Living with a puppy is hard. They’re attention seeking, trouble making balls of fluff that look so sweet and innocent yet have teeth as pointy and sharp as needles. My fingers are throbbing as I type. They chew… everything, including freshly painted toes. But I wouldn’t have it any other way. Stanley is now 11 weeks old and he’s just as stubborn and sweet as ever. Not sure what we got ourselves into, but whatever it is it’s a place with lots of stress, tears and happiness. Looking at these pictures, he’s changed so much in the three short weeks we’ve had him. Now if only this little guy would let me into the kitchen more often…
White chocolate is a tricky thing. Lots of people don’t really like it, it’s hard to bake/cook with, and it can be hard to eat lots of it if it’s too sweet (major dilemma in my kitchen). I was really intrigued to see people talking about caramelizing white chocolate, transforming it from the stuff that makes people turn their noses up to this glorious, golden brown nectar of the gods. It sounds like an exaggeration, some may think it is, but it’s hard to describe how special it truly is. The only way to describe what it tastes like is a velvety, toffeeish substance with a hint of cocoa that melts in your mouth. Then, when you get a speck of sea salt among all the caramel yumminess it just takes it to a whole other level!
Spread this toasty chocolate liquid over the top of a blondie batter chock full of coconut and you have one heck of a delicious and impressive dessert. It creates this toffee flavoured crust on top of the dense coconut blondie. And please don’t be scared, it’s not as tricky as you may think. But just be patient with the chocolate, I had about three meltdowns thinking it wasn’t going to turn out right and somehow, it did. Persevere people, it’s so worth it!
Coconut Blondies with Caramelized White Chocolate
Makes 24-32 squares
For the Caramelized white chocolate from David Lebovitz
Makes about 1 cup
12 ounces (340g) white chocolate with at least 30% cocoa butter (this is important for the melting process)
pinch of flaky sea salt
Preheat the oven to 250F (120 C)
If the white chocolate is in a block, chop it into coarse pieces.
Distribute the white chocolate on a rimmed baking sheet and heat for ten minutes.
Remove it from the oven and spread it with a clean, dry spatula.
Continue to cook for and additional 30-60 minutes, stirring at 10 minute intervals. At some points it may look lumpy and chalky (and even unpleasant), but keep stirring and it will smooth out and caramelize. *If it’s really dry, you can add a tablespoon or two vegetable oil or cocoa butter, not regular butter, to the chocolate to help thin it out.
Cook until the white chocolate is deep-golden brown, and caramelized. Stir in a good pinch of sea salt.
If it’s lumpy, scrape it into a bowl and smooth it out with an immersion blender, or in a food processor.
Set aside until blondie batter is ready.
*Or store in a jar, at room temperature, until ready to use. It should keep for several months, if stored in a cool, dry place.
For the Blondies:
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar
2/3 cups (5 T.) butter, softened
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups sweetened shredded coconut
*You could add up to a cup of nuts if you like. I would go for macadamia if I was to add them.
Preheat oven to 350° F. Grease 9×13 inch baking pan.
In medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
In large bowl, beat brown sugar, butter and vanilla extract until creamy. Beat in egg. Gradually beat in flour mixture until combined and no flour streaks remain.
Stir in coconut, nuts (if using) and half the caramelized white chocolate. Press into prepared baking pan. Pour remaining white chocolate over the batter and swirl into batter with a knife.
Cover with foil so white chocolate doesn’t scorch and bake for 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake for another 5-10 minutes or until golden brown at the edges. Cool completely in pan on wire rack, then cut into bars.
