Coconut Cake

Inspired by Ms. Alison Roman and spirited by Ms. Ina Garten, Here is a coconut cake, because as I say every holiday- Who needs another fucking pie.

Resembling a snowball, or a really ugly sweater, Despite its comparisons, this coconut cake is very hard to disappoint those sitting at your holiday table this season. I mostly followed Alison Romans Recipe for this, but as someone with some slight ADHD, and terrible listening skills - I made a few tweaks.

I really like cake because of the layers and the aesthetic, it has some avant- garde, baroque indulgence to it that other desserts don’t hold. It feels momentous. So, let them eat cake!

Also, P.S- I have been waiting all day to come home, get in my sweats, have Alex make me a really great cocktail (which maybe could be a post too - It has pomegranate in it) and to write to you. I hope those that read enjoy and those that dont read and see me in their inbox smile, or cringe, or have some sort of reaction! I really like creating and I really like sharing, which is why I started this a few years ago, casually. I think I have created a nice rhytym and a nice outlet. SO! A friendly reminder to also create and share- Take a great or terrible photo of your really fucking good cake and tag me on instagram, or e-mail me, or write to me.

P.p.s

Dont make a special trip to the grocery store for buttermilk - Simply combine milk and lemon juice or vinegar. This recipe calls for 1.5 cups of buttermilk:

Combine 1.5 cups of milk and 1.5 teaspoons of white vineagr( or lemon juice), stir to combine.

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

2 1/2 cups sweetened shredded coconut ( for mixing in)

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

2 cups granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon coconut extract

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/3 cup canola or vegetable oil

2 sticks softened ( yes, 2 sticks)

4 large eggs

1 1/2 cups buttermilk

2 cups unsweeted coconut chips for toasting

• I used bobs Red Mill, but any hearty coconut chip will do ( if there are any others? Do lmk!!)

For the Frosting:

2 packs 8 oz cream cheese

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup sweetened shredded coconut

1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions

Cake:

1. Grease your two 9” round cake pans and line with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 325

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.

3. In another medium bowl whisk together your buttermilk, oil, and vanilla.

4. When oven is preheated. Take your 2 cups of unsweetened coconut for the outside of the cake and place on a baking sheet. Toast lightly or just until slightly browned, around 10 minutes but keep and eye on this! Set aside once done.

5. In a stand mixer or w a hand mixer, beat together your butter and sugar until pale yellow. Add one egg in at a time, mixing in each one fully before adding the other. Making sure you are scraping down the sides, continue beating until well combined and fluffy - 2 minutes.

6. With the mixer turned down to low, add about 1/2 of your buttermilk into the egg mixture and 1/2 of your flour mixture. Once that is fully combined and you are scraping down the sides, add in the other half of the buttermilk and flour mixture. Only mix until combined, over mixing at this stage will give you a tough cake.

7. Divide the batter evenly among the two pans ( does not have to be perfect) and bake for 30-35 minutes or until slightly golden around the sides has a spring to it when you touch it- you can also always use the toothpick trick!

8. Set to cool completely.

Frosting

1. In a stand mixer combine all ingredients and mix until smooth- I like to take my cream cheese and butter out far in advance so it’s not so hard to mix. Room temperature works nicely.

2. Once your cake is cooled completely you can frost. You can use a butter knife for this if you do not have a proper frosting knife, a rubber spatula works well too. On a plate lined w parchment paper place your first cake on the paper and spoon about 1/4 onto the top on the cake, this is your layer. If you feel it needs a little more or a little less, follow that intuition!

3. Add your second cake on top and spoon another 1/4 onto the top and spread. Once the top is done you can spread the a thin layer around the outsides of cake- this is known as a “ crumb coat” , meaning it won’t be perfect and this will catch all your crumbs, and is the time to get crevices!

4. With the rest of your frosting left, spread another thin layer on top of the crumb coat and anywhere else that you may have left out.

5. Now take the toasted coconut that we baked in the oven earlier and cover the cake with the coconut. I like to just use my hands and press the coconut into the cake. This is a great time to cover up and wonky or bare spots!

6. Cover and Set in the fridge for a few hours before serving. The frosting will get fudgy and the inside will get cakey and it will be Oh so good.