Coconut Milk Overdose

Coconuts at the beach

When I was young, and before I read Michael Pollen, I loved to eat Milano cookies. I once told my mom, “I could eat one million Milanos!” My mom laughed and wisely responded, “If you eat too many, you might get sick of them.” Never, I thought, I could never be sick of Milanos! Then, on one fateful day, a sale at QFC Grocery resulted in four white bags of Milano cookies sitting in our pantry. 

It was a dream come true as I indulged in orange chocolate Milanos, raspberry Milanos, dark chocolate Milanos and of course, mint chocolate Milanos. About 30 minutes later, I started feeling funny. My stomach hurt, I got a headache, and then I flat-out passed out on the couch from my Milano overdose. When I awoke from my sugar slumber, I couldn’t even look at Milanos without feeling nauseous. I can count on one hand the number of Milanos I’ve consumed since. It was a lesson well-learned to enjoy treats in the right quantities, or so I thought. 

More than 15 years later, I suffered another overdose at Gawad Kalinga. The culprit this time? Coconut milk. 

One of the things I love about the Philippines is the common carts of fresh young coconuts that street vendors will cut open and straw-up for you to enjoy the fresh coconut water. I had happily sipped a few coconuts in this manner when I came across a coconut milk stall at a market in Angat. Here, they cut old coconuts in half, shredded the coconut meat, put the shreds in a straining cloth, and then press the liquid out of the coconut, producing a thick and creamy coconut milk.

I was so excited about my small bag of coconut milk. I brought it back to the farm, put it in the fridge to chill and waited for that moment when the heat would make me crave a cold drink. When that moment arrived, I eagerly poured the coconut milk into a glass and took a sip. I knew immediately that I shouldn’t have the whole 8oz at once because it was pretty much coconut cream. I was like, I’ll just drink a little and put the rest in the fridge. I should’ve known better because before I knew it, I had downed the cup hoping to quench my thirst (which it doesn’t do!! Go for the H2O, people, go for the H2O). 

It was Milano deja vu. First I felt my stomach. I was on the verge of throwing up, which probably would have helped. Then I got the headache, and then I just passed out for two hours. It was my body’s last line of self-defense to protect my consciousness from the poisoning power of excessive coconut milk. I felt so sick. 

Luckily, the farm is like a family and everyone made sure I was alright. Jio - my awesome, singing tour guide - went to the herb garden with me where we picked fresh peppermint and tarragon to make fresh tea. “Peppermint and tarragon grow well together, and they taste well together too,” Jio told me with his teddy-bear smile. The tea helped a lot and I can’t wait for the day when I grow my own peppermint-tarragon herb garden. 

Eventually the episode passed, and the jokes began. “Hey Willa, want some coconut milk?” was the question of the day :). So this overdose did have at least a couple of silver linings: garden fresh tea and good laughs all around. 

Amazing herb garden! 

Peppermint tarragon tea