Coconut bake is a simple, unleavened bread that happens to be one of my favourite foods.
Bake making is a skill that’s passed down from generation to generation. My grandmother Ma Solo used to make lovely bake when she was alive, my Tantie Phil and my mother Madge make the most amazing coconut bake and I’m simply trying to reach their high standards.
I would make bake and even bread more often but I just don’t eat a lot of it.
This is how it usually goes, I buy some kind of exotic looking bread and I ravenously eat the first few slices then the rest just sits there and I eventually have to throw it away (I never seem to need breadcrumbs or feel like making bread and butter pudding).
I was inspired to make bake last night after seeing photos of perfect homemade bread taken by fellow blogger Chennette. I took the advice I got the other day of weighing every ingredient including the liquids and set about making a coconut bake.
While I was kneading the dough, I wondered whether West Indians are the only people who use the word bake to refer to a specific type of unleavened bread. It’s something I must investigate further.
As you can see, the result wasn’t bad at all, but I would have liked the bake to have risen just a bit more, I think next time I’ll use self raising flour instead of plain flour.
Here’s my recipe:

Coconut Bake
8 ozs white flour
8 ozs whole wheat flour
4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
6 ozs grated coconut or reconstituted dessicated coconut
8 ozs milk
4 ozs butter

Method
1. In a large bowl, mix the flour, baking powder and salt.
2. Warm the milk in a saucepan, add butter and sugar and mix until butter has melted, leave to cool slightly.
3. Add coconut to flour, mix and make a well in centre of the mixture.
4. Gradually pour milk and butter into flour and coconut, mixing until a dough of kneading consistency is formed.
5. On a lightly floured surface, knead the dough until it is silky and smooth.
6. Put the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover and rest for 30 minutes.
7. Heat oven to 190C and grease a roasting tray.
8. When dough has rested, roll out and fit on roasting tray.
9. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until the bake is well coloured, has a firm crust and sounds hollow when you tip it out of the tin and tap the base.
10. Transfer bake to a wire rack and cool a bit before slicing.

Serving tip: Coconut bake is best when warm and served with strong cheddar cheese and lots of butter.