Coconut Cake

photo by Feisty Redhead

- Ready In:
- 72hrs 30mins
- Ingredients:
- 16
- Yields:
-
1 Cake
- Serves:
- 10
ingredients
-
Cake
- 1 cup butter (2 sticks)
- 2 cups sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 3 cups sifted self-rising flour
- 1 cup coconut milk (not cream of coconut)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
-
Filling
- 3⁄4 cup sugar
- 1 cup sour cream
- 4 tablespoons milk
- 1 cup sweetened flaked coconut
-
Frosting
- 1 1⁄2 cups sugar
- 1⁄3 cup water
- 1⁄4 teaspoon cream of tartar or 1 tablespoon light corn syrup
- 1⁄8 teaspoon salt
- 2 large egg whites
- 1 1⁄2 teaspoons vanilla extract
directions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Grease and flour three 9-inch round cake pans and set aside.
-
Prepare coconut cake:
- In large bowl, with mixer on medium, beat butter until creamy.
- Add sugar and continue beating 6 minutes or until light and fluffy.
- Add eggs 1 at a time beating well after each one.
- Add flour and milk alternately to butter mixture, beginning and ending w/flour.
- Add vanilla and beat until just mixed.
- Divide batter equally among prepared pans and drop pans several times on counter to release air bubbles and make more level.
- Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.
-
While cake is baking prepare coconut filling:
- In medium bowl w/spoon, stir together sugar, sour cream, milk, and 1/2 cup coconut until well blended.
- Cool layers on wire racks for 10 minutes.
- Use butter knife to loosen layers from pans and place on work surface.
- Use handle end of a wooden spoon and poke hold in layers 1 inch apart until each layer is poked all over.
- Spread 1/3 of the filling on each layer.
- Place 1 layer on cake plate, top w/2nd and 3rd layer.
- Use Skewers to prevent cake from shifting.
- Cover and refrigerate 1 hour or up to 3 days to absorb filling.
-
When ready to assemble cake prepare frosting:
- In top of double boiler with hand held mixer on high speed, beat sugar, water, cream of tartar, salt, and egg whites for 1 minute.
- Place double boiler top over 1 inch simmering water, making sure water doesn't touch bottom of double boiler top.
- With the mixer on high speed, beat until soft peaks form and temperature reaches 160°F on instant-read thermometer, about 7 minutes.
- Beat in vanilla.
- Use frosting to frost top and side of cake.
- Sprinkle cake with remaining coconut.
- Garnish with strawberries.
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Reviews
-
I'm only giving this recipe two stars because the cake itself tastes nothing like coconut. I had plans for a specific cake I wanted to make and it required a coconut flavored cake and I hoped this recipe would be it. The cake is good - but there is no hint of coconut flavor. It's a lot like a pound cake in flavor and texture. It's sweet enough that I ended up serving it plain - I think adding frosting would make it too sweet and rich. Would make again for a quick and simple dessert but it's not what I was looking for and I wish the cake actually tasted like coconut.