Moist Coconut Cake with Coconut Ice Frosting

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Moist Coconut Cake with Coconut Ice Frosting

Serves 10

This is one of my all time favourite cakes. Moist, buttery coconut sponge topped with a coconut ice frosting – it’s like all my cake and candy dreams come true!

Now I know lots of people don’t like the word “moist,” but really there’s no better way to describe the crazy good texture of this cake. I personally have nothing against the word. In fact, I’m especially fond of it when it’s describing a cake as in this instance!

I first made this cake for my friend Richard, a self confessed coconut lover, when I was staying with him and his family in London. Have you ever baked in someone else’s kitchen? I takes me a while to get used to baking in someone else’s kitchen.  Richard’s wife, Heather always has the ingredients I need but there’s always a short fall when it comes to the equipment, often with hilarious results. I’ve produced some very dodgy looking but delicious tasting cakes in their kitchen.  Still cakes are like people, they should be judged by looks alone!

This cake is always a winner. The sour cream makes the cake marvellousmly moist and gives the cake a rich, buttery flavour  which is balanced out with the hint of coconut. I’ve adapted the icing from my original recipe, simply because there was too much of it. “Is there such a thing as too much coconut frosting?” I hear you cry and I’m afraid there really is. With the new, improved quantities the frosting is generous but not excessive and is perfectly balanced with the cake. Pink is my favourite colour and I’m not known for my fine motor skills so my icing might be a little pinker than yours, but don’t worry about that. Everyone will go coco-nuts for this!

Are you a coconut lover too? Are there any words you can’t stand?

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Ingredients

FOR THE CAKE
125g butter, softened
½ teaspoon coconut essence
200g caster sugar
2 eggs
½ cup (40g) desiccated coconut
1½ cups (225g) self-raising flour
250g sour cream
1/3 cup (80ml) milk

FOR THE COCONUT ICE FROSTING
1 cup (160g) icing sugar
55g desiccated coconut
1 eggwhite, lightly beaten
1/2 tablespoon water
pink food colouring

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How to  – Traditional

  1. Preheat oven to 180°C/160°C fan-forced). Grease deep 22cm-round cake pan and line base with baking paper.
  2. Beat butter, essence and sugar in a small bowl with an electric mixer until light and fluffy.
  3. Beat in eggs, one at a time.
  4. Transfer mixture to a large bowl. Stir in half the coconut and half the sifted flour, half the sour cream and half the milk, then add remaining coconut, flour, sour cream and milk; stir until smooth.
  5. Spread the mixture into the pan and bake for about 50 minutes or until cooked when tested.
  6. Stand cake in pan for 10 minutes before turning onto wire rack, top-side up, to cool.
  7. For the coconut ice frosting: combine sifted icing sugar in a bowl with coconut, egg whites and water; mix well. Tint with a little pink colouring.
  8. Top cold cake with Coconut Ice Frosting. Dip a small palette knife into hot water to spread the icing smoothly on the cake.

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How to

  1. Preheat oven to 180°C/160°C fan-forced. Grease deep 22cm-round cake pan; line base with baking paper.
  2. Add butter to TM bowl and chop for 3 seconds speed 8. Add the sugar and coconut essence and insert the butterfly and beat for 2 minutes on speed 4. Remove the butterfly from the TM bowl.
  3. With the blades running on speed 3 add the eggs, one at a time through the hole in the lid. This should take about 30 seconds.
  4. Add half the coconut and half the  flour, half the sour cream and half the milk and mix for 10 seconds on speed 4. Scrape down.
  5. Add the remaining coconut, flour, sour cream and milk and mix for 10 seconds on speed 4. Scrape down sides and base and mix for further 10 seconds on speed 4 until smooth.
  6. Spread the mixture into the pan and bake for about 50 minutes or until cooked when tested. Stand  the cake in the pan for 10 minutes before turning onto wire rack, top-side up, to cool.
  7. For the coconut ice frosting: Add the sugar, egg whites, coconut, food colouring and water and mix for 10 seconds on reverse speed 3 using the spatula to assist. Check the mixture is combined, if necessary, mix again for another 10 seconds on reverse speed 3.
  8. Top cold cake with Coconut Ice Frosting. Dip a small palette knife into hot water to spread the icing smoothly on the cake.

Other info

Prep and cooking  time: More than 1 hour

 

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