COCONUT SWEET – TOASTED COCONUT FLAKES

When you make something twice in two days and it disappears every single time you make it then you know the recipe is a keeper! This is our story with this Coconut Sweet aka homemade Toasted Coconut Flakes. These are Toasted Coconut Flakes made from fresh coconut and they are insanely satisfying!

Our hands forget discipline when this thing is in the house. We mean, we start eating it when we are still making it. We grab some of the hot one straight off the pan then we weep a little because of how good it is. Coconut sweet, how we love thee!

Coconut Sweet is a popular snack in Cameroon which is made by cutting coconut into shreds then gently toasting it until brown and crispy. It is homemade Toasted Coconut Flakes at it’s finest – crispy perfectly coconutty and sweet.

In Cameroon, this is mostly eaten as a snack just as it is but it can equally easily be incorporated into desserts. Use it as a topping for ice cream or yogurt. Use it to coat frosted cakes. Use it in your crepe or pancake batter. Use it while baking cupcakes, cakes or muffins. OR enjoy as it is. Really, just enjoy it as it is.

The struggle to make Cameroonian Coconut Sweet has been real. Back in the day, we would normally buy it from vendors in the market in Cameroon. But now, living miles away from those vendors, we had to figure out how to make ours.

July 2016. That’s when we shared our first attempt at making this delight. It didn’t quite look or taste like the one we had eaten throughout our childhood.

So we tried some more and our second attempt wasn’t quite good either: it was sticky, too dark and the shapes were off. It was nothing like Cameroonian Coconut Sweet. However, our family ate everything QUICKLY each time we made these failed batches. It turns out that the combination of coconut and sugar cooked in a pan tastes good regardless.

But we have been on a mission to make authentic Cameroonian Coconut Sweet and we think we just nailed it! The head of the tasting committee, Mr. N totally approved that this one tasted just like the one back home. We struggled with the shapes initially because we used the bigger shredding side of our box grater. Mr. N advised that we used the smaller side and we quite liked how they turned out.

Let’s make some Coconut Sweet, shall we?

How it comes together

HOW TO TOAST FRESH COCONUT – TOASTED COCONUT FLAKES

You only need 3 ingredients: 1 medium coconut, 2 heaped tablespoons of granulated sugar and a quarter cup of water (59 ml).

Now that’s pretty easy to remember right? Say it quickly: 1 medium coconut, 2 heaped tablespoons of sugar and a quarter cup of water!

The first thing you have to do here is open up your coconut. And if breaking open coconuts is a struggle, don’t worry we got you! Seriously, we would run outside and hit our coconut on a big stone each time we want to open it. No jokes. Haha. We have done this so many times that we think our neighbors have noticed us.

But we had to learn a more ‘dignified’ method of opening it so we could show you guys, Because our recipe can’t include something like, “run outside and find a big stone. Then hit your coconut hard on it several times until it opens up and the coconut water starts oozing out.” So we learned the method we're about to show you from Mr. N. This is how he opens a coconut when we ask him to help with that.

HOW TO OPEN A COCONUT

To open a coconut, you need a butcher knife. Also, be sure to keep a bowl nearby so you can collect that awesome coconut water.

Hit the coconut around its perimeter about 4 times on each spot before you move to the next spot with the blunt side of the butcher knife. You could also use a hammer for this. If words like perimeter bother you like they bother us, that just means the middle portion on the body of the coconut (does this even make sense?)

As you hit the coconut over and over, it’s going to open up and that awesome coconut water will ooze out. Collect it in a bowl and drink.

Then seperate the coconut meat/flesh from the shell. To do this, we normally use a pairing knife to slightly lift up the flesh and take it out. But we found an even easier way to do it. First pop the cracked coconut into a microwave and set on high for 2 minutes.

After that, take it out and seperate the meat from the shell with a pairing knife. It will come off easily. If you do not want to use a microwave, you could use your oven instead – bake for about 10-15 minutes at 350 degrees F (180 degrees C). Then you can seperate the flesh from the shell.

Now that we have all of our coconut shell, let’s make some coconut sweet.

HOW TO TOAST FRESH COCONUT

Shred the coconut using the small shred side of a box grater. If your box grater only has one shredding side, it is okay to use that too.

(Alternately, you could just go ahead and use storebought unsweetened coconut flakes. But we love starting with fresh coconut because that’s how we have always done it.)

Place sugar and water into a non-stick pan on medium heat. Stir until the sugar dissolves then add in the coconut flakes and mix well.

(Alternately, you could use maple syrup or honey as a sweetener.)

Now keep stirring on medium heat until the coconut assumes a beautiful golden brown color. This takes about 15 minutes but keep an eye on it, it could take less time if you choose to use storebought coconut flakes.

This will make your home smell like coconut heaven, we tell you!

And just like that your very own homemade Toasted Coconut Flakes is ready! Dig in and eat like there’s no tomorrow!

Hope you enjoy this Toasted Coconut Flakes recipe!

• Yield: 8 servings
• Prep: 20 minutes
• Cook: 15 minutes
• Total: 35 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 medium coconut
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar - heaped
• 1/4 cup water

Method

1. Break coconut open with the blunt side of a butcher knife (note: have a bowl nearby to collect the coconut water). Hold the knife in one hand then hold the coconut in another hand. Hit the coconut with the knife several times around its perimeter until it opens up. Pour coconut water into bowl and set aside.
2. Place the opened coconut in a microwave and heat on high for 2 minutes. Alternately, bake it in an oven at 350 degrees F or 180 degrees C for 15 minutes. This process makes separating the coconut flesh from the shell super easy.
3. Use a pairing (small) knife to lift the flesh from the shell.
4. Shred the coconut using the small shredding side of a box grater. Alternately, use the shredding function of your food processor.
5. Place water and sugar into a non-stick pan on medium heat and stir until sugar is dissolved. Add in shredded coconut and mix well to ensure that it absorbs all of the sugary water. Keep stirring until the coconut turns a beautiful golden brown color. This takes about 15 minutes.
6. Spread on a tray to cool then enjoy!