Coconut! You either love it or you hate it! Some of my friends who hate coconut say it’s because of the texture… My daughter used to hate coconut, never wanted to even try anything that had a slightest hint of it, until one day she worked up the courage to try these and fell in love with them.
These choco-coconut squares are a frequent guest at the table of many Bosnian families. If you like chocolate – coconut combination, I can guarantee you these will knock your socks off! 🙂 Now, in Bosnian language these have a specific name. It is weird and funny and quite unappetizing (the name I mean). That’s why I didn’t try translating it into English. Despite the weird name, this desserts is very popular, it is easily made and super delicious!
Choco-Coconut Squares (Čupavci)
For the batter:
- 5 eggs (divided)
- 125 g (4.4 oz) sugar
- 1 pack vanilla sugar (or 1 tsp. vanilla extract)
- 150 g (5.3 oz) self –rising flour
- 50 g (1.7 oz) plain bread crumbs
- 160 ml (2/3 cup) milk
For the chocolate – coconut dip:
- 150 g (5.3 oz) semi-sweet or dark chocolate
- 150 g (5.3 oz) butter
- 100 g (3.5 oz)sugar
- 150 ml (about 2/3 cup) milk
- 150-200 g (5 – 7 oz) coconut (unsweetened, organic, finely shredded)
- 150 g (5.3 oz) heated raspberry jam (or your favorite jam)
Also needed:
- 28 X 22 cm (9 X 11 inch) rectangular cake pan,
- parchment paper,
- cooling rack,
- small cooking pot and a stainless steel bowl (for the hot water bath)
Preparation:
1. For the batter divide the eggs. Beat the egg whites with a smidgen of salt until firm, set aside. Beat the egg yolks with sugar and vanilla until pale yellow and all the sugar has dissolved (about 5 minutes).
2. Add milk and mix slowly for another minute. Now start adding flour combined with bread crumbs mixing at a low speed. At the end fold in the egg whites by hand until just combined.
3. Pour the batter into the cake pan lined with parchment paper. Bake at 195 C (385 F) until the top starts getting golden yellow color. Remove from the oven and from the pan and place it on a cooling rack.
4. When the cake has cooled down completely, cut it horizontally into two halves. Lightly heat the jam and spread over the first half, lay the second half on the top. Now cut the whole cake into squares. If you make three cuts to the longer- and 5 to the shorter side you will get 24 squares.
5. Heat the water in a small cooking pot. Melt the chocolate and butter over hot water bath. Add sugar (if desired), mix it smooth and add milk at the end.
6. Dip each cake square into chocolate. Make sure every side is well coated and then dip in coconut. Let them rest for about an hour. They are best served at the room temperature!
ENJOY!
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