Coconut, shelling

Puncture one of the "eyes" of a husked coconut with a sharp, pointed tool such as an ice pick Pour out the coconut water, reserving if desired, then crack the coconut by hitting it with a heavy hammer in the middle where the shell is the widest. Continue rapping around the coconut until you have cracked the shell in a circle and can separate the two halves. Pry the coconut meat out of the shell with a sharp, heavy knife. Or, heat the coconut in a preheated 350 F oven for 15 minutes, remove and let cool. Wrap the coconut in a kitchen towel and crack into pieces with a hammer.