

Cream butter and sugar; add bananas, pineapple and eggs and mix well.

In a separate bowl, mix flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; combine with banana mixture and mix well. Fold in coconut.

Pour into prepared pans and bake for 50 minutes or until a tester in the middle comes out clean.

NOTES
FRom allrecipes.com.
Good alternative to ordinary banana bread; sweeter and more unusual.

Pina Colada Popsicles

1 14-ounce can light coconut milk
1 cup pineapple chunks
3 tablespoons agave
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 teaspoon almond or rum extract

Place all ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Pour mixture into 8 molds and insert sticks. Freeze until solid, at least 8 hours or overnight.

NOTES
From VegNews Magazine.
Untried, but looking forward to trying them. Think I will just use sugar or honey in place of agave though.

Zucchini Coconut Cookie Bars

3/4 c softened butter
1/2 c white sugar
1/2 c brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 3/4 c flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
3/4 c shredded coconut
2 c grated zucchini

Icing:
I Tbsp melted butter
2 Tbsp milk
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 c confectioners' sugar

Cream butter and sugars; add eggs and vanilla and mix until fluffy.

In a separate bowl, sift together flour, salt and baking powder; stir into sugar mixture. Stir in coconut and zucchini.

Spread batter into a greased 9"x13" baking pan; bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes.

To make icing, combine all ingredients and drizzle over warm bars.

NOTES
From allrecipes.com.
These are really tasty, but it makes too much icing and they started getting soggy after sitting for a while. I think halving the icing would fix that.

Seven-Layer Cookies

1 stick butter
1 c graham cracker crumbs
1 c coconut flakes
1 c chocolate chips
1 c butterscotch chips
1 c chopped nuts
1 can sweetened condensed milk

Melt butter in a 9"x13" pan. Press graham cracker crumbs into butter to make crust. Layer crust with nuts, chips and coconut flakes. Pour sweetened condensed milk over all. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes.

NOTES
Source unknown, though this is a pretty common cookie bar.
This recipe is a good starting point but the crust was greasy and a whole can of sweetened condensed milk felt like too much.
When I make them again I'll play with amounts -- I think they'd be good with a thicker crust.

Thai Shrimp Soup

1 tsp grated ginger
1 minced garlic clove
2 tsp vegetable oil
32 oz chicken broth
1 c water
1/2 tsp anchovy paste
4 oz angel hair pasta
2 c shredded carrots
1/2 box (5 oz?) frozen peas
1/4 c coconut milk
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1/2 lb peeled, cooked shrimp

Saute ginger and garlic in oil for 20 seconds in a soup pot. Stir in broth, water and anchovy paste. Bring to a boil. Add past and carrots; cook until tender. Stir in peas, coconut milk, lemon juice and shrimp; cook until shrimp are heated through.

NOTES
Original source unknown.
Untried.

Coconut-Almond Granola

3/4 c butter
1/2 c light brown sugar
1/8 tsp salt
4 c old-fashioned oats
2 c unsweetened flaked cereal (such as bran or corn flakes)
1 c dried or shredded coconut, sweetened or unsweetened
2 1/2 c sliced almonds
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 c chopped dates

Preheat oven to 275 degrees. Line two rimmed baking sheets with foil.

IN a small saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Whisk brown sugar and salt into butter and stir until mixture is blended and smooth and sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat.

IN a large mixing bowl, combine oats, cereal, coconut, almonds and cinnamon. Mix well.

Stir vanilla extract into butter and sugar. Pour mixture over dry ingredients and mix until well combined. All dry ingredients should be coated with butter mixture.

Divide granola between prepared baking sheets, spreading into an even layer. Bake for 30 minutes, then stir granola, rotate pans and switch racks. Bake for an additional 20-30 minutes until granola is golden. Watch carefully during last 10 minutes, as granola can easily burn at this point.

Pour granola into a large mixing bowl. Stir in dates, then pour back into pans and let granola cool to room temperature. Store in an airtight container -- granola will keep for at least one week at room temperature, or one month when refrigerated.

NOTES
From Hannaford.
Untried.

Black Bean Soup with Coconut Rice

Soup:

1/4 head garlic, minced
1/2 small onion, chopped
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 c chicken or vegetable stock
2 c cooked or canned black beans
1/2 c canned crushed tomatoes, or 2 fresh
chipotle seasoning

Rice:

1 c short-grain rice
1 c coconut milk
1 2/3 c water
1/2 tsp saffron dissolved in 2 Tbsp hot water

To make soup: Saute garlic, onion, and salt. Stir in stock, beans, tomatoes and seasonings. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes. Mash beans a little -- soup should be thick.

You may add any other veggies, leftover meats, additional spices, whatever you want to the soup.

To make rice: Combine all ingredients; bring to a boil over medium heat; simmer until rice is cooked. Serve with soup.

NOTES
From Frugal Cuisine.
Really excellent soup; pairing it with coconut rice is surprisingly good.
I've never made the rice with saffron but have sprinkled in maybe 1/2 tsp of turmeric instead.

Orange-Coconut Cake

1 1/2 c granulated sugar
10 Tbsp butter, softened
2 eggs
3/4 tsp coconut extract
3 c all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 c sweetened flaked coconut, toasted
1 3/4 c buttermilk
1 Tbsp grated orange rind
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/4 c powdered sugar
1/2 c orange juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees; grease and flour a 10" tube pan. Beat sugar and butter with mixer on medium speed until well-blended. Add eggs, one at a time; beat well after each. Stir in extract. Combine flour, salt and coconut. Combine buttermilk, rind and soda. Add flour mixture to sugar mixture alternately with buttermilk mixture; begin and end with flour. Pour into prepared pan; bake at 350 degrees for 55 minutes. Combine sugar and orange juice in a saucepan; bring to a boil and cook 1 minute. Pierce cake with fork; drizzle with glaze. Cool in pan on wire rack.

NOTES
From Cooking Light.
Untried.

Roasted Banana Bread

2 ripe bananas, unpeeled
2 c flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
6 Tbsp butter, softened
2/3 c sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 c unsweetened coconut milk
1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

Place the bananas on a cookie sheet. Bake in the oven for 12 minutes, or until the skins are black and they have started to seep. Remove from the oven , set aside, and let cool.

Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a mixing bowl. Set aside. Cream the butter and sugar together. Add eggs one at a time, stirring after each.

Squeeze the flesh of the bananas out of the skins and into a small mixing bowl. Add the coconut milk and vanilla and mash together. Add half of the banana mixture to the butter mixture and blend thoroughly. Add half of the flour mixture and mix until combined. Add the remaining banana mixture, blend thoroughly, and add the remaining flour mixture; mix just enough to thoroughly blend the ingredients. Pour into a lightly greased 9 by 5-inch loaf pan.

Bake in the oven for 1 to 1 1/4 hours, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on a rack, slice, and serve warm.

NOTES
Adapted from 101cookbooks.com

Roasting the bananas gives this bread such a great flavor, and the coconut milk adds a nice subtle touch as well. After using this recipe I always roast my bananas now! And I usually double the recipe too.

Freezes well -- nice and moist once thawed.

Probably would work well as muffins too, although I haven't tried it that way.

Vegan Pumpkin Coconut Bread

3 1/2 c flour
2 c brown sugar
2/3 c white sugar
2 1/2 c pumpkin puree
1 c oil
2/3 c coconut milk
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
3 tsp cinnamon
2/3 c sweetened flaked coconut

Combine flour, sugars, pumpkin, oil, coconut milk, baking soda, salt, and spices. Mix until well blended. Fold in coconut. Pour into two greased and floured loaf pans.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Remove from oven. Cover with foil tightly, and allow to steam 10 minutes. Remove foil, and turn out onto cooling rack. Tent lightly with the foil, and allow to cool completely.

NOTES
From Allrecipes.com
May make as muffins -- bake 25 minutes at 350 degrees.

Brown Sugar Peach Pie with Coconut Streusel

1/2 pkg refrigerated pie crust dough
2/3 c packed brown sugar, divided
1/4 c uncooked quick-cooking tapioca
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
6 c peeled, sliced ripe peaches, divided (about 3 lb)
1/3 c regular oats
1/4 c sweetened flaked coconut
1 1/2 Tbsp butter, melted

Fit dough into a 9" pie plate. Fold edges under; flute. Line dough with foil; arrange pie weights or dried beans on foil and bake at 425 degrees for 12 minutes. Remove weights and foil; cool crust on wire rack.

Combine 1/3 c sugar, tapioca and cinnamon; sprinkle over 4 1/2 c peaches. Toss gently; let stand 15 minutes. Spoon into prepared crust. Top with 1 1/2 c peaches. Place pie into 425 degree oven; immediately reduce heat to 350 degrees and bake pie 30 minutes.

Combine 1/3 c sugar, oats, coconut and butter; sprinkle over peach mixture. Shield edges of crust with foil. Bake 30 more minutes or until pie is bubbly. Cool on a wire rack.

NOTES
From Cooking Light.
Untried.

Chewy Coconut-Butterscotch Bars

1 1/4 c all-purpose flour
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp salt
1 c packed dark brown sugar
3 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg
1 egg white
1/4 c sweetened flaked coconut
2 Tbsp semisweet chocolate mini-chips
2 Tbsp butterscotch chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees; grease bottom, but not sides, of an 8" square baking dish.

Combine flour, baking powder and salt. Combine sugar, oil, vanilla, egg and egg white in a large bowl; whisk until well-blended. Add flour mixture; stir until just blended. Spread in pan; bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Remove from oven. Combine coconut and chips; sprinkle over brownies. Bake 10 more minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out almost clean. Cool on a wire rack.

NOTES
From Cooking Light.
Untried.