Ingredients
Base
- 1large dry coconut, grated, about 400 g
- 500 ggranulated sugar
- 250 mlwater
- 1/4 tspsalt
- 1 tspvanilla extract
- 1/2 tspgrated nutmeg, if wanted
Pink top
- 150 ggranulated sugar
- 60 mlwater
- 1/4 tspcochineal or red food colouring
To set
- a shallow tin, greased and lined
Directions
- Crack the coconut, drain the water and prise the flesh out of the shell. Pare off the thin brown skin with a peeler if you want a pure white result.
- Grate the flesh coarsely on a box grater, which is where the name comes from. Grate it coarsely rather than finely, since the texture is the whole point. Put the sugar, water and salt in a heavy pan over a medium heat. Stir it only until the sugar dissolves and then stop stirring.
- Let it come to the boil and cook it for five minutes. Tip the grated coconut into the boiling syrup all at once. Stir it through so every strand is coated. Cook it for about twenty minutes, stirring often.
- Stir in the vanilla and nutmeg in the last two minutes. Now judging when it is ready, which is the critical moment. Take it off the heat the moment it reaches that point. Cooked further it turns hard and crumbly, and cooked less it will never set.
- Press it level with the back of an oiled spoon. Work quickly, since it stiffens noticeably within a minute. Now the pink top, which is made as a separate thin syrup. Put the second lot of sugar and water in a small clean pan. Heat it until it dissolves, then boil it for four minutes. Stir in the colouring so it turns bright pink. Take it off the heat and let it thicken for a minute.
- Pour it over the surface of the set base and tilt the tin to spread it. It should form a thin bright layer rather than soak in. Leave the tin at room temperature for at least two hours. Do not put it in the fridge, which makes the sugar weep. Turn the slab out and cut it into squares with a heavy knife.
- Wrap the squares individually if you are keeping them. They keep for about two weeks in an airtight tin. Serve them as they are, with nothing alongside.
Technique
- Grate the coconut coarsely, since the texture is the whole point of the sweet.
- Stop cooking the moment the spoon leaves a parting, since a minute more turns it hard.
- The traditional pink comes from cochineal, which is insect-derived.
Substitutions
- Desiccated coconut, though the result is drier and duller.
- Beetroot powder for the pink, if avoiding cochineal and synthetic colour.
Variations
- Left plain white with no pink layer.
- With ginger grated into the coconut.
- Made darker with brown sugar, sold as busta or similar sweets.
History
A Jamaican school-gate and market sweet, the pink layer traditionally coloured with cochineal.
Frequently asked questions
What is Grater cake?
Grater cake is a dessert from Jamaica: grated coconut boiled with sugar and set in squares, topped pink. A Jamaican school-gate and market sweet, the pink layer traditionally coloured with cochineal.
How long does Grater cake take to make?
Grater cake takes 20 min plus 2 hours setting of preparation and 30 min of cooking. The recipe makes 16 squares. It is rated medium to make.
What can I substitute in Grater cake?
Yes, within limits. Desiccated coconut, though the result is drier and duller. Beetroot powder for the pink, if avoiding cochineal and synthetic colour.
What is the most important thing to get right in Grater cake?
Grate the flesh coarsely on a box grater, which is where the name comes from. Grate it coarsely rather than finely, since the texture is the whole point. Put the sugar, water and salt in a heavy pan over a medium heat. Stir it only until the sugar dissolves and then stop stirring.
