This dairy free coconut custard is a creamy, dreamy dessert that coconut lovers will go nuts for. It’s full of sweet coconut flavor and this custard can be eaten by itself or be used in place of regular pastry cream.
If you’re a regular reader around here (thank you if you are!), then you know that coconut is my jam. I love it so much, I’d pretty much say that it’s a coconut obsession. Today’s coconut post? Dairy free coconut custard.
You guys, this coconut custard is amazing with a capital A-M-A-Z-I-N-G. There’s enough coconut flavor to taste the coconut without being overwhelming for those who don’t love coconut as much as I do. I also added a bit of unsweetened coconut into the custard itself, which is optional, and I topped mine with some extra toasted coconut.
Told you it’s a coconut obsession.
This dairy free coconut custard is actually a precursor to a recipe I’ll be sharing with you next month – a coconut cake. It’s a cake I’m making for my birthday. Yes, I make my own birthday cake.
I actually just made it a week ago for my brother-in-law’s birthday. I was tasked with making the cake and he didn’t request a specific flavor, just “one that everyone can eat”. Which meant it had to be gluten free for Adam, lactose/dairy free for Kelsey and my mother-in-law, PLUS nut free AND chocolate free for my mother-in-law.
I thought about making my pineapple upside-down cake or my Funfetti cake but I kind of wanted to do something different. Since my grandfather-in-law and I both love coconut and it met all of the above criteria, that’s what I went with. I had my fingers crossed that Erik liked coconut too!
Spoiler – he did. And the cake was a HIT. So much so that I decided I wanted it for myself too.
Any-who, this coconut custard is a used twice in the cake which is why I wanted to post it now. It’s a really versatile recipe because you can eat the custard by itself like a pudding or you can use it in recipes as a sub for pastry cream. It’s so good you’ll want to start eating it with everything. Enjoy!
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Dairy Free Coconut Custard
This dairy free coconut custard is a creamy, dreamy dessert that coconut lovers will go nuts for. It’s full of sweet coconut flavor and this custard can be eaten by itself or be used in place of regular pastry cream.
Ingredients
- 1 13.5 oz can full-fat coconut milk
- 5 egg yolks
- 1/3 C granulated sugar
- 1/4 C tapioca flour (or cornstarch)
- 1 Tbsp pure homemade vanilla extract
- toasted coconut for topping, optional
Instructions
- Add the milk to a medium sized saucepan and heat over medium-low heat.
- While the milk is heating, add the egg yolks, sugar, and tapioca flour to a medium-sized glass bowl. Whisk together to combine (mixture will be clumpy) and set aside.
- Whisk the milk occasionally until it starts to steam - do not boil. Remove the milk from the heat and while whisking, pour a little milk (about 1/2 cup) into the egg mixture - do not stop whisking.
- Continue to simultaneously whisk and slowly pour the remaining milk into the egg mixture. When all the milk has been poured into the bowl, give the mixture a good stir and then pour it back into the saucepan.
- Heat the milk mixture over medium heat, whisking almost constantly, until it starts to get thick like pudding and bubble. Remove from the heat and whisk in the vanilla extract.
- *Place a strainer over a clean bowl and pour the custard into the strainer. Stir and push the custard through the strainer, leaving any clumps behind.
- Place a piece of plastic wrap directly on top of the custard and cool to room temperature. When cool, refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving.
Notes
*Straining is optional but will remove any impurities/clumps in the custard.
When placing the plastic wrap on the custard, make sure it is actually touching the custard (like you're putting a band-aid on it). That will prevent a thick skin layer from forming on top of the custard.
Nutrition Information:
Amount Per Serving:Calories: 979Total Fat: 81gCarbohydrates: 11gProtein: 48g
Michelle
Tuesday 22nd of December 2020
This dairy-free coconut custard looks great. Would love to hear your thought on whether any adjustments would be needed to use this as a filling for a coconut cream pie? I will top with meringue so it will need to go into the oven for a bit. Thanks!
Sand
Saturday 28th of November 2020
This is not a dairy-free custard - eggs are dairy.
Erin
Friday 16th of October 2020
You have changed my dairy-free life! Bonus points, I swapped the sugar for Swerve and now it’s dairy-free and keto/diabetes friendly.
Charmaine
Saturday 20th of June 2020
I am not a fan of coconut desserts because they are usually overwhelmingly sweet. This one is not. I used it a couple of times as the custard for my southern style banana pudding, a dessert I thought I could no longer enjoy due to my gluten sensitivity and dairy allergy. However, with gluten-free vanilla wafers and this custard I can have banana pudding again! Thanks.
Dan
Monday 8th of June 2020
Very delicious with a great consistency, but needs a dash of salt! This recipe is a great base for all sorts of different custard flavors. I love to infuse tea into the milk before making this.