Coconut Brownies

I had most of the can of cream of coconut left over from my piña coladas the other night. There wasn’t enough to make coconut macaroons but there was plenty to make coconut brownies (plus enough to experiment with another cocktail).

Decadently rich with a lovely coconut and very deeply chocolate flavor. So yummy!

4 ounces bittersweet chocolate
3/4 cup Coco Lopez® Cream of Coconut
1 ½ cups sugar
3 large eggs, beaten
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup chocolate morsels (I used Ghiradelli Bittersweet morsels)

Preheat the oven to 35O°. Butter an 8-inch square brownie pan.

Melt the chocolate in the coconut cream in the top of a double broiler over simmering water. Remove from heat.

Combine the sugar, eggs and vanilla in a large mixing bowl and whisk until smooth. Mix in the chocolate mixture. Sift together the flour, cinnamon, baking powder and salt. Add to the brownie batter and just to mix to combine. Stir in the chocolate morsels. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.

Bake the brownies until the top is crusty, but the center remains a little soft, about 35 minutes. Let cool completely in the pan on a wire rack. Cut the brownies into 8 rectangles.

Piña Colada

It has been super hot, without much precipitation so I’m hoping that drinking a piña colada will not only be refreshing but increase my odds of getting caught in the rain.

If you want, you can make it virgin by increasing the pineapple juice to 4 ounces and dropping the rum.

Smooth and refreshing. Took me right out of my crabby mood. Make your own and escape.

2 ounces light rum
2 ounces pineapple juice (I used Dole)
2 ounces cream of coconut (I use Coco Lopez)

Put the rum, pineapple juice and cream of coconut into a shaker with a handful of ice and shake vigorously. Pour over ice in a large glass.

Rosemary Honey Butter Grilled Sweet Potatoes

I was doing my grilling for the 4th a day early and decided that I wanted to try something new on the sweet potatoes. Instead of brown sugar, I went with a local honey collected by my parents’ realtor – Coastal Honey Farm in Lillian, Alabama. The rest was easy – sprinkle in some rosemary and salt, mash it together and toss on the grill.

The sweet potato is smokey, creamy, herby and just a little sweet. Terrific!

1 stick butter, softened
3 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
½ teaspoon salt
2 large sweet potatoes

Mix the honey, salt and rosemary with the butter until well combined. Set aside.

Wash the sweet potatoes and cut into planks about ½ inch thick. Toss in the butter. Put on the grill for 20 minutes. Flip and then baste with more of the honey butter. Cook until done – they should not give resistance when poked. Toss again to baste again and then remove from the grill.

Happy grilling!