Tuesday, April 2, 2013

bill's Coconut Bread

I got so excited when baking this one that I forgot to take photos! (Also, I was running late for Easter Sunday lunch and I was determined to finish making this so I could take it with me (and score a return invitation!) With or without photos - this is a winner.

Rumour has it that this is so popular that it cannot be taken off the menu at bill granger's restaurants in Sydney. Having lived a block away from bill's 2 I can only lament that my undying obsession with scrambled eggs meant I never even looked at anything else on the menu - I have learnt my lesson.





bill granger's coconut bread


I made roughly 1 1/2 batches ( to serve as 1 1/2 hostess gifts ... I ever so politely stay long enough to ensure I'm served some!) with the amounts as below.

4 very small eggs
1 cup coconut milk
7/8 cup (I know ... why bother? ... but that's what I did) 
     semi skimmed milk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 3/4 cups plain flour
1/2 teaspoon table salt
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
1/4 cup dark brown sugar
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
210g dessicated coconut
125g melted salted butter


Heat oven to 180 (I used fan-forced this time so had it down at 160).

Whisk together eggs, coconut milk, milk and vanilla.

In a larger bowl whisk together flour, salt, baking powder, cinnnamon and sugars, before adding the coconut. Then gently fold in the contents of the other bowl before adding the melted butter.

Pour mix into one regular and one small loaf tin. This time I buttered and floured and it came out wonderfully. That said, the crust on this is pretty amazing so I have a feeling it'd probably be fine to leave any non-stick tins as is.

Now, the bit that made me late ... bake for and hour, or so, until a skewer comes out cleanly. I pulled the smaller one out just before the hour was up and after 1 hr 10mins I cranked the oven up to 180 (fan forced, remember) for another 10 minutes or so. Not ideal, but I had roast lamb waiting for me, and any 30-something Aussie girl knows that a lamb roast is better than a date with Tom Cruise (oh, how the times have changed!).

Let cool in the tins for 5-10 minutes then wrap up loosely in a teatowel and hurry off to Easter Sunday lunch! (As an aside, taunting people with the smell of freshly baked cake/bread on the train may be my new favourite pasttime!)

Next time: I'd soak the coconut in the coconut milk, and maybe use a higher proportion of coconut milk; I'd use more brown sugar (I ran out this time); I might brown the butter, or replace it with coconut oil; I think I'd add some sort of tropical fruit somehow ...; and mainly I'd like to convert it back to a cake. If nothing else (but trust me, this is so good it doesn't need anything else) I'd like to use this as a springboard to creating my very first cake recipe ... we'll see...





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