coconut | The Little GSP

Hello! I’ve been pretty bad about posting lately but I have a good excuse… Matt and I are getting married in 11 days! That means that I’ve been busy making wedding things (place cards, welcome bags, menus, programs, burlap table runners…the list goes on) and doing pre-wedding activities like wine-tasting at our venue, Grace Winery, taking first-dance dance lessons (we’re doing the rumba!), writing our ceremony and going to dress fittings. Whew!

But, enough about the wedding… this post is about PIE! Easy, no-bake coconut cream pie, to be exact. 🙂 This is our second foray into the world of no-bake pies (see our Peanut Butter Cream Pie for the first) and it further solidified our love of these super-simple desserts. We used store bought pie crusts, pudding mix, and cool whip and the whole recipe only took about 20 minutes of “active” time. Perfect!

Easy No-Bake Coconut Cream Pie (from Kraft.com; doubled to make 2 pies)

You will need…
4 – 3.4 oz. packages of JELL-O Vanilla Instant Pudding
4 cups Cold 1% Milk
1 – 16 oz. container Cool Whip Topping, divided
2 cups Sweetened Coconut Flakes, divided
2 store bought Graham Cracker Pie Crusts

Directions:
Beat pudding mixes and milk together in a large bowl of a stand mixer for 2 minutes. Mix in about half of the cool whip (approx. 2 cups) and 1 ½ cups of the coconut. Pour the mixture into the two pie crusts and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or until the pudding is set. Store the remaining Cool Whip in the refrigerator (not the freezer) so that it will be spreadable later.

While the pudding sets, spread the remaining coconut out onto a baking sheet and toast in a preheated 350°F oven for 10-15 minutes. Check on the coconut frequently and stir it to keep from burning on the edges. The coconut is done when it turns golden brown.

Take the two pies and the Cool Whip out of the fridge and top each pie with the remaining Cool Whip. Sprinkle the toasted coconut over top and enjoy!

Merry Christmas Eve Eve! 🙂 Matt and I kicked off our holiday cooking last week by baking dozens of Chocolate-Dipped Coconut Cookie Sticks. We chose coconut cookies because I have fond memories of making a similar cookie with my mom years ago so I thought it would be fun to recreate them this year. I don’t have my mom’s original recipe so I used this recipe from Vesta Vamps and it was perfect! The cookies turned out buttery, crisp and chocolatey and they looked great “wrapped” in mason jars with red bows. We shared several jars with friends and family and still have a couple dozen left over for ourselves.

Chocolate-Dipped Coconut Cookie Sticks (from Vesta Vamps)

You will need…
1 pound (4 sticks) Butter, at room temperature
1 1/3 cups Sugar
3/4 teaspoon Salt
3 Egg Yolks
2 teaspoons Vanilla
4 2/3 cups All-Purpose Flour
1 bag (approx. 5 1/2 cups) Sweeted Coconut Flakes
16 oz. Semisweet Chocolate, roughly chopped

Directions:
In a stand mixer beat together the butter, sugar and salt until light a fluffy, approximately 3-4 minutes. Beat in the egg yolks, one at a time and add the vanilla. Beat until smooth, then add in the flour in small increments and mix until combined. Scoop the dough out of the bowl with your hands and form into two dough balls.

Meanwhile, empty the bag of coconut out onto a large rimmed cookie sheet and place in a preheated 350° oven. Toast the coconut for 15-18 minutes until golden brown, stirring frequently. Remove the toasted coconut from the oven and allow to cool.

Place one of the dough balls and half of the toasted coconut into the mixer bowl. Mix until combined and then remove the dough from the bowl and divide in half. Use your hands to form each dough half into rectangles that measure approximately 18 in. long by 5 in. wide and 1/2-3/4 in. tall. Place the dough rectangles onto parchment paper and allow to chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes. Repeat this step with the second half of the dough; you should end up with 4 chilled rectangles.

Cut the chilled dough into cookie sticks that are approximately 1/2 inch wide. Roll the dough slightly between your palms to create a round cookie (or leave it flat to create more of a biscotti-type shape) and place the dough sticks onto a non-stick cookie sheet. Bake each batch of sticks in a preheated 350° oven for 12-14 minutes until golden brown. Allow the cookies to cool on the tray for 5 minutes and then carefully transfer them to cooling racks until they cool completely.

Place the chopped chocolate in a double boiler bowl over simmering water and stir until it melts. Dip the end of each cookie into the chocolate mixture, scrape any excess chocolate off on the side of the bowl, and place each of the cookies on parchment paper to cool.

This makes about 120 cookies and they are perfect to share with friends and family around the holidays!