Flaugnarde aux poires et à la noix de coco (Pear and coconut flognarde)

To test out my newly aquired Pyrex flan dish, I made this coconut pear flaugnarde. 

Pear and coconut flognarde

Pineapple coconut loaf (2)

After a full schedule for the first two weeks of May, I finally had the time and energy to try out the tweaked recipe for my pineapple coconut loaf with less liquid and sugar. I also used the ground walnuts left over from making the chocolate walnut torte.

Pineapple coconut loaf

Pineapple coconut loaf (1)

My mother baked for the two some years that we spent in the States. One of her best creations was a coconut cake. I was probably only 7 years old at the time when I first tasted it but even decades later, I remembered it as a scrumptious cake loaded with shredded coconut with a crunchy sugary topping. When I was older, I asked her for the recipe, but she couldn't remember it, claiming that she'd got the recipe off the papers or magazine and didn't keep it.

For years I'd been trying to find that recipe and even attempted a coconut loaf glazed with coconut milk syrup a couple of years ago but to no avail. A couple of weeks ago, when I was making a pork stir-fry with pineapples, it occurred to me that I could pair pineapple with coconut in a cake. Adapting my recipes for the madeira cake and lime & coconut cake, I made a pineapple coconut loaf. At the time I wasn't thinking about my mother's cake. But when I took the first bite of this pineapple coconut loaf, I nearly shrieked with excitement. Could I have possibly stumbled upon the right recipe?

Pots de crème au chocolat et thé Earl Grey

I've made chocolate pots a couple of times before for Valentine's Day (or night, rather) but not for the last few years. So I thought this year would be a good time to bring them back, with a few tweaks no less.

Duck with cranberry sauce and potato hash

Duck with cranberry, orange & coconut sauce
served with sweet potato, baby potato & Brussel sprout hash

Cranberry orange coconut sauce

Cranberry, orange, coconut sauce

Apple & berry coconut crumble 椰酥烤野莓蘋果

I'm not a fan of crumble but Husband is, so for the weekend, I made a flourless crumble for both of us to enjoy.

Lime & coconut cake

Ever since tasting the coconut and lemongrass cake at Kate's Kitchen in Sligo town, I've been trying to figure out how to recreate this delicious cake. I decided to use lime (the juice and zest) instead of lemongrass (which would require a food processor that I don't have to purée). And I figured that the almond flour and shredded coconut would provide enough oils/fat on their own that I could leave out butter/coconut oil.