Share Your Sweets: Tropical Desserts
Posted by Carey Jones, January 26, 2012 at 11:00 AM
What does "tropical dessert" mean to you? Judging by this week's Share Your Sweets, everything from chocolate-dipped coconut macaroons ("an homage to the coconut patties my grandparents used to send from southern Florida") to guava pasta and cream cheese ("the sweet flavors of Cuba"). Check them all out in the slideshow above!
Next Week: Fruit and Chocolate
We're closing in on February (!) and you know what that means: Valentine's Day. While heart-shaped boxes and homemade care packages can contain all sorts of goodies, there's no treat more iconic than the chocolate-covered strawberry. And then there's the molten chocolate cake with raspberry sauce. Or the cherry cordial. For whatever reason, the combination of fruit and chocolate has long stood for romance. So this week, show us your favorite sweets recipes that use both fruit and chocolate. Send us a few words on why it's awesome, shoot us a photo (along with a link to the recipe!) and we'll include it in next week's roundup. Be sure to send it in no later than Tuesday, January 31 so we can include it in next Thursday's Share Your Sweets on February 2.
If you're new to Share Your Sweets, take a peep at the rules here. A few notes: we can only take one submission per person, so pick your favorite (or the most recent shot) and send it in. Also, Share Your Sweets is just for the folks at home; no pros or companies! If you want to really impress us, size your photo so it's 458 pixels tall and 610 pixels wide.
About the author: Carey Jones is the Editor of Serious Eats New York and co-editor of Serious Eats: Sweets. Follow her on Twitter (@careyjones).
1 of 11
Izy's 'Samoa' Doughnuts
"I love coconut to the moon and back, so once I had tasted the girl scout cookie 'samoas', I knew I had to find a way to use that coconut-caramel mixture on top of every baked good I could think of! These mini baked donuts are the perfect choice as they stick with the traditional shape and look, but have a whole different texture to the cookies. They consist of a baked vanilla cake donut, topped with toasted coconut mixed into a coconut milk caramel, which is dipped and drizzled with semisweet chocolate. These are a guaranteed way to any coconut lover's heart!" —
Izy
2 of 11
Roopa's Mango Pistachio Crunch Cake
"Mango, pistachio, and saffron are classic flavors in Indian desserts, and I combined them here for a surprising layer cake. Alphonso mango shows up both in the silky meringue buttercream frosting as well as in a creamy custard between the layers. The surprise is the pistachio crunch between the cake layers - it's a crispy, salty foil to the layers of lusciousness of the cake, frosting, and custard, but still ties in with the traditional flavors of the entire confection. I make a lot of Indian-inspired sweets, and this is one of my favorites." —
Roopa
3 of 11
Lauren's Vegan Mango Shake
"A healthy dessert to remind you of summer. Creamy and refreshing!" —
Lauren L.
4 of 11
Shannon's Island Carrot Cake + Toasted Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting
"So easy and delicious, you'll think you're on vacation! it's a classic carrot cake with sweet coconut and pineapple added to the mix, topped with a rich cream cheese frosting and toasted coconut." —
Shannon N.
5 of 11
Madelyn's Guava and Cream Cheese
"A guava dessert can be made year round… if you use guava paste. This is the first “dessert” my dad taught me to make – guava paste and cream cheese – the sweet flavors of Cuba. It’s simple and oh, so delicious. If you want to be adventurous, wrap them in some pastry and fry to make “pastelillos”. Yum."—
Madelyn R.
6 of 11
Monica's Mango Sago Dessert Soup
"This is a mango sago dessert "soup", typical in Asian countries. Meant to be served cold, it is really refreshing. It's made with mango juice, chunks of fresh mangoes, and sago, which is like tapioca pearls." —
Monica M.
7 of 11
Susan's Key Lime Bars in Coconut Crust
"This recipe is from The King Arthur Flour Cookie Companion Cookbook. It combines the flavors of coconut and lime and makes a wonderfully refreshing bar cookie. A kind of sweet and tart combo that is so very good. I especially love the crunch of the toasted coconut in the crust." —
Susan
8 of 11
Rashmi's Coconut-Chocolate Ganache Cups
"If Almond Joys evoke nostalgic childhood memories, you will ADORE these decadent cups. Relatively easy to make and assemble, yet taste utterly delectable" —
Rashmi
9 of 11
Kathy's 'Wee Cakes of the Snowgoat'
"They were inspired by the song "Wee Hours of the Snowgoat." Not only do these cakes feature shredded coconut in the batter, and coconut milk in the frosting, they're topped off with little coconut goat horns. They taste like a tropical paradise while still honoring Crom and Snowgoats everywhere." —
Kathy B.
10 of 11
Miranda's Chocolate-Dipped Macaroons
"An homage to the coconut patties my grandparents used to send from southern Florida, along with much less exciting oranges and grapefruits--a little tropical sunshine to brighten up a New York winter." —
Miranda L.
11 of 11
Heather's Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies
"I wanted a cake-like cookie, so instead of sugar I used sweetened condensed milk. Coconut and chocolate mixed into the batter, with a little sprinkle of coconut on top of the cookie. All of that makes for a great tasting cookie! You could definitely add in macadamia nuts to up that tropical paradise feeling!!" —
Heather H.
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