I’ll preface this by saying I’m really not a huge fan of coconut. The flavor is ok when it’s not too overpowering, but the texture of raw coconut just doesn’t do it for me. That being said, the picture for this cake caught my eye. After quickly reading through the recipe I noticed that the only actual coconut in this cake was toasted and on the outside and it used cream of coconut which I actually really enjoy. So I gave it a shot to see if would change my mind on coconut.
This cake was straightforward to make, but I had to break out my immersion blender to re-emulsify the cream of coconut. Once that was fixed, the cake mixed and baked beautifully.
The frosting was another story. The base of the frosting is egg whites whipped to a stiff peaks. Then the butter is added. I expected the resulting frosting to be light and airy, but it never got as light and voluminous as I was hoping. In the end, I just barely had enough to cover the entire cake and it was challenging to spread evenly on the cake. I think next time I might try to soften the butter more before mixing it into the egg base.
Overall, this cake is actually delightful. The coconut flavor is present but not overpowering and the toasted coconut on the outside has a mouthfeel I don’t hate. I’m surprised at how much I’ve enjoyed eating this. Perhaps I’m more a fan of coconut than I want to admit.