Pinterest Adventure #1

Ok. So, earlier this week, I posted about wanting to start testing out ideas from Pinterest. I have lots of great stuff on my boards, just sitting there. It's time to get to business! I wrote the aforementioned post with this very pin in mind. I was so pumped about it, I knew before I even did it that I would totally want to be sharing my results with the world! So, here it is, as promised. One of my Pinterest adventures. 

This particular gem can be found here. 

The blogger's claim was that you could create your own all-natural "whipped cream" by just refrigerating a can of cononut milk. 

I was sold. 

I've been on this "healthy" eating kick lately and this idea seemed right up my sweets-deprived alley. I read almost every single comment and found that some people liked it so much that they made it everyday and others used it to fulfill their craving for ice cream.

I'll just have you know, when you mention "ice cream", you've got me by the...sweet tooth. I don't mess around.

The blogger said that she used a can of "organic, full-fat" coconut milk. Wellll, I didn't feel like driving 50 miles to the nearest Trader Joe's so I settled for this little beauty from Wal Mart. Cost like $1.25.

Le Coconut Milk

I took my can of coconut milk and placed it, ever so gently, next to my Greek yogurt and brown rice leftovers. It felt like the right thing to do. 

Then, I waited. 

Until the next day...

Super excited for whipped cream.

I opened the can and, much to my delight, found that it had, in fact, worked! Something I did worked! I had expected to open a can of ice cold, milky white failure. Instead, I found a solid white hunk of dreams-come-true. 

Scooping out my pride and joy.

The coconut "solids", if you will, were different than the original blogger had described them. They were really firm and kinda hard to scoop out. It reminded me of lard. I should've taken that as an omen...

Coconut solids all scooped up and laying in a bowl, ready for the whipping. 

I finally got them all out of the can and, low and behold, there was the coconut water as promised. Here's  where my story takes a turn for the worse. The blogger had said not to throw the water out, but to use it in cooking or for protein shakes. (???) So, that's what I'd planned to do. I'm new to the game, I figured "Why not?". 

I'll tell you "Why not?". 

The can smelled. I'm not sure if it was cause it wasn't organic or because of the brand or because I've never used coconut milk before, but this stuff was rank. 

It smelled like tuna. Or cat food. 

Vile.

I was kinda surprised, but still optimistic at this point. I thought, "Woah. That's nasty. Better keep going." I should have just cut my losses right then. Seriously. 

I pressed on. 

I started trying to "whip" the coconut solid into a cream...there was no "whipping" about it. In the original blog, it showed them using a whisk. I had to use a spoon, followed by a spatula, followed by a fork. It was so dense! Note my above "lard" reference. 

Nothing close to the "creaminess" I had been picturing. 

Meanwhile, I had to throw the coconut can in the trash cause the smell was ruining the entire experience. I felt like all I was tasting was the can. 

A little close-up.

It was so chunky! Add that to the tastelessness and I had myself one big glob of gross. It had a texture similar to what I had been going for, like heavy whipping cream, but the consistency was so horrible. 

Still, I pressed on. 

I added vanilla and some cinnamon. Then a little more cinnamon. More vanilla. A little more cinnamon. Some vanilla. Cinnamon. A couple more shakes of cinnamon. The rest of my vanilla.

I really wanted this to work! 

Straight nasty.

But, in the end, I had to admit that I had been beaten. I couldn't get past the chunks and that tangy tuna fish stank. Try as I might, I couldn't eat more than two or three nibbles. 

It tasted like devastation.

Heartbreak. 

I so badly wanted it to work that I went back and tried it later. I had my sister try it (she said "It tastes like coconut. But not."). I added more cinnamon...

I finally laid it to rest in the back of my fridge, next to a bag of salad and some leftover whole wheat pasta. 

It seemed like the right thing to do.

** I am not the originator of this idea. Full credit goes to nuttykitchen.com

I'm sure their whipped cream is delicious.

***Check out my Pinterest board of things I've nailed.***