COCONUT-DILL SALMON WITH GREEN BEANS AND CORN

Posted in Seafood by sallybr

Huge thank you to my dear friend Margie, who recommended this recipe. In fact, she often sends me recipes she loves, and they are always winners. This one I found particularly unusual because apart from the use of dill, which is a traditional match with salmon, corn and green beans seemed unexpected to me. And you know what? They work like a charm! Margie is a fantastic cook, world-traveler and great writer. I take this opportunity to share her substack site (click here), so you can subscribe (it is free!) and read about her adventures.

COCONUT-DILL SALMON WITH GREEN BEANS AND CORN
(slightly modified from New York Times)

1 (2-pound) salmon fillet (skin on or off)
2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup unsweetened coconut cream
1tablespoons dark brown sugar
2 tsp sherry vinegar
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 lemon
chopped fresh dill to taste (you can use up to 1/2 cup)
8 ounces green beans, trimmed
1 cup fresh corn kernels
1 pint cherry tomatoes, sliced into halves or quarters if large

Heat an outdoor grill. Pat the fish dry with paper towels and place on a large strip of heavy-duty aluminum foil on a sheet pan. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon oil and sprinkle lightly with salt.

In a small bowl, combine the coconut cream, brown sugar, vinegar, mustard, 1 tablespoon oil, salt and pepper. Zest the lemon right into the bowl and squeeze in 1 tablespoons juice. Stir in the fresh dill. Pour half of the dressing over the fish and set the other half aside. Wrap the fish in the foil by turning up the sides and crimping them together to form a packet.

On another large strip of foil, toss the green beans with oil and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Wrap the beans in the foil to form a packet. Place both the salmon and green bean packets on the grill and cover if using a gas grill. Grill until the green beans and salmon are cooked through, about 10 minutes. Transfer the fish packet to a large serving platter and open the top.

Open the green bean packet, transfer the beans to a large bowl and add the corn, tomatoes, more fresh dill, half of the reserved dressing and a pinch of salt. Toss to coat. To serve, top the fish with some of the vegetables and remaining dressing.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I had never grilled green beans in a packet like that, and loved the result, it is so easy and mess-free, I will be making it often, whenever the main dish involves grilling. The salmon, cooked in the foil, developed a very soft texture, with the nice added bonus of the coconut sauce, a bit on the sweet-and-sour path. Perfect! If you have a ton of dill available use it, I did not and was a bit shocked at the price of dill at the grocery store, so I reduced the amount considerably. Margie told me she made the recipe again and used cilantro, and thought it was a nice twist, consider that as another possibility. Hardest part of the recipe? Getting the corn kernels off the cob, I am not particularly fond of that, but nothing beats the freshness of corn prepared that way. Go for it. I do have a perfect tool to help that job, so not sure why I am winning….

Margie, thanks for always inspiring me!

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12Jul2026

COCONUT LAMINGTONS

Posted in Cake, Desserts, Desserts, Sweets by sallybr

Maybe you know Haniela from her amazing cookie decorating skills, but she goes way beyond that: she is an accomplished baker on all sorts of areas. One of her husband’s favorite desserts is the Australian classic, Lamington. Hani has used this recipe for a long, long time and her blog post about it makes this potentially intimidating concoction pretty straightforward to make. Check her detailed article here.

COCONUT LAMINGTONS
(from Haniela’s blog)

for the sponge cake:
2 + 1/3 cup all purpose flour (330 grams)
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
4 large eggs, at room temperature
1 + 1/4 cup powdered sugar (150 grams)
6 tbsp oil (82-85 grams)
2 tbsp honey (45 grams)
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
1 cup milk, at room temperature (240-250 grams)

for the chocolate glaze:
2 + 1/2 cup powdered sugar (300 grams)
1/2 cup cocoa powder (50 grams)
6 tbsp milk (90-95 grams)
1 cup unsalted butter (226 grams)
1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
unsweetened coconut (1 + 1/2 5oz bags)

Heat oven to 350°F.

Line a 9×13-inch cake pan with parchment. Into a bowl, combine all-purpose flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl, beat 4 large eggs with powdered sugar on medium-high, for 5-8 minutes, until pale in color. Then gradually beat in oil untill well combined. Then beat in honey and lastly add vanilla extract. Beat well. Gradually, on medium speed beat in flour mixture, alternating with room-temperature milk.

Pour cake batter into a prepared 9×13 inch cake pan. Use a spatula to evenly distribute the batter into a pan. Bake the cake for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool the cake in the pan for 5-10 minutes. Invert the cake onto a cooling rack, cover it with a kitchen towel, and cool completely.

Trim the sides of the cake, about 1/4 to 1/2 inch off each side. Then cut the cake into 2-inch squares. Cover with a towel while you prepare the chocolate glaze so teh cake doesn’t crust around the edges.

Make the glaze: In a saucepan, combine powdered sugar, cocoa powder and milk. Heat on low heat until completely melted and smooth. Then, gradually add cut-up butter and heat the glaze until all the butter is melted. Whisk until the glaze is homogeneous. Remove from the heat, stir in vanilla extract. Keep chocolate glaze warm for dipping. Glaze thickens as it cools, simply warm it up as needed.

Pour glaze into a bowl, dip one square cake at a time. Use a fork to help you turn the cake to coat. Then let the cake sit on a fork and tap the fork or your wrist to release any excess glaze, allowing it to drip back into a bowl. Coat each glazed cake square in coconut.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: The sponge cake component was a total dream to work with, perfect bake, flat, allowing me to cut square pieces without any struggle. I made the cake the day before, kept it covered with Saran wrap and a towel at room temperature. Next morning I cut the pieces, glazed and coated them with coconut. My advice is to work near a sink, rinse and dry your fingers after each piece that gets coated. It is a messy process but I thought it was going to be much worse. To coat in coconut, I dropped the glazed piece on the bowl, then used a fork to flip it. At that point I could hold the piece with my fingers touching the two sides that already had coconut on them, and coated the sides turning the piece with my hand. That worked well, using a fork was just too awkward for me. I donated the whole batch, but whenever I make a recipe for the first time, I save one for me and the husband to taste. Two thumbs all the way up, moist cake, delicious coating, chocolate and coconut make a wonderful match. I really hope you give Haniela’s recipe a try, it is a nice baking project to tackle, and you will feel quite accomplished later…

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9Dec2025

108 ASIAN COOKIES

Posted in Cookies by sallybr

I am totally in love with this cookbook! I have a soft spot for baking that is not overly sweet, which might sound strange, as I bake so many sugar cookies, macarons, and cupcakes. But a recipe that calls for adding miso to a cookie gets me dreaming. Salted caramel? Same thing. This is actually my second cookbook from Kat Lieu, and I think both would be a great Christmas gift for bakers (wink, wink).

To order 108 Asian Cookies, click here

To order Modern Asian Baking, click here

Without further ado, here is a wonderfully delicious recipe for Masala Macaroons…

MASALA MACAROONS
(published with permission from 108 Asian Cookies)

One 14-ounce (396 g) can sweetened condensed milk
1 ripe small banana, mashed
1 teaspoon red miso
One 14-ounce (396 g) bag unsweetened shredded coconut
2 teaspoons garam masala
½ teaspoon ground cardamom
½ teaspoon ground ginger
About ⅓ cup (60 g) semisweet chocolate chips, plus more as needed
1 teaspoon neutral oil
Sea salt flakes, for garnish
Sprinkles, for garnish (optional)

Heat the oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. In a large mixing bowl, mix the condensed milk, mashed banana, and miso until combined. Add the shredded coconut, garam masala, cardamom, and ginger and mix until well combined and the dough can hold itself together.

Scoop heaping tablespoons of batter for each macaroon and place on the prepared baking sheet. Keep their rounded mound shapes and give each about 1 inch of space. Bake all the macaroons until the edges are crispy and golden brown and the tops are lightly toasted, 16 to 18 minutes.

Let the macaroons set on the baking sheets for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. While the macaroons are cooling, combine the chocolate chips and oil in a medium heatproof bowl and microwave in 30-second bursts, stirring after each interval, until the chocolate is melted and smooth. Dip the bottoms of the cooled macaroons into the melted chocolate. Place them back on the parchment-lined baking sheets to set. Drizzle additional melted chocolate on top of each macaroon. Before the chocolate sets completely, sprinkle a few flakes of sea salt and sprinkles on top of each macaroon.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: These were superb, I confess to stealing one from the donation box and being happy that I did… If you don’t like coconut, of course these are not for you, but if you love them, be ready for a treat! Easy to make, rich and luscious, one will satisfy your sweet tooth, but the spices and miso tone it down substantially. Truly special… You need them in your life.

As a teaser, these are chocolate chip cookies described by Kat as Best Chocolate Chip Cookies Ever. They take Ovaltine, molasses and miso. To die for, honestly. You need these cookies and this cookbook in your life.

Big thank you to Kat for allowing me to share this recipe today!

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2Feb2025

COCONUT CUPCAKES GET FROSTY

Posted in Cake, Desserts, Desserts, Sweets by sallybr

Several components needed for this bake, but isn’t it all worth it? I cannot take credit for the idea, I saw it by total accident in this Instagram page and fell in love with it. I adapted to use my own cupcake recipe and Tanya – tent-baker-extraordinaire and amazing friend – helped me with a frosting that holds well at room-temperature.

FROSTED COCONUT CUPCAKES WITH SNOWMAN COOKIE DECORATION
(adapted from several sources, inspired by Constellation Inspiration)

For the cupcakes (makes 12):
170g cake flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
113g butter at room temperature
200g sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract or paste
80g egg whites
90g sour cream
85g coconut milk

Heat oven to 350F. Make sure that the butter, egg whites, coconut milk and sour cream are at room temperature. Fill a cupcake pan with paper liners. Reserve.

Sift the cake flour baking powder, baking soda and salt. Reserve. Cream butter and sugar with the paddle attachment of a KitchenAid type mixer for about 5 minutes. Add vanilla to the egg whites and slowly pour into the creamed butter/sugar, continuing to mix and medium-low speed. Mix the coconut milk with the sour cream, then add to the mixer 1/3 of the reserved dry ingredients, 1/2 of the milk/sourcream, followed by 1/3 of the dry, 1/2 liquids, and finally the remaining amount of dry ingredients.

Place in the lined cupcake pan. Bake for 22 to 25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow the cupcakes to cool completely before frosting.

COCONUT BUTTERCREAM
(from Tanya Ott)

1 cup butter, softened
3 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup coconut milk

Whisk the butter with a Kitchen Aid type mixer and the paddle attachment for about 4 minutes. Add the powdered sugar in three batches, continue beating in medium-speed. Add the coconut milk, beat at medium-high for 2 minutes or so. Adjust consistency with powdered sugar if needed. Frost the cupcakes once they are at room temperature and immediately stick a snowman cookie on top.

SNOWMAN DECORATION

Bake rings of chocolate cookie dough small enough to fit over the cupcake. They will be fragile. Try to make them smaller than the ones I made, so they will have an easier time standing up on the frosted cake.

Once the rings are baked, use this recipe (minus the food gel color) to make the stained glass component. Pour inside the rings, let them set. Use Royal icing to create a snowy scene with a snowman.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I absolutely loved making the stained-glass component with the snowman. You can do that a couple of days in advance, store at room temperature. They hold well. I made mine slightly too big, and at first I thought they would never stand up, but with “a little bit extra frosting” they did stay happily up. Consider decreasing the size a bit. Or, if you don’t mind the extra frosting, just go big!

The decorations matched very well our current situation in Manhattan, Kansas, aka The Little Apple.

We expect that by this weekend the snow will finally melt in our surroundings. It’s been a tough month of January. For too many reasons. Baking is keeping me reasonably sane. Or so everyone arounds me hopes.

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5Oct2024

GERMAN CHOCOLATE MACARONS

Posted in macarons by sallybr

These were made with a colleague from our department in mind, it was a big Birthday for our IT wizard who is also a lover of German Chocolate Cake. I decided to make a filling that started as a brigadeiro would, but with coconut for good measure. Some toasted pecans in the center. And a coating with chocolate. Gold luster powder to add the mandatory bling, as if you don’t sparkle on a Birthday there is something wrong with you!

GERMAN CHOCOLATE MACARONS
(from the Bewitching Kitchen)

For the shells:
200g powdered sugar
115 g almond flour, preferably super fine
115 g egg whites at room temperature (approx. 4 eggs)
1/8 tsp of cream of tartar (optional)
100 g granulated sugar
¼ tsp vanilla paste or extract
brown and a tiny bit of red gel food color

Line 3 heavy baking sheets with parchment/baking paper or Silpat mats. Layer the powdered sugar and almond flour in a food processor. Pulse until the mixture looks like fine meal, about 12 pulses. Pass through a sieve and transfer to a small bowl or to a sheet of parchment/baking paper. Set aside.

Place the egg whites and cream of tartar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Make sure that the bowl and the whisk are impeccably clean. Starting on medium speed, whip the whites with the cream of tartar until they look like light foam. The whites should not appear liquid. The foam will be light and should not have any structure.

Slowly rain in the granulated sugar in five additions, trying to aim the stream between the whisk and the side of the bowl. Turn the speed up to high. Continue to whip the meringue until it is soft and shiny. It should look like marshmallow creme (marshmallow fluff). Add the vanilla. Whip the egg whites until the mixture begins to dull and the lines of the whisk are visible on the surface of the meringue. Check the peak. It should be firm. Transfer the whites to a medium bowl, add the gel color.

Fold in the almond flour mixture in two increments. Paint the mixture halfway up the side of the bowl, using the flat side of a spatula. Scrape the mixture down to the center of the bowl. Repeat two or three times, then check to see if the mixture slides slowly down the side of the bowl. Put the mixture in a piping bag fitted with your choice of piping tip (round, ¼ or ½ inch in diameter or 6 – 12 mm). Pipe circles. Slam each sheet hard four to six times on the counter/worktop. Let the unbaked macarons dry until they look dull but not overly dry. Drying time depends on humidity. In a dry climate, the macarons can dry in 15 to 20 minutes; in a humid climate, it can take 35 to 40 minutes.

While the macarons are drying, heat the oven to 300 F. Bake one sheet at a time on the middle rack. Check in 11 minutes. If the tops slide or move (independently of the ‘feet’ when you gently twist the top), then bake for 2 to 3 more minutes. Check one or two. If they move when gently touched, put them back in the oven for 1 to 2 more minutes until they don’t move when touched. Let the macaroons cool for 10 minutes before removing from the pan. The macarons should release without sticking.

Assemble the macarons: find two macarons similar in size and add a good amount of filling to the bottom of one of them. Place the other on top and squeeze gently to take the filling all the way to the edge. Store in the fridge for 24 hours for perfect texture.

For the filling:
1 can condensed milk
1 tablespoon butter
1/4 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
1 tbsp cocoa powder
toasted pecans, chopped fine
melted dark chocolate or candy melts
toasted sweetened coconut
golden luster spray (optional)

Before filling the shells, melt chocolate or candy melts and dip ONE shell that will be the top half way into it. Immediately sprinkle toasted coconut on top.

Make a “brigadeiro” mixture by adding condensed milk, butter, cocoa powder and coconut to a sauce pan. Heat in medium heat constantly stirring until the mixture releases from the bottom of the pan. Transfer to a bowl and let it cool, but do not refrigerate. You can pipe it on the shells if it is still slightly warm, but not too hot.

Add a circle of coconut brigadeiro to a bottom shell, sprinkle a little bit of pecans in the center. Cover with the decorated and fully set top shell. Spray gold luster if you like. Place shells in the fridge overnight.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I normally prefer not to add cocoa to the shells, just to the filling, because macarons are finicky enough and sometimes “stuff happens” when you add cocoa. I had never used brigadeiro to fill them, and from the feedback I got, it worked quite well. I did not have a macaron but tried the brigadeiro mixture and that is one good tasting brigadeiro, I might repeat it and roll it like the traditional stuff.