Who here does not love Calvin and Hobbes?
No, I mean really.
As far as I’m concerned, Calvin is right about everything (school is a boring waste of time and YES, the world would be better with dinosaurs) but not about coconut. Because as wise and profound as that six-year old kid is, he does not understand coconut.
Coconut can be delicious – it can be toasted, creamed, strained into stews and pressed into oil that’s sweet and flavorfull all at the same time. This coconut cream tart has a rich filling, with mixed-in coconut milk that laces it with a pronounced, but not overwhelming, flavour. The texture is buttery and soft, perfectly complemented with the crisp crust.
The crust: it has oats, mixed with browned butter, sweetened with brown sugar and given an additional nuttiness and crunch with flaxseed. The flaxseed actually lends a lot to the flavour and texture, somewhat like a subtle seasoning that goes surprisingly well with the coconut.
Even better: it does not take time. You can assemble the entire thing in 20 minutes, pop it into the oven and forget about it. And while it certainly is creamy, it isn’t as rich as a more traditional dessert, which makes it perfect for a really heavy dinner or even a teatime snack.
Coconut Cream Tart
Ingredients
For the crust:
1 cup oats
1 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup flaxseed
Pinch of salt
For the filling:
1 cup coconut milk
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup flour
1/4 cup softened butter
1 egg
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
For the topping:
A handful of fresh grated coconut
Method
For the crust:
Heat the cup of butter on a low flame, until it melts. Stir it occasionally and continue heating. Eventually, it’ll start to bubble and then brown. Wait till it turns a dark shade and starts to smell nutty, and then take it off the flame and cool.
Stir together the brown butter and oats. Add the sugar, flaxseed and salt and mix. Transfer the entire dish to a pre-greased 6″ flat dish, and press it down with a spatula/spoon until it evenly coats the bottom of the vessel.
Bake at 170 C for 10 minutes.
For the filling:
Sift the flour and baking powder into a bowl.
Beat the butter until it turns pale. Add the eggs one by one, beating as you do so that it’s well incorporated. Then, add the sugar, the coconut milk and cinnamon.
Pour the coconut milk mixture into the flour in three batches, stirring with a spoon so that it’s well incorporated.
Pour the mixture into the baked oats crust, and bake for another 20 minutes, reducing the temperature to 160 C. When it’s done, the filling should be firm but have a slight creaminess on the inside.
Sprinkle the grated coconut over and serve.
Tell people not to believe everything that Calvin says.
Milquetoast 