Historical recipe
Cocoa-nut cakes
Three eggs,
ten ounces of sugar,
as much grated
cocoa-nut as will form a stiff paste. Whisk the eggs very light and dry; add the sugar gradually,
and when the sugar is in, stir in the cocoa-nut. Roll a teaspoonful of the mixture in your hands in the form of a pyramid, place them on paper,
put the paper on tins, and bake in a rather cool oven till they are just a little brown.
Source: Englishwoman's Domestic Magazine, Vol iii, 1855-6
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Additional historical information
In the Victorian period, the spelling 'cocoa-nut'
was always used, rather than the modern 'coconut'. The 1895 Law's Grocer's Manual remarked
that 'the confusion still existing in the minds of shippers, merchants, tradesmen, and the
general public' was 'a striking example of the ignorance of tropical products on the part of
dwellers in temperate climes'
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Modern Recipe
Coconut Pyramids
2 egg whites
150g sugar
150g desiccated coconut
Grease a baking sheet and cover with rice paper.
Whisk the egg whites stiffly and fold in the sugar and coconut using a metal spoon.
Pile in small pyramid shapes onto the prepared baking tray.
Bake in a cool oven 140°C, 275°F, Gas Mark 1 until pale fawn in colour (about 45 minutes to 1 hour).
If you wish, the mixture may be tinted pink or green with a few drops of food colouring. |