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Guyanese coconut buns
Craggy, crumbly buns with grated coconut, raisins and nutmeg
A coconut bun and a cold drink from a Georgetown cake shop is a Guyanese after-school ritual, and the same buns turn up in lunch boxes, at church teas and in the bags of sweets sent to relatives abroad. They are rough, rock-cake-style mounds, crisp and golden outside, crumbly and moist inside from freshly grated coconut, freckled with raisins and fragrant with nutmeg. Have one with a cup of tea, or with a wedge of cheddar as many Guyanese do. The mixture needs to be stiff enough to hold a peak; adding too much milk is the classic error, and the buns flatten into biscuits. Chef's tip: rub the butter in until the flour looks like breadcrumbs, then stop handling the mix as soon as it clumps, for a short, tender crumb.
- Total time
- 42 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 12
Ingredients
For the buns
- 10 ½ oz plain flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- ½ tsp ground nutmegfreshly grated is best
- 3 ½ oz buttercold, diced
- 3 ½ oz light brown sugar
- 5 ½ oz grated coconutfresh or frozen, thawed
- 2 ⅛ oz raisins
- 1 egg
- ¼ cup milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp almond extract (optional)
To finish
- 1 tbsp demerara sugar
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What you'll need
Spices & pantry
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Method
0/7 doneStep 1: Heat the oven to 375°F (350°F fan) and line two baking trays.
Step 2: Mix 10 ½ oz plain flour, 2 tsp baking powder, ¼ tsp salt and ½ tsp ground nutmeg. Rub in 3 ½ oz butter with your fingertips until it looks like breadcrumbs.
4 minStep 3: Stir in 3 ½ oz light brown sugar, 5 ½ oz grated coconut and 2 ⅛ oz raisins.
Step 4: Beat 1 egg with ¼ cup milk and 1 tsp vanilla extract, adding the almond extract if using. Stir it in with a fork until the mixture just clumps into a stiff, rough dough; add a splash more milk only if it is dry and floury.
Step 5: Drop 12 rough mounds onto the trays with two forks, keeping them craggy, and sprinkle with 1 tbsp demerara sugar.
Step 6: Bake for 18–22 minutes, until golden brown, firm at the edges and a skewer pushed into the middle comes out clean.
20 minStep 7: Cool on the tray for 5 minutes, then on a rack. They keep 3 days in a tin.
5 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 230 kcal
- Protein
- 4 g
- Carbs
- 30 g
- Fat
- 11 g
- Fibre
- 3 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does guyanese coconut buns take?
- About 42 minutes in total: 20 minutes to prepare and 22 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 12 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of plain flour?
- Self-raising flour, same amount (then leave out the baking powder).
- What can I use instead of baking powder?
- ¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda + ½ tsp cream of tartar per 1 tsp.
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