Coconut Loaf Recipe

During lockdown last year when it was impossible to get a supermarket delivery or even a ‘Click & Collect’, I found a food service company who quickly pivoted to do home deliveries with the items that they usually supplied to restaurants. I was so grateful that I didn’t really mind that I had to get everything in very large quantities. I distributed the 1kg of baking powder amongst friends and family as there was no way I was going to be able to do that amount of baking before its expiry date! But I am still making my way through a large bag of desiccated coconut. Then I remembered a Coconut Loaf recipe from my childhood and searched my recipe books until I found it. It is very simple and doesn’t require eggs or butter.

1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 cups desiccated coconut
1 cup white sugar
1 1/2 cups milk
1 1/2 tsp vanilla essence
1 1/2 tsp baking powder

Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl.
Put into a greased loaf tin and bake for 1 hour at 160°C. It is cooked when you insert a skewer and it comes out clean. I find that it generally needs another 15 minutes to turn brownish on top and to cook it right through.

I shared it with my team at work as well and they found it very more-ish! It is moist and not too sweet, with a nice chewy bite to it. Great with a spread of butter as well.

It also freezes well – I slice it first so that I can just pull out a piece at a time and either toast it to eat straight away or put it in my lunch bag to take it to work.