Annabel's Pantry

Coconut Cream

Avoid the small cans of solid coconut cream sold under Asian brand names as they are often rancid.

Coconut milk can be made from fresh or dried coconut, although the flavour of fresh is far superior. To make a thick coconut milk, puree the grated flesh of a mature coconut – or 2 cups dried, desiccated coconut – with 1 cup hot water. Strain, squeezing all the liquid from the flesh.
Chill and use within two days, or freeze.

Choosing coconut cream
Canned coconut cream and coconut milk vary widely in quality and the percentage of fat they contain (the fat carries all the flavour). Shake the can to ascertain thickness – the thicker the better.

Storage: Check for an expiry date as due to the high fat content coconut cream can go rancid. Leftover coconut cream can be frozen or will keep in the fridge for several days.

You will find a range of divine coconut recipes in Annabel's books:

Assemble - SENSATIONAL FOOD MADE SIMPLE
• Coconut Fish Fritters - page 40
• Mussels in Coconut Chilli Broth - page 80
• Chicken Tom Kar - page 80
• Thai Chicken Noodle Soup - page 80
• Coconut Lemon ice Cream - page 189
• Coconut Ice - 214

THE BEST OF ANNABEL LANGBEIN BOOK - NEW EDITION
• Coconut and Apricot Slice - page 300
• Coconut and Banana Flapjacks - page 26
• Coconut and Passionfruit Cake - page 292
• Baked Bananas with Maple Syrup and Coconut Cream - page 274
• Coconut Fish Fritters - page 29
• Frozen Chantilly Coconut Cake with Berry Compote « page 264

Cooking to Impress
• Coconut, Macadamia and Pineapple Parfait - page 138
• Individual Coconut Pavlovas - page 123
• Penang-style Seafood Laksa - page 104
• Thai Chicken Curry - page 87
• Fish Curry - page 87
• South American Marinated Fish « page 25

SAVOUR THE PACIFIC
• Pacific Muesli - page 30
• Coconut and Banana Flapjacks « page 34
• Tropical Yoghurt - page 34
• Tropical Fruit Slice - page 43
• Coconut Passion Cake - page 54
• Spicy Pumpkin Soup « page 60