Inaugural Foodie Post

So you'd think with this being the first ever post about food that I would have some super fancy recipe that might look incredible but as the picture shows, it's not too fancy. And no, it isn't a sugar cube, but Coconut Gumdrops.

I've had this recipe sitting around and I had every intention of making it for Christmas time. But like everyone else, the time leading up to Christmas was crazy busy and while I probably baked more than the usual person I had to let a lot of it go until later or even till next Christmas. Nobody wants a candy cane dessert in the middle of February!

I read many magazines as my mother-in-law and I each subscribe to several and then trade. I truly enjoy each one of them for their specific reasons. There is one exception though. Better Homes and Gardens, is the most. boring. publication. EVER. But I am a sucker for recipes. So, even though I don't read the magazine I always flip to the end and see if there is anything worth making. And this is how these coconut gum drops came to be.

Other than being busy, this recipe also got pushed to the back burner(pun intended) because candy making freaks me out a bit. Using a candy thermometer to get something just the right temperature is just a little to exacting for my cooking methods.

But I was freaked out for no reason. This was the easiest candy recipe ever. Except that I ran out of corn syrup but my mother-in-law saved my bacon (god I crack myself up) and brought me some so I didn't have to bundle up the munchkin up and head to the store.

The recipe is as follows, simplified as the BHG version made the recipe seem more complex than it really was.


Adapted from Better Homes and Gardens

Line bread pan with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray

In a medium sized sauce pan combine
1 cup sugar
1 cup corn syrup

Heat over medium and stir for the first 3 mintes until sugar is dissolved making sure not to splash too much on the sides. Then put in your candy thermometer and allow to heat to 280 degrees or the soft crack stage


While that's heating, combine over medium heat
1/2 cup unsweetened coconut milk
1/4 water
1 package of powdered fruit pectin like Sure Jell
1/2 baking soda

Heat until boiling. Remove from heat if sugar is not done. When sugar is ready bring coconut mixture back to a boil and stream in sugar mixture while stirring. After combined, stir over heat for 1 minute. Poor into lined bread pan


Let the mixture cool until solid. I let mine sit on the counter for about an hour and it was cooled and solidified. Then take the foil out of the pan and cut into squares.


Next you can do a couple of things. Just shake these in a bowl of sugar to give them that signature gumdrop look. Or you can

Put 1/2 cup of coconut in a food processor(toasted if you like) and pulse until uniformly small. Add 1/2 of sugar and mix. Then shake the cubes in the mixture. When you're finished they look like this.

These candies are quite tasty and actually have a bit of tang to them. That said, I think they could be more coconutty. However the recipe has an option to make grapefruit gumdrops where you replace the coconut milk and water with 3/4 cup pink grapefruit juice. And with that in mind, the possibilities are endless.

And if anyone wants some(along with some lemon truffles and chocolate chip cookie dough truffles) let me know.