Gone coconuts part one

coconut jelly ready to be eaten

Fresh coconut water with coco brooms made from the fronds of the coconut. They make good outdoor brooms. The one on the right was made by an old man who comes by to collect the fronds and in return he has given me a broom.

The coconut can be referred to as the tree of life. After the devastating Tsunami in Asia, many survivors claimed that the coconut saved them from starvation. In Asia no part of the coconut is wasted and is a very viable crop. In the Caribbean it is widely used but not as much as in Asia. We use the water for babies and adults suffering from dehydration, from diarrhoea and as a regular water for drinking. http://www.nutritiondata.com/facts/nut-and-seed-products/3115/2 . I have been yearning for some coconut water for several days now, not wanting to hurt my sore shoulder I kept hesitating about picking some. Today I finally got the courage to attempt to pick some of these yellow coconuts. These are very sweet and also known in Trinidad as Chinese coconuts. The tree is not very tall and produces at an early age. I found this tree when we bought the property 13 years ago. I managed to cut a bunch with my pole saw. There were nine coconuts on this bunch. I got out my machete and got to work. Many persons have lost their fingers and hands by way of the machete and coconuts. So be very careful when doing this. Some vendors here use a sharp knife and cut the top off holding the coconut in one hand. On Sunday mornings all along the highways many coconut vendors ply their trade. I 've cut the coconut at an angle exposing the jelly in the nut. I got a knife and opened the hole to pour out the water. I got exactly 8ozs from this coconut. I then cut open the coconut to extract the jelly. The jelly is the soft nut that hasn't yet hardened. This was delicious! There is a palm sugar that is derived from the nectar from the coconut flowers, it can be bought in the asian section of the supermarkets or from any store that sells Asian foods. I had never seen it until recently and have never heard of it being made in the Caribbean.