The Coconut Pantry has a new Home!

I will be combining my blog with Coast Coconut Farms to continue sharing all the good things about coconut oil, plus recipes.

Please visit me there at http://site.coastcoconutfarms.com/blog/

Coconut Oil on the Brain

Can coconut oil improve memory? I think I am losing my mind/memory every day...just ask my husband and kids. One of their daily chores is to "remind mom..." Sad to admit, but any way to slow down that age related memory loss is of major importance to me.

If you or a loved one suffer from memory loss this may be of interest to you also.

Last July this study was published on the positive effects of coconut oil on Alzheimer's Disease. Dr. Mary Newport fed coconut oil to her husband every day and recorded any resulting change in his Alzheimer's symptoms. Her findings are really amazing.

How is this possible? Because of the presence of ketones in coconut oil which feed our brains.

From the article listed below Dr. Newport defined:

"'Ketones are a high-energy fuel that nourish the brain,' ...when you are starving, the body produces ketones naturally. When digested, the liver converts MCT (Medium Chain Triglycerides) oil into ketones. In the first few weeks of life, ketones provide about 25 percent of the energy newborn babies need to survive.

As Dr. Newport continued to read about MCT oil and the new medication, she discovered something surprising: Non-hydrogenated coconut oil is more than 60 percent MCT oil, and this medication derived its MCT oil from this readily available tropical tree'"

To read more about her study in easily digestible format, see http://www.tampabay.com/news/aging/article879333.ece

To download a copy of her whole study see http://www.coconutketones.com/ and click on "What if There Were a Cure for Alzheimer's Disease...and No One Knew?"

This is definitely worth a try!

Coconut Oil for your Bread and Butter

As promised, though a bit late, here is a recipe for "butter" using coconut oil:

1/4 c coconut oil, softened but not liquid
1 T butter buds (found in the baking aisle of most grocery stores)
1/2 t water

Dissolve the butter buds in the water. (This helps them incorporate into the oil or they will stay grainy.) Mix well into the soft coconut oil. You may adjust the butter buds to your taste.
The coconut flavor remains somewhat. Feel free to experiment with the quantities, but do not be disappointed if it doesn't taste exactly like butter. At least it is healthier, right?

Now for a bonus...my husband's mother's homemade bread recipe that we now make with coconut oil. Each child in his family made this bread for 1-2 years beginning when they turned 12. This sometimes amounted to 12 loaves a week to feed a large family of 11. So, of course my husband is a proficient bread maker, and I am not.

HOMEMADE WHOLE WHEAT BREAD

In a small bowl combine :
2 T (2 pkgs) yeast and 1/2 cup warm water, set aside for yeast to grow.

In a large bowl combine :
5 cups hot water
2 T salt
2/3 cup oil
2/3 cup honey
Mix until honey and salt are dissolved.
Add:
5 cups wheat flour
Stir into honey mixture and then add yeast mixture. (Make sure the dough is not too hot for yeast.)
Add:
2 cups flour (until it becomes difficult to stir.)
Start kneading dough in bowl adding 1/2 cup flour at a time until dough is no longer sticky, after about 10-15 minutes. (You will be adding about 7 more cups of flour. Use all wheat or substitute 1/2 white flour for a lighter loaf.)

Makes 3 loaves in 9x5 in pans.

Form an oblong loaf and place in oiled bread pans.
Bake at 350 F for 30 minutes.

Eat hot with butter and honey or homemade berry jam. Doesn't that make you want to make some right now?

Thank You and Enjoy the Benefits of Coconut Oil!

Thank you to everyone who was in on March's group order. I really enjoyed meeting each of you and hearing your ideas and experiences with coconut oil. I even got some great ideas to share on the blog. Many of you asked about future orders. I will do another group order in a couple of months (perhaps May or June?) and will send out information at that time.
I hope you all are enjoying some peace of mind having oil for long term storage or just incorporating a healthier option into your daily fare.
Keep checking back, I will be posting some information immediately about making homemade bread and coconut oil "butter" and making aluminum free deoderant using coconut oil (I can't wait to try this out!)

Banana Pancakes with Coconut Syrup

We play a game in my family called "Guess the Secret Ingredient." This works best with pancakes as anyone can easily modify a recipe and sneak in something interesting. Then the rest of us have to guess what the mystery ingredient is. Here is one of our favorite pancake recipes...but, the secret ingredient is in the syrup. I've just substituted coconut oil for the butter in our buttermilk syrup recipe. If you really want the butter, just substitute half out for coconut oil and have a ~50% healthier recipe! We also substitute coconut oil for oil in waffles. Yummy!

Banana Buttermilk Pancakes

1 1/2 cups flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

3/4 cup buttermilk

1/4 - 1/3 cup milk 

(add enough to get pouring consistency)

2 lg eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1 ripe banana, mashed

Mix dry ingredients. Add rest of ingredients and mix until blended. 

Coconut Buttermilk Syrup

1/2 cup coconut oil

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup buttermilk

1 tsp Karo syrup 

Bring to a boil in a large pan.

Remove from heat and stir in:

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp vanilla

Mixture will fizz and double in size. Serve hot over warm pancakes.

(Be sure to grease griddle with coconut oil!)

FAQ #1

Does cold-pressed coconut oil deteriorate when heated?

After questioning the manufacturer and doing some research of my own, I am glad to report that coconut oil is very stable and keeps it's integrity when heated. It's medium chain fatty acids are resistant to being changed by heat. However, if overheated to the point of smoking you may assume it has begun to deteriorate.

Other heating FYI:

A favorite Coconut Oil quality of mine is it's high heat resistence. I found this out with relief while cooking with it. Distracted from my cooking one evening, I left a pan heating on the stove with coconut oil in the bottom. I returned expecting the oil to be smoking and burned to a film on my pan. (You know how hard it is to get that burned on oil film off a stainless steel pan?) I was so relieved to find it only slightly smoking and not in the least burning.

On the other had, coconut oil melts at a really low temperature, around 70 F. You will find it fairly easy to liquify when needed.

I usually put mine in the microwave for about 15 seconds, but it can also be quickly melted just sitting in a container of hot water.

What to Expect

A few of you have asked about the packaging and texture of coconut oil. I hope this will be helpful. 

First the packaging for the current group order from Coast Coconut farms: The 1 gallon container is pictured below and great for stacking in bulk or just placing one on your pantry shelf. Each order comes with a complimentary booklet of facts, uses and recipes. 

Now for the oil itself...I keep some in a small container, with my other cooking necessities, salt & pepper, and olive oil spritzer, right next to the stove. That way when I want to cook with it, I just scoop out a bit to grease a pan for pancakes, stirfry, or other frying/stove top cooking uses. It is generally in a soft (shortening like) consistency and pure white in color. In it's more solid state, coconut oil can be substituted for shortening or butter in recipes.

I will address more cooking tips in another post, but for now, a picture of the coconut oil in it's liquified state:

Coconut oil has a very low melting point and will liquify when heated. It will then look like clear water. In it's liquid state coconut oil can be substituted for liquid oils (like those unheathly vegetable oils) in recipes. 

I hope this helps...more to come!