Strawberry Coconut Cake

We had some family over this weekend to watch our daughter while my husband and I took an infant CPR class. As a little "thank you," I decided I'd make us a special dessert to enjoy together after the class.

No real inspiration for this recipe other than the fact that I love a good coconut cake and the strawberries at the grocery store looked tasty! The strawberries keep this cake feeling fresh and offer a bit more interest than a traditional coconut cake.

You'll need to keep this cake chilling because of the cream cheese frosting. But I encourage you to have a bit of foresight... remove the cake from the fridge a couple hours before serving so that the cake can come to room temperature for better texture.

What a fabulous summer dessert if I do say so myself!

Strawberry Coconut Cake

Ingredients

For the cake

· ¾ cup unsalted butter, softened

· 1 ¾ cup sugar

· 5 egg whites

· ½ cup sour cream

· 1 tbsp vanilla extract

· 1 tsp almond extract

· 2 ½ cup flour

· 2 tsp baking powder

· ½ tsp baking soda

· 1 tsp salt

· 1 cup canned coconut milk

· 1 cup fresh strawberries, stems removed & diced

· 1 cup shredded, sweetened coconut

For the frosting

· ¾ cup unsalted butter, softened

· 1 lb cream cheese, softened

· 2 cups powdered sugar

· 1 tsp vanilla extract

· 1 pinch salt

· 1 tbsp heavy cream

· ½ cup strawberry preserves

· 2-3 cups shredded, sweetened coconut

· Fresh strawberries for garnish, if desired

Preheat oven to 350F. Liberally grease two 9in cake pans.

For the cake… in the bowl of a standmixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar for several minutes until light and fluffy. Scrap down the bowl and mix in the egg whites. Again, beat until fluffy. Stir in the sour cream and extracts.

In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

On low speed, add about one-third of the flour mixture into the standmixer followed by one-half of the coconut milk. Repeat with another one-third of the flour mixture and the remaining coconut milk. Add the last of the flour mixture. Mix until just combined.

Using a spatula, fold in the fresh strawberries and shredded coconut.

Spoon the cake batter evenly between the two greased cake pans.

Bake for about 35 to 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Rotate the pans half way through baking for even doneness.

Remove the cakes from the pans and allow to cool for about 5 minutes before inverting the cakes onto cooling racks to cool completely.

While the cakes cool, prepare the frosting… in the bowl of a standmixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add the powdered sugar. Whip the frosting until smooth and creamy. Beat in the vanilla, salt and heavy cream. Set aside.

Once the cakes are cooled, place one of the cake layers in the center of a serving plate or cakestand. Spread a generous layer of the cream cheese frosting over the top of the cake layer. Spread the strawberry jam evenly over the cream cheese frosting. Top with about 1 to 1 ½ cups of shredded coconut over the jam. Top with the remaining cake layer. Gently press the cake layers together.

If desired, cover the entire cake with the remaining cream cheese frosting. Otherwise, for a more simple effect, spread a generous amount of the cream cheese frosting over the top of the second layer. Decorate the top as desired with the remaining shredded coconut and fresh strawberries.

Chill until about 2 hours before serving. Allow the cake to come to room temperature before serving.

Serves 10-12

Gluten Free Friendly!

I had greatest success with Cup4Cup gluten free flour blend.