Out of the blue, it was a great surprise to hear from Australian company, JT’s Coconut Essence, asking if I’d like to try their signature product, 100% coconut water. Inspired from a chance tasting of fresh coconut water in the Thai countryside, a journey of discovery and product development entailed to create this refreshing drink.
I’m a huge fan of anything coconut related, as many may know from my recent feature on upcoming Manchester coconut water business, UniCoco. I was interested to see how this international brand compared, especially considering it arrived in a can, rather than the usual carton which many on the market are served in.
This isn’t a comparison review, but the can actually made a big difference in terms of freshness, which could be down to the water being produced from fresh green coconuts, harvested and canned on the same day. Not only did this preserve the wonderful taste, but I was pleased to hear that JT’s coconut water is free of fat, cholesterol, additives and preservatives, plus it is unsweetened and gluten-free.
I was also sent a tub of their Coconut Chips, in both the original and chocolate flavours (you can also get Salt & Vinegar and Sour Cream – an interesting selection of savoury tastes there!). Baked rather than fried, these are high in antioxidants and beneficial Lauric Acid, 100% pure, both dairy and gluten-free, suitable for vegans and contain no cholesterol or trans fats. The only ‘bad’ thing these two varieties contain is: sugar. I rarely eat products or ingredients with added sugar, so I was conscious of creating low sugar recipes to all the chips to add some sweetness, in moderation.
Regardless of their nutritional content, both were ridiculously tasty, crunchy, satisfyingly sweet and dangerously addictive; I’m glad I used them in my recipes otherwise I could have easily eaten them one tub at a time! A treat in moderation rather than an everyday snack, I enjoyed trying these out – see below how I used them and what healthy, gluten-free recipes I created!
RASPBERRY & COCONUT LOAF WITH VANILLA COCONUT CREAM TOPPING
CHOCOLATE COCONUT PROTEIN TARTLETS
TROPICAL COCONUT & CHIA SEED POT
I’d love to know if you give any of these recipes a go – tweet me @SpamellaB or tag me on Instagram @SpamellaB and let me know your thoughts! 🙂 Make sure you follow JT’s Coconut Essence on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for updates and look out for them in the UK in 2015!