Coconut Pecan Layer Cake
Cake:
3 cups all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp slt
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 tsp coconut extract
1 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup pecan halves, chopped
3/4 cup shredded sweetened coconut, chopped
Frosting:
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
4 egg whites
1 tsp coconut extract
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/8 tsp salt
Garnish
1 1/2 cups shredded coconut
1/4 cup pecan halves, chopped
To prepare cake, Heat oven to 350 degrees. Coat tow 8" round cake pans with nonstick
spray. Line bottoms with waxed paper; coat paper. Set aside.
Stir flour, baking powder, and salt in medium size bowl. Beat butter and sugar in
large bowl until pale and fluffy, about 5 minutes, scraping down side with rubber spatulas as
needed. Beat in eggs, one at a time, until blended Beat in coconut extract. Alternately
stir in flour mixture and milk, beginning and ending with flour mixture, just until mixed.
Stir in pecans and coconut. Pour batter into pans. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until toothpick
comes out clean, Cool in pans on wire racks for 15 minutes. Turn cakes out. Cool completely
Frosting: Stir the sugar and water in a small heavy bottomed saucepan until dissolved.
Simmer over medium high heat until temperature reaches 240 degrees on a candy
thermometer. It should be in the soft ball stage. (a small drop of sugar, dropped into
ice-cold water, will form a limp, sticky ball that flattens when removed from water.)
Brush down sides of pan with a wet brush to avoid sugar crystals forming. Do not stir.
Place egg whites in large bowl of stand mixer fitted with the whip attachment.
Beat for 30 seconds. Pour sugar syrup down side of bowl into beaten egg whites.
Beat 5 minutes on medium high speed. Add coconut and vanilla extracts and salt.
Beat on high speed for 2-3 minutes, until glossy peakes form. To frost cake,
dollop a bit of frosting on a platter to anchor cake. Place one layer on serving plate.
Top with 1 generous cup of frosting. Top with second cake layer. spread remaining
frosting on top and sides of cake. garnish cake with coconut and pecans.
Note: Cake could be made with a yellow cake mix, following package directions,
adding coconut extract when beating ingredients and stirring in chopped
pecans and coconut before pouring batter into pans.