I just posted about pineapple vinegar and I’ve been taking the instagram challenge and doing February Photo a Day (#febphotoaday), where you are given a subject matter to capture each day of the month. Today’s challenge was ‘drink’. Which led to this Taste of the Trawpics drink.

I picked up this pale coconut last night, in hopes it was just a shaved Thai Young Coconut, but alas it was mature.

I have not bought one Thai Young Coconut since moving to Portland and I’m at a loss for why they seem harder to find here than in Illinois. I will grant you that a teeny part is laziness – I haven’t figured out the bus route to the two Asian markets in the south east side BUT I’m very near a Whole Foods, Fred Meyer, and a Zupan’s and none of them carry these hydration bombs. What gives?

If it had been a shaved Thai young coconut, there were plans for it to be used in a raw Chocolate Crepe recipe from Girl on Raw. I received it through her email and I don’t think it’s available on her blog. Raw crepes are a whole other story though and it involves that they always turn out like fruit leather – I’m excited to try her recipe out.

So, now I have this coconut that is not right for a raw crepe recipe….but it would be right for a #febphotoaday’s #drink challenge. Okay.

And up steps pineapple vinegar, New Deal Distillery’s Ginger Liqueur, orange juice, lemon, coconut water, agave, and frozen pineapple bits. Yum!

I think I work good under last minute, what do we have on hand, kind of challenges. 🙂

Are you wondering how to open a mature coconut?

This was my 2nd time and I remembered quite well from the first experience. Hold the coconut in your non-dominant hand with the ‘eyes’ facing upwards. In your dominant hand hold a regular chef’s knife (non-ceramic) with the blade facing out. That’s right.

You are going to thwack the coconut about 1/3 of the way down with the top or ‘back’ of the knife along the same line, as you turn the coconut in your hand.

At first it will just seem funny, like you are spraying coconut fur all over your counter and sink, but after about 5 turns the coconut will start to crack. Just keep doing this until you can actually pry the top apart. It is key that once you start to see it splinter, to hold it over a bowl to catch the water. It can’t always be predicted that it will split the way you want it to. If a lot of coconut fur gets in the bowl, just strain it using a nut milk bag or a fine mesh strainer – both will work fine.

Who loves coconut? I’m a newer fan, as of the last few years. But now, I’m totally in love with it. I happen to have coconut shampoo/conditioner, lotion and even coconut oil for my face. Yeah, don’t worry, we don’t have coconut patterned sheets. I think, to like coconut, you have to move past your parent’s aversion to it and the fact that the only type of coconut you ate growing up contained propylene glycol. You know the shredded kind in the bag, that one. If you want to see what else propylene glycol is used for besides deoderant, smoke machines, and snuff; check out applications on wikipedia. Here’s an organic version that is just shredded dried coconut, I buy in bulk to save and stock up.

xoxo