Happy New Year, everyone! I know, I know, we’re already half way into our first month and if you’re like me, already breaking resolutions all over the place. But guess what, here in the Hashim household, we are still working through some Christmas cake, and so, as far as I’m concerned, we’re not quite done with the holidays just yet.
I hope 2014 has been treating you well so far. I plan to cook more this year and I haven’t been doing too badly on that front- I made kimchi fried rice for lunch the other day and even though there was a small part of me that was sure I’d hate it because, well, it’s been built up so much all over the internet, I took one bite of it, and my taste buds wanted to stand up and applaud. I also made a batch of noodles recently that I want to tell you about soon. All in all, it’s been smooth sailing, so far.
Today, I’m going to tell you about a pie recipe that I’ve been saving for a special occasion. And if the first post of the new year isn’t a reason to bring out the big guns, I don’t know what is! So here it is! Apricot and coconut macaroon pie. Tada!
Making pie always makes me nervous, I still don’t feel like I have the crust down pat. But this pie with a coconut base turned out flawless. It doesn’t use shortcrust and is much, much harder to mess up. And for those of you reading this with your eyebrows raised- 'coconut with apricot, what sort of witchcraft is this Aysha?' -let me tell you, coconut and apricots are a match made in dessert heaven. The earthiness of the roasted coconut is lifted ever so sweetly by the floral apricot and when baked, it becomes a mellow, quietly delicious dessert that you might even consider eating as main course.
Note: I’ve made a few changes to the original recipe. For one, I used fresh instead of desiccated coconut. I spread it out on a flat surface and zapped it in a microwave for 10- 12 minutes, checking every five minutes, until the flakes looked dry and had lost most of their water content. I suggest you do this in two batches as it might take longer otherwise. I’ve also left out the pistachios that the recipe calls for. And lastly, I lightly tossed the apricots in some cinnamon because really, there are very few things not improved by a pinch or two of cinnamon.
Apricot and Coconut Macaroon Pie
Adapted from Orangette
Ingredients:
For the crust:
1 cup shredded fresh coconut that has been dried (see note above)
½ cup all purpose flour
½ cup sugar
1 ¼ stick (140 g) of unsalted butter, melted
½ tsp salt
For the filling:
2 cups shredded fresh coconut that has been dried (see note above)
1/3 cup sugar
4 egg whites
220 g fresh apricots, pitted and quartered
Pinch of ground cinnamon
Method:
Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Butter a 9-inch fluted pie dish with a removable bottom.
Mix the flour, coconut, sugar and salt in a bowl. Add the melted butter and stir well until fully absorbed. Transfer the mixture into the pan and press evenly into the bottom and side of pan. Bake for 15 minutes until lightly golden. Set aside to cool.
Meanwhile, prepare the filling by first tossing the apricots in cinnamon. Set aside. Next, mix the coconut and sugar in a bowl. Add the egg whites and mix (not beat!) again until well incorporated.
Line the bottom of the baked crust with the apricots. And using a spoon, dollop the coconut-egg filling over it, making sure to get it in the gaps between the fruit.
Bake for 20-30 minutes, until the coconut peaks on top are golden.
Slice when cool. Serve.