Free Range Friday ~ Water. Even Coconut Water

The other day some friends who were leaving until next year brought me over some goodies they thought I'd enjoy, among them two already husked (and it looked like washed and scrubbed too) coconuts. I don't think they knew I really, really like coconuts, going back to when I was a young girl (obviously instead of the old girl I am today).

We had this uncle who had a big house down in Miami Beach with a man who looked after it named Charlie. He was always as ready to get us fresh coconuts from the trees as he was to find places for us to play hide and seek. Yes, you're long gone from this plane Charlie, but thanks for being yet another wonderful adult in our lives, and thanks for the coconuts!

I know there was a machete involved in husking and opening them but being as in my later life I didn't happen to keep a machete around, I'd buy husked coconuts, use a hammer and nail to get the milk out and then smash them hard on a sidewalk or driveway. Or patio floors...anything super hard and wooden decks don't count. Nowadays, lacking a driveway, a sidewalk and/or a patio, I smash them with a hammer. Almost as satisfying and it does the job.

If you are having an internal rage going on that you'd like to prevent being external? Smash a coconut open, cement or hammer method, it's incredibly therapeutic! This also works for kids. You can take any angry child and hand them a coconut to smash and things change quickly. I should have kept a family coconut arsenal around, but the times I tried it, it worked.

 But I'm getting ahead of myself. Again.

Here's what you do.

First, take a clean nail to all three 'eyes' hammering it through past the meat of the coconut. It's pretty easy; whoever designed these knew something about this

Let the water/milk drain out

If you want to save this, go ahead, but I'd just drink it right away. I did drink it right away.

After your first smash, like above, smash it a bit more to get smaller pieces because

it's easier to gently slide a sharply pointed knife in around the edges and pop out the meat.

That piece should have been smashed one more time. Sometimes patience is not my virtue.

And wa lah!

There are lots of way for using coconut meat beside just eating it as a snack, which is a fine way to eat it, in my opinion. Best to google it and find out what sounds good to you. Just remember the difference between green, young coconuts and mature ones like these. The meat they talk about in that is not solid, and can be used much differently than this. But check it out!


Yesterday, I watched this bird a long, long time. But I'll spare you all of the 200 photos...even though he was worth almost every one of them.

Not a bird, just wanted to see if you were paying attention.

Have a fundamentally unflawed Friday. Do something fascinatingly focused.