A friend of mine made me this coconut cake for my birthday…from scratch! Super precious!
Red Velvet Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Red Velvet Cake:
2 1/2 cups sifted cake flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tbsp. Dutch-processed cocoa powder
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups granulated white sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk
2 tbsp. liquid red food coloring
1 tsp. baking soda
Cream Cheese Frosting:
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
1-8 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
1-8 oz. tub of Mascarpone cheese, room temperature
3/4 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and place rack in center of oven. Butter two – 9 inch round cake pans and line the bottoms of the pans with parchment paper. Set aside.
Red Velvet Cake: In a mixing bowl sift together the flour, baking powder, salt and cocoa powder. Set aside.
In bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the butter until soft (about 1-2 minutes). Add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy (about 2-3 minutes). Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the vanilla extract and beat until combined.
In a measuring cup, whisk the buttermilk with the red food coloring. With the mixer on low speed, alternately add the flour mixture and buttermilk, in three additions, beginning and ending with the flour.
In a small cup combine the vinegar and baking soda. Allow the mixture to fizz and then quickly fold into the cake batter.
Working quickly, divide the batter evenly between the two prepared pans and smooth the tops with an offset spatula or the back of a spoon. Bake in the preheated oven for approximately 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cakes comes out clean.
Cool the cakes in their pans on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Place a wire rack on top of the cake pan and invert, lifting off the pan. Once the cakes have completely cooled, wrap in plastic and place the cake layers in the freezer for at least an hour. (This is done to make filling and frosting the cakes easier.)
Cream Cheese Frosting:
In your food processor, or with a hand mixer, process the cream cheese and mascaropne cheese until smooth. Add the vanilla and confectioners sugar and process until smooth. Transfer this mixture to a large mixing bowl.
Then, in the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, whip the cream until stiff peaks form. With a large spatula, gently but quickly fold a little of the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture to lighten it. Then fold in the remaining whipped cream, in two stages. Cover and place the frosting in the refrigerator for an hour or two, or until it is firm enough to spread.
Assemble:
With a serrated knife, cut each cake layer in half, horizontally. You will now have four cake layers. Place one of the ckae layers, top of the cake facing down, onto your serving platter. Spread the cake layer with a layer of frosting. Place another layer of cake on top of the frosting and continue to frost and stack the cake layers. Frost the top and sides of the cake. Can garnish the cake with sweetened or unsweetened coconut.
Makes one-9 inch four layer cake.
Joyofbaking.com
**I could not find Mascarpone cheese, so I added another cream cheese. However, it left the frosting with a bitter taste. I would recommend sticking with the recipe.**
Coconut Pecan Cookies
Coconut Pecan Cookies
Taste of Home, Fall 2007
Diane Selich, Vassar, Michigan
FROSTING:
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 can (5 ounces) evaporated milk
2/3 cup sugar
¼ cup butter, cubed
1 ¼ cups flaked coconut
½ cup chopped pecans
COOKIE DOUGH:
1 cup butter, softened
¾ cup sugar
¾ cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
4 cups (24 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips, divided
¼ cup flaked coconut
For frosting, in a large saucepan, combine the egg, milk, sugar and butter. Cook and stir over medium-low heat for 10-12 minutes or until slightly tickened and mixture reaches `60 degrees. Stir in coconut and pecans. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugars. Add eggs, one at a tie, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt gradually add to creamed mixture. Stir in 2 cups chips and coconut. Drop by tbsp. 2 in. apart onto ungreased baking sheets. Bake at at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool for 10 minutes before removing to wire racks to cool completely.
Melt remaining chocolate chips; stir until smooth. Frost cooled cookies; drizzle with melted chocolate. Yield: 6 ½ dozen.
** These cookies are delightful! I prefer them without the frosting. But, if you choose to add frosting, be sure to spread a very light layer. Enjoy the goodness! **
Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice!
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