Cocada Pudding

So, occasionally, I get extremely lazy and buy TV dinners to serve for dinner. I usually end up with one of the 'Mexican' dinners when this happens. I'm slightly embarrassed to admit that one of the reasons I get this dinner is because I have always loved the silly little pudding that's included as a 'dessert' - So I decided to find the recipe to try it for myself!! I bet the home made version will be even better than that frozen thing!

I found this recipe on the Restaurant Assocation of Maryland's website.

As always, I would really love to hear from anybody that tries one of the recipes from my blog! Please let me know what you think!
Thanks,
MissMouse

Cocada Pudding
Submittor: Lisl Wilkinson (MHEF)

Ingredients
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
3 inches cinnamon stick broken up
1 3 1/2-ounce can flaked cocnut
3 cups whole milk
4 eggs
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup whipping cream
2 tablespoons toasted sliced almonds (optional)

Directions
In an uncovered 2-quart saucepan, simmer sugar, water and cinnamon for 10 minutes. Strain; discard cinnamon pieces. Add coconut and cook, uncovered, for about 5 minutes or until sugar syrup is nearly absorbed, stirring frequently. Stir in 2 1/2 cups of the milk; cook until mixture is hot. In a bowl, beat eggs with remaining 1/2 cup of milk. Stir about 1 cup of hot mixture into egg mixture making sure not to "scramble" the eggs; pour egg mixture into saucepan. Cook and stir until mixture thickens slightly but does not boil. Stir in vanilla. Turn into a 1 1/2 quart bowl or individual serving dishes; chill. Whip cream and mound onto pudding. Garnish with almonds.Note: Be careful not to cook sugar coconut mixture into a hard nugget. Leave some water-sugar liquid at the bottom of the saucepan when the milk gets added.

Comments
This classic vanilla custard augmented by the intense perfume of cocnut, great when eaten slightly warm.