Coconut Cake

I am officially declaring this week - CAKE WEEK on the blog!  (I know you're excited - don't deny it.)

So WHY is it cake week, you ask?  Because, I started baking for a new cafe in my little town and I am up to my eyeballs in cake!  (Not that that is necessarily a bad thing.)  I am LOVING my new role as cake baker for the cafe - I get to be creative and I get to bake cake for a living?  (Who has a better job than that?)   There is one minor drawback - I'm having to workout a little longer to keep myself in shape because you KNOW that I have to sample each cake before it's presented to customers.  (Quality assurance - someone has to do it.) 

So onto the cake of the day.  To kick off Cake Week, I am starting with a very simple recipe for Coconut Cake.  This is one of the most straightforward and basic recipes that I have.  Don't be intimidated by the number of layers or the size of the cake - it really is easy to make.

6 Layer Coconut Cake
Cake
4 1/2 cups cake flour
2 teaspoons salt
2 Tablespoons baking powder
2 Tablespoons powdered milk
1 cup water
1 1/3 cup milk
1 1/2 cups shortening
2 1/2 cups sugar
3 eggs

Icing
1 cup shortening
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 teaspoons salt
2 pounds powdered sugar
4 Tablespoons powdered milk
1 cup water

Filling
10 ounces (4 cups) unsweetened shredded coconut
4 Tablespoons water
4 Tablespoons sugar

Cake:

 






Combine flour, salt and baking powder.






 






Stir the powdered milk and water together until dissolved.











Add powdered milk mixture to liquid milk.









Cream together shortening and sugar.

Add eggs, one at a time.  

 
Add flour, alternating with milk.

Pour into 6 pans, lined with parchment paper.  (In my case, I had to bake 3 at a time.)

Bake 20 minutes at 350.

While cake cools, make icing.
Combine shortening, vanilla and salt.  Slowly add powdered sugar.  Dissolve milk in water and gradually add to icing mixture.  (Totally forgot to get an icing pic - sorry.)







For Filling: Combine water and sugar.






Pour over 3 cups of coconut.  Stir to combine.

Assembly
Start with one cake layer on a cake plate.  Spread 1/2 cup of filling on top.  

 Repeat with additional layers, leaving top layer without filling.

Spread a thin coat of icing over entire cake.  Refrigerate 1 hour.

Spread the rest of the icing on the sides and top of the cake.  Cover with the leftover coconut.

 

This cake gets better and better as it sits in the refrigerator.  The coconut filling seeps into the cake layers and it is really yummy.  

Enjoy cake lovers.

Ciao!