No-Bake Indonesian Pandan Coconut Icebox Cups with Palm Sugar Crumble

Open the chilled can of coconut milk without shaking it and scoop the thick solid cream off the top into a large mixing bowl. Save the thin liquid beneath for smoothies — you only want the firm cream here.

Serves 6

Ingredients

• 1 can (13.5 oz) full-fat coconut milk, chilled overnight
• 1 cup heavy cream, cold
• 1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk
• 1 teaspoon pandan extract (or 4 pandan leaves, blended and strained)
• 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1 cup coconut biscuits or digestive biscuits, crushed
• 1/3 cup palm sugar (gula jawa), finely grated
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut flakes, toasted
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

1. Open the chilled can of coconut milk without shaking it and scoop the thick solid cream off the top into a large mixing bowl. Save the thin liquid beneath for smoothies — you only want the firm cream here.
2. Add the cold heavy cream to the bowl and whip on medium speed for 2 to 3 minutes, until it holds soft peaks. Stop before it stiffens; overwhipped coconut cream turns grainy and will not smooth back out.
3. Fold in the condensed milk, pandan extract, vanilla and salt with a spatula, working in three additions and turning the bowl as you go. The mixture should take on an even, pale jade color with no streaks.
4. Make the crumble by combining the crushed biscuits, grated palm sugar and melted butter in a separate bowl. Rub the mixture between your fingertips until it clumps into coarse, damp crumbs that hold together when pressed.
5. Spoon a third of the crumble into the bottoms of six glass cups and press down lightly. Add half the pandan cream, then another third of the crumble, then the remaining cream, finishing with a smooth top.
6. Refrigerate the cups for at least 4 hours, or overnight, until the cream sets firm enough to hold a spoon mark cleanly.
7. Just before serving, scatter the last of the crumble and the toasted coconut flakes over the top of each cup so they stay crisp against the cold cream.
8. Pandan is often called the vanilla of Southeast Asia, though the comparison undersells it — the leaves give off a grassy, nutty perfume that has no real Western equivalent. Paired with gula jawa, the dark palm sugar tapped from coconut flower stalks across Java, it produces the flavor profile behind countless Indonesian sweets. Building it as an icebox dessert keeps the kitchen cool in July and lets the flavors deepen overnight, which is exactly what pandan wants.

Nutrition (estimated, per serving)

• Calories: 480 kcal
• Protein: 5g
• Fat: 36g
• Carbohydrates: 36g
• Fiber: 2g
• Sugar: 28g
• Sodium: 180mg