Jamaican Coconut Drops

Today we bring you a unique toffee-like dessert straight from Jamaica called Jamaican Coconut Drops. This dessert is unlike anything you have ever made. Actually, it is similar to Gizzada Recipe.

It is simple, tasteful, and satisfying. The best thing about this dessert is that it is a no-bake, gluten-free, healthy, and easy recipe.  And above all, it is vegan! It can’t get any better than this, can it?

What are coconut drops?

Coconut drops is a traditional Jamaican dessert that pretty much resembles a toffee. It is made from sugar and has coconut chunks that withs it a chewy texture. It is a unique type of dessert that doesn’t include milk, cream, or any such ingredient.

The best thing about these coconut drops is that it doesn’t involve baking as well. So you don’t have o go through a labor process. It is super easy to make, and you can prepare it in large batches. It is an amazing dessert and a far more amazing sweet that you can gift to your loved ones on several occasions like Christmas, holidays, etc.

The main ingredient for this dessert is the coconut and sugar. You can add a few other flavors and give the dessert your flair. Some of the flavors that go well with the coconut drops include ginger, cinnamon, and vanilla extracts.

Ingredient breakdown

Here is a detailed ingredient breakdown for Jamaican coconut drops:

• Coconut: the main ingredient of the dish is coconut. For this recipe, I use dried coconut flesh. You can either use shaved coconut or coconut diced into small pieces. Whatever you choose, you can easily find dried coconut flesh from any grocery store.
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• Sugar: What is a dessert without sugar? For this recipe, I have used organic cane sugar. Organic cane sugar is free from any type of preservative and chemical. Thus, it is a healthy and sweeter option.
• Ginger: ginger adds a punch of flavor and freshness to the coconut drops. Although I use freshly grated ginger, you can also use ginger powder.
• Nutmeg: nutmeg brings its aroma to the drops. It has a very mild flavor and is mostly used for its aromatic properties. If you don’t have nutmeg around, you can skip it entirely.
• Salt: a little salt adds depth of flavor. It brings you the natural flavor of ingredients and adds a new dimension to the drops. Although I use pink Himalayan salt for its several health-related properties, you can use common table salt as well.

How to make coconut drops

Making Jamaican coconut drop is the easiest thing you can ever do. Here is a step-by-step guide to making the perfect coconut drops:

Step 1: Firstly, you have to pour water into a medium saucepan. Place the saucepan on high heat and add dried coconut pieces to it.

Step 2: Bring the mixture to a boil. As it starts boiling, add the rest of the ingredients that include sugar, salt, ginger, and nutmeg.

Step 3: Continue to stir until sugar dissolves completely. Let the mixture boil for about 10 minutes. Now, you have to make sure to stir the mixture constantly; otherwise, there are high chances that the sugar will burn and it will ruin your dish.

Step 4: once the liquid reduces to half, reduce the heat and let the mixture simmer for about 10 more minutes until it starts getting thicker. You have to notice that the mixture should not get too thick. It should be thick but should have a runny consistency. It took one hour to cook until thick.

Step 5: grease a baking tray with coconut oil and pour in two tablespoons to the mixture on the baking tray; it will get a round shape. However, you can shape it like a drop as well to stay true to the name.

Step 6: once you fill the baking tray, leave it to cool down at room temperature for about 6 minutes. Once done, remove it from the tray and enjoy!

Tips and tricks for perfect coconut drops:

Honestly, this coconut drops recipe is so simple, and I don’t think anything can go wrong with it. But still, for someone who is new to this dessert and the idea of coconut drops, here are a few things you should keep in mind:

• Make sure the coconut pieces are small. Ideally, the pieces should be about 1/4 inch in width. Note that the smaller the pieces, the more easily you will get them in the drops.
• Once you add in sugar, don’t forget to constantly still the mixture, you don’t want to ruin the dessert by burning the sugar.
• You need to watch the consistency of the mixture before you take it off the heat. It should be thick and sticky, but at the same time, it should maintain the runny texture as well. If it’s too runny, the drops won’t hold shape. And if it is too thick, it will be too sticky. In other words, you won’t be able to handle them in either case.
• You can replace nutmeg with cinnamon as well. If you love the sweet flavor of cinnamon, you can add it to the drops. Similarly, you can use vanilla extracts as well.
• If you want to avoid sugar and plan on using sweeteners like erythritol, note that it won’t work. It will ruin not just the taste of the drops but its appearance as well.
• Because these drops have a dark brown color, you get the color by cooking sugar. If you want the color to be darker, you can go with brown sugar instead of white.
• Never leave the mixture to cool down in the saucepan. It will only create a problem for you, and once the mixture is off the heat, you will have to work fast and scoop the mixture onto the baking dish.
• When pouring the mixture onto the baking tray, make sure you place them at 2 inches distance from each other. This way, they won’t stick to each other.
• If you want to speed up the cooling process, you can place the baking tray in the refrigerator as well.

How to store coconut drops?

Although storing coconut drops is fairly simple, but it requires a small technique. Because these are a type of candy, you can’t store them all in a jar.

There are huge chances that they will stick with each other. So, when placing them in a jar, make sure you wrap each coconut drop in a parchment paper of high-quality plastic wrap. This way, they won’t stick to each other, and you can easily take out one drop at a time. You can place the jar in the refrigerator for as long as you want.

Furthermore, you can also freeze these coconut drops. Fortis, make sure you place parchment paper between each drop; otherwise, it will stick with each other. However, I personally don’t prefer you freeze these. That’s because this way, it will lose its texture, and it will be fairly difficult for you to eat it.

Other Vegan Jamaican Dessert Recipes

• Jamaican Vegan Sweet Potato Pudding
• Jamaican Cornmeal Pudding
• Fruit Cake
• Spice Bun
• Cassava Pone
• Blue Draws
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