Cocoanut Dainties (1931) ★★★★


I found this recipe at The Old Foodie. I liked it because it looked super simple and I also thought it would be a good treat for Little Y, who loves coconut. They're also pretty cheap to make, with only 3 ingredients.

Original Recipe:
Cocoanut Dainties.

Here is some cooking which a small child could do. The ingredients needed are:-

Four table-spoonfuls of sugar, 8 tablespoonfuls of desiccated cocoanut, and the whites of two eggs. Beat the whites of the eggs to a froth, add the sugar, and beat well again. Then stir in in the cocoanut.

Drop teaspoonfuls of this mixture on to a greased slide, and bake about 10 or 15 minutes in a moderate oven.

(A Parrot Card is awarded to Jean Douglas, Coast Road, Mirboo [?] North, Gippsland.)



The Verdict:
Not bad. I'm not a huge fan of coconut either, but I don't mind these. They did turn out pretty chewy, and I was hoping for more of a crunchy meringue, but still good (I realized as I was writing this up that I accidentally used half the amount of sugar. I didn't even notice, however, I wonder if that had anything to do with the texture.)! Perhaps they could benefit from a splash of vanilla, but otherwise they're fine as is. They're a great option for when you'd like a sweet treat but are lazy. It took minutes to whip these up and the great thing is that they don't spread, so you could probably even fit all of them on one baking sheet. They are best eaten the day of, because otherwise they tend to get sticky, even in this dry winter air.
Yield: 16 dainties


Modernized Recipe:
(Adapted from the Children's pages of The Argus, December 12, 1931, found at The Old Foodie)

2 EGG WHITES
4 tablespoons SUGAR
8 tablespoons DESICCATED COCONUT
1 teaspoon VANILLA EXTRACT (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl, beat the egg whites until frothy. Add the sugar and beat until stiff peaks form. Gently fold in the coconut.
3. Drop teaspoonfuls of the mixture on the prepared cookie sheet. Bake about 10 or 15 minutes until the tips become golden brown. Let cool and store in a well-sealed container.


Anje graduated with a Honours Bachelors degree in History with a minor in Museum Studies. She currently lives and works in Japan's least populous prefecture as an assistant English teacher.

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