Toasted Coconut Cups with Sea Salt

My first real job was working behind the counter in a chocolate shop.  I spent my afternoons, weekends, and summers working there during high school.  I weighed out candy, counted change, and packed countless heart-shaped boxes for Valentine’s day.  When I started, I was required to wear a skirt and a white apron with lots of lace.  Despite the dress code and the apron, the candy shop was an ideal place to work, and I managed at some point to try everything in the candy cases.  Dark chocolate coconut cups were my favorite item in the store, and these candies are inspired by my time there. 

Notes:

I like to use dark chocolate for these, but milk chocolate would work well too.  Just make sure that the chocolate you use melts well and tastes good.  Coconut flavor is the coconut equivalent of vanilla extract and I add it to boost the coconut flavor.  If you don’t have it, you can leave it out.

Ingredients

3 cups (500 grams) dark chocolate, chopped

2 cups unsweetened coconut

1½  teaspoons coconut flavor

⅛ to ½ teaspoon sea salt, to taste

Yields 30 mini cups.

Toast, Melt, Mix, and Top

Put the unsweetened coconut in a large sauté pan, and place it over low heat, stirring regularly.  Toast the coconut until it is a nice golden brown color.  Be sure to watch it closely as it starts to brown; it can go from golden to burnt rather quickly.  Once the unsweetened coconut is toasted, remove it from the heat and stir in the coconut flavor.  Reserve ¼ cup of the toasted coconut mixture for use later.  Melt the chocolate in a double boiler or in a pan over low heat.  Once it is melted, remove it from the heat and stir in the toasted coconut mixture (except for the reserved ¼ cup.)  Stir ⅛ teaspoon of sea salt into the chocolate/coconut mixture.  Using a clean spoon, taste the mixture it to see if it is salty enough.  If it isn’t, add more a little bit at a time until it reaches the salty flavor that is most appealing to you.   

Line mini muffin tins with at least 30 mini cupcake liners.  Spoon the chocolate/coconut/salt mixture into a large Ziplock bag.  Snip ¼ - ½ inch off a lower corner of the bag, and pipe the mixture into the cups, filling them almost to the top.  Once all of the cups are filled, tap the muffin tin a few times on the counter to settle the chocolate and even out the tops.  Sprinkle some of the reserved toasted coconut on top of each cup and then allow the chocolate to set.  (You can speed up the setting process by placing the pan in the freezer.)  Remove the set cups from the muffin tin and store, well wrapped, at room temperature.

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