COCONUT ICE & TOASTED COCONUT VANILLA LIMEADE

Coconut and summer are intertwined for me.  It's mostly the smell, the scent of "Maui Babe" being lathered on my sister and cousins, and maybe the memory of those frozen coconut pops I used to devour as a kid.  "Maui Babe" looks and smells like coconut oil and brown sugar.  It's golden, it's heady, and it's the opposite of my summer experience.  My sister would tease me that I look like I just had a face lift, cloaked in my wide brimmed hat, massive sunglasses, men's button down and spf 70. The scent represented what summer should be, the summer I'd observe, but not usually the one I would experience as a red head cloistered under the shade.


 

Coconut Ice is an Aussie treat I recently rediscovered.  It's crazy sweet and usually tinted with a few drops of food coloring. It's the perfect hostess of a barbecue dessert because it takes 10 minutes to make and can live in the fridge until the burgers run out. But why use food coloring when you can marble coconut ice with a fresh strawberry lime syrup? Imagine a pina colada and a strawberry margarita had a baby (I believe it's called a "Lava Flow"); that is what this tastes like.

Strawberry-Lime Coconut Ice
For 10-12
1 cup strawberries, halved
1 lime, juiced
1/2 cup sugar
4 cups unsweetened dried coconut flakes (thinly sliced)
1 14oz can condensed milk
2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
2 teaspoons lime zest


Combine the strawberries, lime juice, and sugar in a small pot and bring to a boil. Turn heat down to a simmer until the liquid clings to the back of a spoon. Strain the liquid and cool.


In a large bowl, sift together the powdered sugar and cream of tartar over the dried coconut. Stir to combine and add the condensed milk and lime zest, stirring until mixed together thoroughly.


In a lightly greased pan (I used a pyrex 3 cup rectangular glass dish) press down a third of the coconut mixture and drizzle with strawberry syrup. Add another third, and repeat until the dish is full. Cover in plastic wrap and chill in fridge for at least 2 hours to set. Slice up and serve. (You don't want them hanging out on a serving dish for too long, but they're fine for at least an hour out of the fridge).





The toasted coconut vanilla limeade just sounds good, right? Full disclosure: at least 50% of my recipes are based on what sounds good. Luckily, that instinct usually proves correct, and what sounds good, is good.  The toasted coconut adds a rich, deep flavor to the drink that's just dynamite with the brown sugar flavor of agave nectar. With vanilla and lime, this is the perfect summer drink.


 


For 4 cups
1 cup lime juice (about 10 limes), fresh squeezed
1 cup sweet coconut flakes, packed
2 1/2 cups hot water
1 1/2 cups coconut water (optional, just use regular water if you prefer)
1/4 cup agave nectar
1/2 vanilla bean, scraped (or 1 teaspoon vanilla paste)


Preheat oven to 350 F.  Lightly toast the coconut on a baking sheet, thinly spread out, for about 5-7 minutes, stirring once halfway through. Juice the limes and put all of the used halves into a bowl, along with the coconut and vanilla bean (or vanilla paste), and cover with 2 cups of hot water.  Let it sit for about 10 minutes.  The hot water pulls all of the natural oils out of the lime skins and adds so much flavor. Strain into a blender and add the coconut water, lime juice, and agave nectar.  Blend until just incorporated. Pour into a pitcher and chill in the fridge until ready to serve.

PIZZA NIGHT FROM FOOD FOR THOUGHT WITH CLAIRE THOMAS

My brother Henry and I have officially started a tradition. Well, we've done it twice, so that counts, right?

It's called Pizza Night, and though I make pizza for the fam at least a couple of times a year (or at least whenever Henry badgers me about it), its big moment is on Christmas day.

After presents and breakfast Henry and I make the dough, and while the family is out to the movies, it rises. Everyone picks out their toppings and we stand around the kitchen eating our piping hot pizza. This time around (for the inaugural Christmas Day pizza, click here) I took the leftovers from my Christmas Eve pasta and some inspiration from my favorite Italian Classics. The results were delicious:


NOTE: All of the pizzas use the same dough recipe.


Pizza Dough
For 4 10-12 inch pizzas

3 cups high gluten flour (I use King Arthur's Bread Flour), though All Purpose is fine too.
1 teaspoon yeast (half a pack)
1 3/4 cups warm water (about 70-80 degrees, not too hot or you'll kill the yeast)
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
Olive oil

In a the bowl of your electric mixer, combine all of the ingredients except for the olive oil. Stir gently to combine. Attach the dough hook to your mixer and on the second highest speed (8 on a Kitchen Aid) knead the dough for 15 minutes, or until it has formed a ball on the hook and has completely pulled away from the sides of the bowl. The best test to see if it's elastic enough is to pull off a tablespoon of dough and stretch it into a square. You should be able to pull it thin enough to see light through it without it tearing. It is tears knead it for another minute. When it's ready, knead on the highest level for an extra two or three minutes. Lightly oil a container with olive oil, add the dough, and cover with a lid (or plastic wrap if using a bowl). Mark or mentally note where the dough is, and note where it should be for it to triple in size. Set aside in a warm spot (on top of the fridge is great) and let it ferment for 3 1/2 to 4 hours or until tripled in size.

An hour before making the pizzas set your pizza stone in the center of the oven and crank it up as high it can go for at least an hour.

When the dough is ready, scoop it onto a floured counter (it'll puddle out) and cut into four equal pieces. Cover with plastic wrap and let it sit for 10 minutes. When ready, pick up a piece of dough and stretch at the edges, moving the dough through your hands in a circle. It doesn't have to be perfect, just get it as thin as you can and put it on a flour baking peel or rimless cookie sheet. Add your toppings and bake for 7-8 minutes or until golden brown. Enjoy!


Red Sauce:
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons of red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon of salt
2 large cloves of garlic, minced
1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes (or pureed if you prefer that texture)
1 tablespoon fresh oregano leaves, finely chopped
1  tsp paprika


Bring the olive oil, red pepper flakes, salt, and minced garlic up to heat over a medium flame for about a minute. Stir in the tomatoes, paprika and the fresh oregano and bring to a gentle simmer.


Breakfast Pizza
1 pizza dough recipe (makes 4 small pizzas)

1/2 cup cooked bacon pieces

1 cup grated mozzarella

2/3 cup hash browns, crumbled

1/2 cup red sauce

1-2 eggs (per pizza)

Parsley, finely chopped

Preheat oven on highest heat with a pizza stone for at least an hour. On one stretched pizza dough on the floured pizza peel (or a floured baking sheet if you don't have one)smooth 2 tablespoons of tomato sauce onto the pizza, covering the whole thing, save a 1/2 inch around the edge. Top with a quarter of the cheese (there should be a lot of space around each slice), hash browns, and bacon. Pop on the pizza stone and cook for 2-3 minutes. Then pull the pizza out and crack the one or two eggs on top of the pizza. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and parsley. Bake for another 5-6 minutes and eat ASAP. Not that that will be a problem. Enjoy!

Classic Margherita
1 pizza dough recipe (makes 4 small pizzas)
1/2 cup red sauce
8 oz bufala mozzarella (2 balls), sliced 1/4 inch thick (about 16 slices)
1/2 cup basil, chiffonade
Olive oil


Preheat oven on highest heat with a pizza stone for at least an hour. On one stretched pizza dough on the floured pizza peel (or a floured baking sheet if you don't have one)smooth 2 tablespoons of tomato sauce onto the pizza, covering the whole thing, save a 1/2 inch around the edge. Top with a quarter of the cheese (there should be a lot of space around each slice).  Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons of basil and drizzle with olive oil.  Bake for 8 minutes. Slice and enjoy!


Herbed Breadsticks
1 pizza dough recipe (makes 10 medium breadsticks)
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon oregano, finely chopped
1 tablespoon salt
3/4 cup corn meal, finely ground
Olive oil
1/2 cup butter, melted


When you make the pizza dough, add the garlic and oregano to the mixture, and continue normally.  Preheat oven on highest heat with a pizza stone for at least an hour. 


When the dough is ready, scoop it onto a floured counter (it'll puddle out) and cut into 5 equal pieces, and divide those pieces again. Cover with plastic wrap and let it sit for 10 minutes. When ready, pick up a piece of dough and roll out into logs about 12 inches long.  Roll the logs in the cornmeal and place on the floured baking peel, one at a time.  Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Bake for 8 minutes or until puffed up and golden brown.  Brush with butter and serve. Enjoy!

Sweet Pizza

1 pizza dough recipe (makes 4 small pizzas)

2/3 cup nutella

8 oz mascarpone

3/4 cup walnuts, chopped

1/3 cup honey 

Preheat oven on highest heat with a pizza stone for at least an hour. Bake one stretched pizza dough on the floured pizza peel (or a floured baking sheet if you don't have one) for 8 minutes.  While it's still warm, smooth about 3 tablespoons of nutella onto the pizza, covering the whole thing, save a 1/2 inch around the edge. Top with a quarter of the mascarpone (there should be a lot of space around each slice).  Sprinkle with about 3 tablespoons of walnuts and drizzle with some honey.  Slice and enjoy!