All posts tagged coconut

feast magazine, august 2014: guava-pineapple paletas with coconut vanilla-infused cream.

by shannon on August 6, 2014 in feast magazine article with 22 Comments

guava pineapple paletas with coconut vanilla-infused cream.

White food, coming through! Sorry, friends; this is just one of those things which will forever keep me out of “professional food photographer” territory; my inability to photograph pale food well. It’s like a curse.

The August Feast is here! It was here almost a week ago, but who’s counting? I’ve been busy poring over each page, as it’s the magazine’s annual bear hug to the best St. Louis has to offer, culinarily speaking. Not an awkward hug, either: St. Louis bear-hugs right back, and it’s something to behold, especially if you’ve lived here all your life as I have. And while all this food love happens, while gorgeous plates of food are styled and captured on film, I get to work with…paste! Continue reading →

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feast magazine, february 2014 [part two]: spicy peanut gochujang cookies.

by shannon on February 4, 2014 in desserts, feast magazine article with 37 Comments

spicy peanut gochujang cookies.

Although black walnuts were my big project this month in Feast, this is not to say that I didn’t write my regular column as well. I did, and I sort of wish it had been in a different issue, because it may be one of my favorite/weirdest recipes I’ve done so far for Mystery Shopper. I am as proud of it as I am the black walnuts piece, and my goals with both articles are the same: I want you to incorporate odd things into your regular baking and cooking lives. With these cookies, however, I want you to do more than just traditional things with a twist: I want you to get your adventurepants on.  Continue reading →

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oatmeal cookie pies + ginger coconut filling.

by shannon on November 21, 2013 in desserts with 19 Comments

oatmeal cookie pies.

American Thanksgiving is a week away, and I’ve been thinking about our menu. Rather, I’ve been making gigantic, multi-page lists of recipes I want to make and then realizing that since I’m NOT having 150 people over for dinner, that I’d better whittle it down. Seems as though this year, I’m wanting to go heavy on the vegetable offerings, and I like the idea of a sophisticated appetizer or two, but there’s been one aspect of the meal I’ve given nary a thought to: dessert.

Is it me, or does Thanksgiving just seem like The Required Pie Holiday? Pie everywhere, all the time. Does anyone make cake or cookies for Thanksgiving? We never have. Certainly pie is wonderful, and probably steeped in tradition, but who’s to say we can’t veer off that path a little bit? And I mean more than just turning a pie into a tart, friends: I mean actual un-pie-like desserts. Continue reading →

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toasted coconut, almond, + millet bark.

by shannon on September 24, 2013 in desserts, snacks with 34 Comments

toasted coconut, almond + millet bark.

I’ve been meaning to tell you about this bark. It’s terrible, when I hold out on you, particularly when it’s something this easy and this good. Did I mention that, as far as chocolate bark goes, it’s pretty good for you? There’s that too, so you can feel good about making this repeatedly for yourself and others. If you give this as a gift (which you should) and the receiver throws their hands up in protest, mumbling something about holiday calories and winter weight gain, be sure to tell them not to worry, because this is arguably the healthiest chocolate thing they’ll eat this season. Except if they eat Willow’s chocolate avocado mousse, but someday, those avocados? They’ll be gone. And you don’t want to be left with nothing. Continue reading →

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monday bites: toasted coconut + pecan bread.

by shannon on February 18, 2013 in breakfast, brunch with 28 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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