Tropical Coconut Cake
Tuesday, May 12th, 2009 10:34 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
forchancookieI had about a paragraph written in here for two days or so. I just ditched it. Instead you get a cake recipe, a Tropical Coconut Cake. Mom made it for Mother's Day. It's labor intensive, but so worth it. It's AMAZING! Why do we eat boxed cakes? Canned frosting? What's that? This cake will kill your urge to ever eat the boxed cakes with canned frosting ever again. Boxed cake mix is a lie! A LIE!
Oh, and don't think I made my poor little mother make her own cake. I made the previously mentioned Divine Chocolate Chip Cookies. I nearly killed our hand mixer too >_> Anyway, here is the cake recipe:
Tropical Coconut Cake
Makes 1 (9-inch) cake
1 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 1/3 cups sugar, divided
6 large eggs, separated
3 3/4 cake flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon coconut extract
1 recipe Pineapple Curd
1 recipe Creamy Coconut Frosting
Garnish: toasted coconut*, white chocolate curls
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour 3 (9-inch) cake pans; set aside.
2. In a large bowl, combine butter and 2 cups sugar. Beat at high speed with an electric mixer until fluffy. Add egg yolks, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Sift together cake flour, baking powder, and salt. Add flour mixture to butter mixture, alternately with milk, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Beat in vanilla and coconut extract.
3. In a separate bowl, beat egg whites at high speed with an electric mixer until soft peaks form. Add remaining 1/3 cup sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating until stiff peaks form. Fold egg-white mixture into batter in thirds. Spoon batter into prepared pans. Bake for 25 to 27 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Let cool in pans for 10 minutes.
4. Remove cake layers from pans and cool completely on wire racks. Spread Pineapple Curd evenly between cake layers. Spread Creamy Coconut Frostings on side and top of cake. Garnish sides of cake with toasted coconut. Top cake with white chocolate curls, if desired.
* To toast coconut for garnish, place shredded coconut in a thin layer on a baking sheet, and bake at 350 degrees until it is light brown, stirring every 30 seconds or so for a total of 3 to 4 minutes.
Pineapple Curd
Makes about 1 3/4 cups
3/4 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
2 (8-ounce) cans crushed pineapple
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
3 egg yolks, lightly beaten
1/4 cup butter, cut into pieces
1/2 teaspoon pineapple extract
1. In a heavy saucepan, combine sugar and cornstarch. Add pineapple, lemon juice, and egg yolks. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, for 7 to 8 minutes, or until very thick. Remove from heat; gradually whisk in butter until melted. Stir in pineapple extract. Cool mixture slightly; cover, and chill for 2 hours.
Creamy Coconut Frosting
Makes about 4 cups
2 (4-ounce) bars white baking chocolate, chopped
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon coconut extract
5 cups confectioners' sugar
1. In a small bowl, combine white chocolate and cream. Microwave on High in 30-second intervals, stirring between each, until melted and smooth (approximately 1 /12 minutes total). Set aside to cool completely.
2. In a large bowl, combine white chocolate mixture, butter, sour cream, and coconut extract. Beat at medium speed with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Gradually add confectioners' sugar, beating until combined.
Notes: Since I didn't make the cake, I have nothing to offer on its preparation. Mom did skip the white chocolate on top and just covered the whole thing with toasted coconut which gave it a nice crunchy texture. The frosting was delicious, not too sweet, great texture. The pineapple curd between the layers was awesome. The cake itself doesn't dry out like a box cake. I was watching some Food Network cake competition and I remember one of the competitors saying that people were spoiled by box mix cakes because they were made to be more moist and fluffy. It makes sense. You'll never see someone make an amazing layered cake like they do with flimsy box mix cake, which is incredibly soft. But as I said, having it not be as moist and squishy as something from a box, it doesn't experience drying out or getting hard. It really is an amazing cake that you should by all means try if you like coconut and pineapple and don't mind a little work.
Oh, and don't think I made my poor little mother make her own cake. I made the previously mentioned Divine Chocolate Chip Cookies. I nearly killed our hand mixer too >_> Anyway, here is the cake recipe:
Tropical Coconut Cake
Makes 1 (9-inch) cake
1 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 1/3 cups sugar, divided
6 large eggs, separated
3 3/4 cake flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon coconut extract
1 recipe Pineapple Curd
1 recipe Creamy Coconut Frosting
Garnish: toasted coconut*, white chocolate curls
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour 3 (9-inch) cake pans; set aside.
2. In a large bowl, combine butter and 2 cups sugar. Beat at high speed with an electric mixer until fluffy. Add egg yolks, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Sift together cake flour, baking powder, and salt. Add flour mixture to butter mixture, alternately with milk, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Beat in vanilla and coconut extract.
3. In a separate bowl, beat egg whites at high speed with an electric mixer until soft peaks form. Add remaining 1/3 cup sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating until stiff peaks form. Fold egg-white mixture into batter in thirds. Spoon batter into prepared pans. Bake for 25 to 27 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Let cool in pans for 10 minutes.
4. Remove cake layers from pans and cool completely on wire racks. Spread Pineapple Curd evenly between cake layers. Spread Creamy Coconut Frostings on side and top of cake. Garnish sides of cake with toasted coconut. Top cake with white chocolate curls, if desired.
* To toast coconut for garnish, place shredded coconut in a thin layer on a baking sheet, and bake at 350 degrees until it is light brown, stirring every 30 seconds or so for a total of 3 to 4 minutes.
Pineapple Curd
Makes about 1 3/4 cups
3/4 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
2 (8-ounce) cans crushed pineapple
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
3 egg yolks, lightly beaten
1/4 cup butter, cut into pieces
1/2 teaspoon pineapple extract
1. In a heavy saucepan, combine sugar and cornstarch. Add pineapple, lemon juice, and egg yolks. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, for 7 to 8 minutes, or until very thick. Remove from heat; gradually whisk in butter until melted. Stir in pineapple extract. Cool mixture slightly; cover, and chill for 2 hours.
Creamy Coconut Frosting
Makes about 4 cups
2 (4-ounce) bars white baking chocolate, chopped
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon coconut extract
5 cups confectioners' sugar
1. In a small bowl, combine white chocolate and cream. Microwave on High in 30-second intervals, stirring between each, until melted and smooth (approximately 1 /12 minutes total). Set aside to cool completely.
2. In a large bowl, combine white chocolate mixture, butter, sour cream, and coconut extract. Beat at medium speed with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Gradually add confectioners' sugar, beating until combined.
Notes: Since I didn't make the cake, I have nothing to offer on its preparation. Mom did skip the white chocolate on top and just covered the whole thing with toasted coconut which gave it a nice crunchy texture. The frosting was delicious, not too sweet, great texture. The pineapple curd between the layers was awesome. The cake itself doesn't dry out like a box cake. I was watching some Food Network cake competition and I remember one of the competitors saying that people were spoiled by box mix cakes because they were made to be more moist and fluffy. It makes sense. You'll never see someone make an amazing layered cake like they do with flimsy box mix cake, which is incredibly soft. But as I said, having it not be as moist and squishy as something from a box, it doesn't experience drying out or getting hard. It really is an amazing cake that you should by all means try if you like coconut and pineapple and don't mind a little work.
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no subject
Date: 2009-05-13 04:50 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-05-13 04:58 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-05-13 04:18 pm (UTC)My family used to always make cakes from scratch, so I'm used to it. Though this one is a little more interesting (work) than a basic cake.
I'm guessing the 3rd ingredient down the list on the pineapple curd is "2 (8-ounce) cans crushed pineapple" yeah? It just says "2 (8-ounce) cans crushed". xDDDDD
no subject
Date: 2009-05-13 08:57 pm (UTC)Oops. That's what I get for not checking over the recipe XD Yeah, it's pineapple.
no subject
Date: 2009-05-13 11:38 pm (UTC)