Tropical Squares
If you've got margarine, desiccated coconut and crushed pineapple, you're most of the way to this vegetarian: about 65 minutes of cooking across 7 steps. Below: the ingredients split into pantry staples and a quick shopping list, a built-in serving scaler, and the method in 7 steps.
You'll mainly reach for oven and whisk. At medium difficulty across 7 steps, it's manageable with a little attention. As written, it's meat-free.
What you'll need
Shopping list (3)
Pantry staples (you likely have these)
🔁 Unit converter
How to make it
- Preheat the oven to 180 C and line a 20 by 20 cm square baking tin with parchment paper.
- To make the base, rub the margarine into the flour, baking powder and a pinch of salt until crumbly, then stir in 1/4 cup of the sugar and bind with the single egg to form a soft dough.
- Press the dough evenly into the lined tin and bake for 12 to 15 minutes until just set and pale gold, then remove from the oven.
- Drain the crushed pineapple well and spread it evenly over the warm base.
- Whisk the two remaining eggs with the rest of the sugar and the vanilla, then fold in the desiccated coconut to make a thick topping and spread it over the pineapple.
- Return the tin to the oven and bake for a further 20 to 25 minutes until the coconut topping is golden and the eggs are fully set.
- Cool completely in the tin before lifting out and cutting into squares.
You'll use: Oven · Whisk
Ingredient substitutions
- Eggs
- ¼ cup unsweetened applesauce (baking) · 1 tbsp ground flax + 3 tbsp water per egg
Tips & common questions
How long does Tropical Squares take to make?
About 65 minutes from start to finish — an estimate based on the 7 steps and 10 ingredients. Times vary with your kitchen and how much prep you do ahead.
What can I use instead of eggs?
Try ¼ cup unsweetened applesauce (baking). See the substitutions section above for more swaps.
Can I scale this recipe up or down?
Yes — use the servings control above the ingredients and every quantity rescales automatically (fractions included). Cooking times stay roughly the same; very large batches may need a little longer.
Is Tropical Squares vegetarian?
Its ingredients contain no meat or fish, so it's suitable for vegetarians. Check any cheeses for animal rennet if that matters to you.
Related recipes
Tropical Squares is an original recipe developed in-house by Consomee. Photo: Jardin tropical - Paris - Esplanade du Dinh - 01.JPG by Poulpy, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons. We add the serving scaler, ingredient tools, timing and structure on top — how we source recipes.