Trinidad Coconut Sweet Bread

Growing up in the Caribbean (Antigua) I was often exposed to different foods from various islands but to be honest with you, I’m not a typical island girl. (that’s a story for another time lol) I was first introduced to coconut sweet bread by my great aunt. She lived in Trinidad and when I visited her one summer, she made it for me.

When I tell you it was delicious, I still remember it to this day. It was a moist, coconut, spice filled treat, that had dried fruit in the mix! I love coconut so this was a plus for me. I have never made coconut sweet bread before, and I had no idea where to start. So Like many others, I searched the internet including YouTube for a recipe. I adapted a recipe I stumbled across a recipe by Cooking with Rita.

The product I created was not exactly the same as I remember it being in my childhood but the aromas and taste came close to!

Ingredients Used

• 481g flour
• 230g brown sugar
• 150g shredded coconut
• 111g melted butter
• 20g baking powder
• 100g eggs (2)
• 1g salt
• 2g ground nutmeg
• 2g ground ginger
• 3g ground cinnamon
• 3g vanilla
•  93g raisins
• 100g mixed fruit
• 180g milk

Method

• Pre-heat oven 350F and spray pan and set aside.
• Combine all dry ingredients along with shredded coconut and dried fruits except sugar and salt and stir.
•  Combine sugar, salt with melted butter, then add milk and whisked eggs. Mix to incorporate.
• Combine wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix until dough is formed.
• Transfer dough into prepared pan bake in oven for 45mins-1hr (depending on your oven).
• Create a sugar/water (equal parts) mixture and 10 mins before product is finished baking, brush with sugar mixture and return to oven.
• Once product is baked, move to a wire wrack to cool then slice and enjoy.

Things To Note:

• A traditional coconut sweet bread uses freshly grated coconuts which adds moisture. I used shredded coconuts which resulted in a drier sweet bread.
• Brushing the top with sugar will give this sweeet bread a crunchy exterior which also adds to the flavour of this sweet bread. I used equal parts sugar and water 1tbsp each.

This sweet bread is very addictive! Try it and tell me what you think!

Full video of how this sweet bread was created!