Lemon Coconut Slice

When I try to decide what to bake, I look to see if I have any random ingredients that I need to use. Last week, I made a no-bake cookie which called for a partial can of sweetened condensed milk. Trying to find a recipe that uses less than a full can of sweetened condensed milk is a challenge. I have gotten smarter about it, and I now know that if I need a recipe that requires a smaller quantity of sweetened condensed milk, I look at Australian and New Zealand recipes.

In this case, I was able to find a handful of recipes that used ¾ cup or less of sweetened condensed milk. Some were no-bake recipes, others were baked. My house is cooler, so I was open to turning on the oven. I do prefer baking and I was actually thrilled that the house is cooler, so I chose these Lemon Coconut Slices (Bars). They only bake for 15 minutes, so that isn’t too bad, and it’s quick as you prepare the icing as the bars bake.

These cookies require fairly standard ingredients, the only unusual item is desiccated coconut, which is like a dry and finely shredded coconut. It’s common in British and Commonwealth recipes, but you could substitute any type of coconut that is easy to find. The icing layer is thick and in end the end I didn’t use all of the icing. I scooped it onto the baked base and the biggest challenge was spreading the icing on the bars in a pan that was straight out of the oven! It’s best to firm these up in the refrigerator before cutting, but I didn’t feel the need to store them there. They have a wonderful coconut flavor, with a lovely hint of lemon. That’s hard to beat!

Lemon Coconut Slice
100 grams butter, melted
140 grams flour
110 grams sugar
42 grams desiccated coconut
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoon hot water

25 grams butter
½ cup sweetened condensed milk
140 grams powdered sugar
85 grams desiccated coconut
2 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon lemon zest

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line an 8” pan with foil and spray the foil with nonstick cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, combine the butter, flour, sugar, coconut, baking powder, and hot water. Press the mixture into the base of the prepared pan.    

Bake for 15 minutes.

While the base is in the oven, take the icing. In a medium microwave-safe bowl, combine the butter and the sweetened condensed milk. Microwave in 30 second increments, stirring frequently, until the butter is melted. Add the powdered sugar, coconut, lemon juice, and lemon zest.

As soon as the bars come out of the oven, spread the icing on top of the base in an even layer. Allow the icing to set in the refrigerator before cutting into bars.

Recipe from The Kiwi Country Girl