Best RecipesLemon Coconut Scones News Recipes

My cast has come off, yay! and now I'm learning how to use my arm again. Very busy now winding up some long overdue projects and busy packing because I'm moving to a new country soon. 

So anyway, here's a quickie. I made this recipe for a friend's cookbook, but he didn't end up using it. Still, I think it's too delicious to keep to myself. It's a moist, delectable scone with lemon accents. Kind of like gourmet fa'apapa. Enjoy.

Lemon Coconut Scones

Makes 12

3 cups (375 g) flour

4½ teaspoons baking powder

6 tablespoons (90 g) sugar

¾ teaspoon salt

½ cup (110 g) cold butter

¾ cup (60 g) shredded coconut, unsweetened

2-3 teaspoons (10-15 ml) lemon zest

1½ cups (360 ml) thick coconut milk

Lemon glaze:

¼ cup sugar (50 g)

3 tablespoons (45 ml) lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 210°C (410°F) and grease or line a baking sheet.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt in bowl. Add the butter and cut into the flour mixture with a pastry cutter or two knives until it is crumbly. Add the coconut and lemon zest, mixing to combine. Add the coconut milk and mix just until the dry ingredients are moistened. Cut or shape into 12 scones. 

Place on the baking sheet and bake for about 15 minutes or until golden brown and risen.

While they are baking, make the lemon glaze by heating the sugar and lemon juice in a small pot over gentle heat until the sugar is dissolved. When the scones come out of the oven, brush the glaze generously over them.

Best RecipesCoconut Cookies News Recipes

I love masi Samoa. Who doesn't? But I was curious about cookies made with shredded coconut instead of coconut milk. Would the flavour be as good as masi Samoa? Would it be better?


To compare, I tried out two different kinds of cookies: coconut shortbread and chewy coconut cookies. 

I wasn't overly impressed with the shortbread. The coconut flavour was very understated and the shortbread was kind of blah. They even look kind of blah. 

But the chewy coconut cookies were sublime. The cookie was crisp on the outside, chewy on the inside, and the coconut stood out in a nice way. 

At the end of the day, masi Samoa are still number one. But these cookies are a close number two. Try them and see!


Chewy Coconut Cookies
(makes 18)
¼ cup (60g) butter, softened
½ cup (100g) white sugar
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup (125g) flour
¾ teaspoon baking powder
pinch salt
½ cup (40g) coconut


Cream the butter and both sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg and vanilla. Add the flour, baking powder and salt, mixing well. Finally, stir in the coconut. Shape it into a log and wrap in plastic wrap. Place in the refrigerator for at least two hours or until firm.


Unwrap the cookie dough and slice into ¼ inch (5 mm) slices. Place 2 inches (5 cm) apart on lined baking sheets. Bake at 425°F (220°C) for 6 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on wire racks.

These will soften the day after, so store them in an airtight container, or save all the hassle and store them in your belly, like I did.

Best RecipesFa'apapa - Baked coconut bread News Recipes

By panipopos

So the other day, my mother called me "old school".
She didn't use those exact words but the implication was clear. I've been away too long.

How did this happen?
Well, I was telling her how I was making fa'apapa, the way we used to have it when I was little. Fa'apapa in those days were these heavy, thick, dense coconut slabs that you could break your teeth on. An old Samoan woman could keep this kind of fa'apapa in her bag and nibble a lump off while waiting for the bus, sitting in church, in the doctor's waiting room. And the fa'apapa also doubled as a weapon in case she got mugged. One hit, and the guy would be out like a light.

So I was telling my mother how I had succeeded in recreating the same kind of hard crunchy crust around a dense coconut texture, weighing the requisite one pound, and the woman says "Oh, we don't make them like that anymore".

"What? What do you mean?" I ask her.
"Yeah, these days, we like lighter, fluffier fa'apapa." my mother replies.
"Huh? What are you talking about, 'lighter' 'fluffier'? They're supposed to be bricks of coconut right?"
"No, that's how they used to make them. Some people still make it that way (eg. my old-school daughter). But these days, we add baking powder to give it a bit of lift and don't add so much coconut. It tastes better too."

Well, I'll be darned. Who would have thought that fa'apapa would evolve without me.

So I've been experimenting with the traditional and updated versions of fa'apapa, and my mother is right, the modern stuff is easier on the palate. But I still think the old-fashioned fa'apapa is better for fa'ausi, which in truth, was the whole reason I was trying to make fa'apapa anyway. Feel free to try either version. They both taste good, but only the original fa'apapa can prevent mugging.

Old-school Fa'apapa (makes 2)
2 cups (250g) flour
⅓ cup (65g) sugar 
1⅓ cup (120g) unsweetened coconut flakes 
½ can (200ml) coconut milk

Put everything together in a bowl and mix well with your hands. Divide into two equal portions. Generously grease some baking paper with butter. Flatten each portion of dough into a slab no bigger than 1 inch/2.5 thick. Wrap each portion tightly in the baking paper. Bake at 390°F/200ºC for 35-40 minutes or until crust is well-browned.

If you get a chance, check out this video of fa'apapa straight from the umu!
http://panipopos.blogspot.com/