Goin' Coconuts!

“ You don’t like coconuts?   Say, brainless, don’t you know where coconuts come from? Lookit here – from Tahiti – Fiji Islands, the Coral Sea!”
(He pulls a magazine from his pocket and shows it to her.)
“A new magazine! I never saw it before.”
“Of course you never. Only us explorers can get it. I’ve been nominated for membership in the National Geographic Society.”

Young George Bailey

 I found it  fitting to begin my entry with this quote from the beloved movie “It’s a Wonderful Life.”  I have wholeheartedly decided is is not a coincidence that among George Bailey’s first words in the movie are words regarding coconuts.  Smart man, that George Bailey.  My father always said…”there is no such thing as coincidence.” 

I have three words to say.  I. Love. Coconut.

aren't they pretty? http://www.indiamart.com/dynamic-coirs/coconut-copra.html(link to above photo)

Because of my love for this fruit, I have learned that there are a lot of people who absolutely hate coconut.  My 13 year old daughter for one thinks it’s “absolutely nasty.”   Some people are allergic to coconut (so unfortunate.)  We also have the people who frustrate me to no end…the people who plain won’t try coconut.  There is no excuse.  Just try it!  What is the worst thing that could happen…you fall in love?  Feelings toward this fruit seem to be black or white…love it or hate it.  I fall into the category which I have named  “obsessed with it.”

Thus, every year, about this time, the obsession rears it’s ugly yet somehow beautiful hairy head.

Here, in random order, I present to you my favorite coconut delights.  I do this in hopes that the coconut fan club will soon grow in number!!!!

1. Coconut fat free frozen yogurt with coconut flakes from The Yogut Bar in West Quincy, MA ( www.commonmarketrestaurants.com)  topped with a kiwi slice only because I felt the need to add a bit of color to the picture.  Yes, I think 3 times a day is a bit much but I’m not gonna stop.  I have to go inconito soon.

2. Coconut flakes which I I would eat directly out of the bin at The Yogurt Bar  if  there were not  a bunch of customers curiously watching me as I pile on tons and tons of the  white stuff. Point of disclosure #1…it’s my husband’s Yogurt Bar and it might hurt sales if his wife were using her hands to shove coconut flakes into her mouth from a bin…. I tried taking a picture of the actual bin, but I my  ”overzealous-ness” resulted in a picture taken so close to the bin that the coconut sign was a huge blur, which, against the blazing white background…actually hurt my eyes.   I was too lazy to go back and take another. Visualization necessary.  Sorry.

3. Coconuts…as is.  Hairy, brown and kinda scary looking, this is actually the center part of the coconut after the” husk” has been removed.  They bring back memories of my father actually pulling out the heavy duty tools to crack one open.  Nothing is quite as pretty as the inside of a coconut when you are ready to eat it.  Point of disclosure #2: I had never actually opened a “mature brown coconut”, and so found this video.  If anyone knows what tool this guy is using to open the coconut, I need to know what it is!  ( I was laughing out loud watching how violent this looks!! hahaaa!)  There are better instructional videos out there, but this one amused me the most.  Do not try this at home!   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=00WM1oqxMSs

aren't they scary?

4.  Homemade Mai Tai’s garnished with coconut…but of course!!  This bit of nostalgia never fails to bring a smile to my face (pineapples, rum, lime juice, coconut…a tropical dream!) See below for two of my favorite people enjoying the drink circa 1965.  (Aside…If I could find the paper that decorated the walls of my grandmother’s kitchen in Arlington, MA.  I would paper my entire house in it.  Then I could bask in wonderful memories of time spent with her 24 hours a day.)

My grandfather & my father with their Mai Tais!

5. Coconut water.  Possibly a trend, which worries me.  Although I welcome everyone, I feel that   ”fair weather fans” joining the coconut lovers’ club would be a bummer.  ”No Offense” as my kids would say.  It just puts me in a tough spot thinking that  rookies could try to take the  credit for discovering this fab fruit.  I want more fans, but I want real fans.  That being said,  I do like  coconut water.   *Bonus* It is a good source of potassium, and makes a for a refreshing post workout drink.  If you don’t believe me…http://www.5min.com/Video/Learn-About-Coconut-Water-278834626

my favorite so far

6.  My coconut beauty products: coconut soap and  coconut hand cream.  www.goodhealthnaturalfood.com/   Check out www.theagelessbeautyreport.com/tag/immune-booster/ to see health benefits of coconut oil.

for best results use these with the soap

7.  The scent of coconut.  You know this is in random order when this is at number 7.  Who can resist the scent of coconut?  I remember  (admit to yourself…you do too)  dousing myself in Hawaiian Tropic suntan oil in the days when we would bring four different levels of sun protection  to the beach.  We would start the morning off with SPF 8.. (we just called it number 8)  Oh yeah…  no SPF 50+ back then;  did it even exist?   After 2 hours of flipping our shiny, slippery, adolescent bodies every fifteen minutes, (surely by then we got what we thought was the perfect “base”, right?)  we would the choose either  number 6 or number 4, depending on how the burn factor was looking.  Ever so smartly,( and unintentionally so, ) number 2 was usually saved for the next day of sunbathing, but you always carried it with you just in case you need a tan extra fast.  Wow, what did we know.

Anyway….Ahhhh. The scent of coconut.

remember these bottles? usually slick and covered with sand

So for all of you people out there who have ever wanted to try one…get yourself a coconut and…

“come on in,  the water’s fine!”…but you gotta stay a while.

tool and teddy

success!!

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