Coconut ice

It is fete season and coconut ice is a great recipe for the cake stall that sells out quickly. Easy to make and great to look at – you can’t go past this as a fete favourite. Useful items include a digital thermometer and cellophane self-sealing bags from $2 shops, and you can make your own trays – see tip below.

COCONUT ICE

Prep: 5 mins
Cook: 40 mins + setting time (4 hours min)
Makes: 20–25 squares

Ingredients

• 6 cups of pure icing sugar, sifted
• 1 cup / 250ml of full cream milk
• 50g / 2oz of unsalted butter
• ¼ tsp of salt
• 1½ cups of desiccated coconut
• 1–2 drops of pink food colouring
• 50g / 2oz of moist shredded coconut

Method

1. Line a 20cm x 20cm (7″ x 7″) tray with baking/parchment paper.
2. Place the sifted icing sugar, milk, butter and salt in a heavy-based saucepan. Heat gently and stir constantly until sugar dissolves.
3. Turn up the heat and bring to the boil. At this point, cease stirring the mixture.
4. Using a digital thermometer, cook until it reaches soft boil stage (112ºC–118ºC / 235ºF–245ºF).
5. Remove from the heat and add the desiccated coconut and stir through.
6. Allow to cool for 10 minutes.
7. Pour half the mixture into the tray.
8. With remaining mix, add a drop or two of pink food colouring, and stir through until the colour in even.
9. Spread the pink mixture on top of the white, and then sprinkle with the moist shredded coconut, pressing down gently.
10. Refrigerate for a minimum of 4 hours, or best overnight.
11. Cut into squares and place in bags. Label with ingredients if taking to a cake stall/fete.

TIP
Make little silver trays to place the coconut ice onto in the bag by using an old cardboard box cut to size, then cover with aluminium foil for a nice presentation.