 Pacific Northwest: Taste |
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| Aunt Lois' Coconut Cake One two-layer cake to serve 12 Start with a fresh coconut. Extract the "coconut water," the clear white liquid from the center, by poking two holes in the eyes of the coconut and shaking out the liquid. Make sure the juice is fresh and sweet; if the water is absent or sour, the coconut will not be a good one. The recipe uses the water. Then, while the cake is baking, break open the coconut with a hammer, extract the meat from the shell, peel off the brown skin with a vegetable peeler and grate the meat through the largest holes of a cheese grater or through the grater attachment of a food processor. |
| 1/2 cup butter, softened to room temperature but not melted, plus some for the pans 1 1/2 cups sugar 2 eggs at room temperature 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/2 teaspoon almond extract 2 1/4 cups cake flour, plus some for the pans 2 teaspoons baking powder 1 teaspoon salt 1 cup coconut water or a combination of coconut water and milk Fluffy White Icing (recipe follows) Freshly grated meat from one whole coconut (about 3 cups) 1. Rub the bottom and sides of two 9-inch cake pans with butter then sprinkle the pans with flour and shake off the excess. 2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, whip the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition, then beat in the vanilla and almond extracts. 3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Add about a third of this mixture to the butter mixture along with one third of the coconut water and beat until smooth; scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Repeat this with the remaining thirds of flour and water. 4. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared cake pans. In an oven preheated to 350 degrees, bake 25 minutes, or until the cake is golden brown and springs back when pressed lightly in the center. 5. Cool the cakes for 5 minutes in the pans, then remove from pans and cool completely on racks. When cool, place one cake round on a cake plate and cover with Fluffy White Icing. Top with second cake layer and frost the top and sides. Cover the top and sides with freshly grated coconut. |
