Coconut mini cake's with blueberry compote - dusted with some cardamom sugar !

If you are into cooking or making cocktails or baking , let me share that you must thoroughly research flavor pairings and the science behind them . This information will help you determine the best match , based on the aromatic profile of the food in question and base your creation on the principle that ingredients that share key scents , pair well with one another. There is a lot of material available online on this subject and you will be pleasantly surprised by the amount of new combinations you discover as you go along .While chocolate - mint , apple -cinnamon , banana - caramel are the most common pairings - once you start reading , allow yourself to get appalled by the plethora of combinations that exist . A good pairing can elevate your dish to a whole new level .

I have been recently seeing a lot of fresh blue berry at local grocers and decided to give it go , for my fruit dessert this weekend . For those of you who are following me , you would have observed that i am a complete sucker for natural flavors , when it comes to desserts and therefore , fruit is often the hero of my dessert . I was pleasantly surprised to see that the fresh blueberry's yielded a beautiful dark purple sauce and needed no additional sugar to mush up .

Quarantine has also given me lot of time to research food and devote more time to my cooking / baking experiences while focusing on the flavor and textures more minutely . In this bake , i paired fresh coconut with blueberry . The addition of the cardamom sugar was an idea which rooted from a suggestion in a food pairing chapter . This indeed elevated the taste of everything to a complete new level . Also , all in all , if you see , this is actually just a simple coconut cake but with the right flavor pairings , the end result is nothing less than a dessert from a fancy pâtissier ! Give it a try and let me know !

Things you will need :

For the Blue Berry compote

• 200 gm fresh blueberries

• 01 tsp sugar

• 01 tsp cornflour

• 01 tbsp butter

For the Mini Coconut Cakes ( All ingredients at room temperature )

• 01 cup flour

• 01 tsp baking powder

• 02 medium eggs

• 01 cup finely granulated sugar

• 1/2 cup butter milk

• 100 gm butter

• 1/2 cup freshly grated coconut

• 02 tbsp coconut oil

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 01 tbsp fine cardamom powder

• Basil flower or bunch of basil leaf for garnish

Steps to follow

• First we will make the berry compote . In a heavy bottomed pan , drop in all the ingredients mentioned for the compote . Cook over a medium heat for about 10 minutes , till you reach a sauce like consistency. Keep aside to cool .

• For the cake , sift flour , salt and baking powder and keep aside .

• In a mixing bowl , cream the butter and sugar well , then add 01 egg at a time and beat everything , till well incorporated.

• Next add in the buttermilk , followed by the flour mix and desiccated coconut shards . Last , add in the coconut oil and mix well .

• Butter small muffin / cupcake tins and pour the coconut batter into them

• Bake for 40 mins at 150 * Celsius till well done .

• Cool completely to room temperature.

Assemble and Serve

• Assemble only once everything is at room temperature .

• In a serving bowl , spread 01 tbsp of the berry compote and place your mini coconut cake on top of it . Garnish the cake with some chopped fresh blue berries and some basil leaf / flower.

• Mix 01 tsp of powdered sugar with 01 tsp of cardamom powder and dust on top of the dessert to finish. Enjoy the goodness !