How to Open a Young Coconut in 3 Easy Steps

I had a little giggle the other day when I was with some girlfriends who confessed they have no idea how to open a coconut, so they just don't bother (or they get their hubby's to do it for them). 

So this blog post is dedicated to them. Helping to get the ladies to open their own coconuts ;)

Firstly, you need a young drinking coconut. You can buy these everywhere now.  Big supermarkets such as coles, woollies, aldi or Asian grocers will usually always stock them. When I am buying coconuts I always look for really white ones with no cracks. The older they get the bottom becomes cracked and slightly yellowy/brown... you don't want these ones. They taste old.

Ok so lets get coconut opening... You will need a half decent knife that you are prepared to say good bye to for using for any proper chopping up again as it will get blunt. Very blunt.

1. Put your coconut on a firm bench, put your left hand behind your back (or right hand if you are left handed! Yes this may seem extreme but I'm sure you would find it preferable not chopping off any of your fingers during this process) and gently mark out four or five lines on the coconut around the top

2. With your left hand behind your back, slowly hit the knife hard into those lines. Keep going around with quite a lot of pressure over the lines. 



3. Some coconuts are more stubborn than others so once you have gone around the coconut, stabbing it (in the nicest possible way) and it still doesn't open, I find it helpful to put the bottom edge of the knife into one of the openings and wedge it under hitting it through the outer shell, then you can wedge up the knife and it lifts up quite easily.

It may seem daunting the first time you open your coconut (ahhh, first world problems) but you will be a pro in no time!

Good luck!

Bee xx

RECIPE | Bounty Mountains (Almost Raw)

I LOVE coconut. Coconut yoghurt, coconut ice-cream, coconut ANYTHING. Especially just plain old coconuts!

My favourite chocolate bar growing up was the Bounty. The combo of coconut & chocolate is just heaven!

My love of these chocolate bars has led me to work on making a healthier version.. And here we have it! Bounty mountains!

Hopefully you enjoy them just as much as I do!  They are (if I do say so myself) absolutely delicious!

I cheated a little here and used  store bought dark chocolate but you could absolutely experiment with home-made raw chocolate :)

Ingredients:
3/4 cup organic dessicated coconut
3 tablespoons melted coconut oil
1 tablespoon maple syrup
4 tablespoons filtered water
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or vanilla essence
Little pinch of rock salt
200g organic dark chocolate (I used 80%)

Directions:
Line a tray with baking paper
Mix all of the above ingredients (except chocolate) together really well, mix for a few minutes with a whisk
With a tablespoon, pick up a spoon full of the mixture and put on the lined tray They will not hold together well, you will need to gather them up a little with your fingers once they are on the tray (you will see how they got their name 'Bounty Mountains')
Freeze for 30 minutes
In the mean time, melt chocolate in saucepan over low heat
Once the chocolate has melted and the coconut mixture is firm, pour chocolate over the top of your coconut and spread out a little with a knife or spoon
Put back in freezer for 10 minutes or until chocolate is set
Take them out, turn them upside down and pour remaining chocolate over bottoms of your little mountains
Freeze until all chocolate is set and then move to refrigerator until ready to serve

These make a delicious dessert or special treats for a special occasion! Even your not so healthy friends will be impressed! :)

Enjoy!

Bee xx