I am all about coconut and I must try or have anything that has coconut in it. There is a certain enthusiasm anytime I am at the market and I see something that has coconut in it. So when I thought of an ingredient this week, I thought of these coconut bread muffins.
If you have ever had Bajan (Barbados) coconut bread then this will resonate with you. My mom would make this on occasion and there was always something that had me craving more. Maybe it was just the fact that it had coconut in it. Or maybe it was the extra sweet coconut filling in the middle.
Bajan coconut bread is something you can have anytime of the day. It is super sweet and perfect companion to that morning cup of coffee. Or maybe you want something sweet for dessert, this does the job as well.
So when I thought of this recipe, I wanted to try to cut down on the traditional sugar and oil. I have to say this was a huge success especially being able to skip the butter/lard.
One thing I did do was use fresh coconut but you can use unsweetened shredded coconut for this recipe too. I used mashed bananas to replace the butter/oil which has become more of a trend lately. For my dry ingredients I replaced regular flour with oat flour and added in nutmeg, baking soda and baking powder.
You will want to save half of the shredded coconut to make the filling that goes in the middle. Trust me this is the best part and you do not want to miss out on this. I used a giant muffin pan to make these so the cooking time goes up by a few minutes than your traditional muffin pan.
Coconut Bread Muffins
Coconut Bread Muffins
- Muffin Pan
- 1 coconut or 2 cups shredded coconut (unsweetened)
- 2½ cups oat flour or all purpose flour
- ½ tsp nutmeg
- ½ tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 2 tbsp coconut sugar (for filling)
- ¼ cup coconut sugar
- 3 tbsp maple syrup
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 bananas (ripe)
Preheat the oven to 350°. If you are using fresh coconut you will want to get that ready (see notes section for detailed instructions). Add your dry ingredients (1 cup shredded coconut, flour, baking soda, baking powder and nutmeg) into a bowl and stir.
In a separate bowl, mash the bananas, add 1 tsp vanilla extract, maple syrup and 1/4 cup coconut sugar and stir until combined. Add this to the dry mix and stir until combined.
Make the filling. Mix the reserved shredded coconut (1 cup), 1 tsp vanilla extract and 2 tbsp coconut sugar.
Portion out the mix and the filling depending on if you're using 6 fill (jumbo) or 12 fill muffin pan. Lightly grease the muffin pan and fill each opening halfway through with coconut bread mix and add in some of the filling. Layer the filling with more of the coconut bread mix until it almost reaches the top. Sprinkle the top with coconut flakes and coconut sugar.
Bake for 15 – 18 minutes going for 18 minutes if doing jumbo muffins. Once complete, carefully place on a cooling rack for about 5 minutes before removing from the pan. Enjoy
Fresh Coconut
Using a clean screwdriver and hammer, hammer in the 3 holes on top of the coconut and drain the coconut water. This can be used whichever way you please.
Place the coconut in between a kitchen towel and hammer it around the middle until it breaks or splits in half. Likely going to get it in couple pieces.
Using a butter knife, score the coconut pulp to pry it away from the shell. Once that is done give it a quick rinse.
Use a grater (medium grate) to grate the coconut until it yields about 2 cups. You can always save the rest to eat fresh or use in other recipes.
