Lemon Coconut White Chocolate Blondies

Lemon Coconut White Chocolate Blondies - made August 24, 2019 from Extreme Brownies by Connie Weis

Now that I've moved all my baking books to another state, stored them for 6 months in a garage and unpacked them, I thought I should start using them again. Hoping to do more of that in the coming months so stay tuned. And ignore that I suspended my diet and made these for my cheat day.

I'm mixed about this blondie. It was "good" but there was a lot going on here. Perhaps too much so for my simple taste buds. I love coconut. I love lemon. And while I don't love white chocolate in the same way, most of it was in the batter itself and it didn't have a strong flavor. It was mostly there to lend to the "fudginess" of the blondie. Meaning it added to the density and moisture of the texture which I did like.

But if I were to make this again, I would keep the white chocolate melted into the batter to get the texture and leave off adding it as chips or chunks to the blondie. I don't think it needed it.

I'm also not convinced the coconut and lemon worked as well together in this recipe. At least not to me. The lemon is in the frosting while the coconut is mostly in the blondie itself. If you like the combination, you'll like this blondie. For my plebian taste buds, the lemon overwhelmed the blondie but the coconut tried to hold its own and the fight wasn't very fun. I ended up scraping off most of the lemon frosting to eat just the blondie. Which misses the point of the "extreme" brownie.

Next time, I would leave off the lemon frosting and the white chocolate chunks and make this as a coconut blondie with vanilla frosting.

Blondie Batter
1 7-ounce bag shredded sweetened coconut
1 1/2 sticks (6 ounces) unsalted butter, cut into tablespoons
6 ounces premium white baking chocolate
4 large eggs
2 cups (14 ounces) sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups (11.5 ounces) all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup (3 ounces) premium white chocolate chips

Lemon Frosting
10 tablespoons (5 ounces) unsalted butter
1 large egg yolk (optional)
2 2/3 cups (10.7 ounces) confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup (2 ounces) heavy whipping cream
1 teaspoon pure lemon extract
1/8 teaspoon salt
zest of 1 large lemon
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Garnish
2 to 3 tablespoons white chocolate Callebaut Crispearls

1. Toast the coconut: preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spread the coconut evenly onto a half-sheet baking pan. Bake for 5 minutes then stir with a wooden spoon, bringing in the coconut from the corners into the middle and vice versa. Bake for an additional 4 minutes, repeat, turning the coconut then continue to bake in 2-minute intervals until coconut is uniformly light golden brown. Transfer to a cooling rack and let cool to room temperature. Maintain the oven at 350 degrees F.
2. Make the blondies: line a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with foil and lightly spray with nonstick cooking spray.
3. In the top half of a double boiler set over hot water, melt the butter and white chocolate, whisking together until completely melted and combined. Remove from heat and set aside.
4. Using a large whisk, lightly beat the eggs in a large mixing bowl. Whisk in the sugar and salt until just incorporated. Briefly whisk the melted chocolate mixture then gradually whisk into the egg mixture until just combined. Briefly whisk in the vanilla.
5. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour and baking powder. Sift over the batter and stir together until just combined. Sprinkle the toasted coconut and white chocolate chips over the batter; fold in until just combined. 
6. Pour batter into prepared pan and smooth the top with a small offset spatula. Bake for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs and top is golden. Transfer the pan to a cooling rack and let cool to room temperature.
7. Lemon frosting: In a mixing bowl, beat the butter and egg, if using, until soft and creamy. Add the confectioners' sugar, beating on low until incorporated then on high until well combined. 
8. Using a microplane zester, zest the lemon directly into the bowl then add lemon juice. Beat on high until well combined and creamy.
9. Frost over cooled blondie, smoothing top with small offset spatula. Garnish with white chocolate crispearls. Refrigerate until frosting has set then cut into even squares.