coconut cake
Aug. 26th, 2009 02:48 pmAfter seeing an episode of Good Eats about them, I decided it was time to make a coconut cake. It's a pretty Southern thing, the fluffy multi-layer cake with grated coconut all over the frosting. I even have a T-rex squirt bottle like Alton Brown. I splurged on getting a hand held mixer to use for frosting and a big cake carrier since transporting a four layer cake can be hazardous.
So, following the advice of Alton Brown, I bought two coconuts to get coconut water and make my own coconut milk and coconut cream. Using a cordless drill to open them up is a supremely good idea. Even after cracking them up with a hammer, it still took quite some time to grate and chop all that coconut. I grated my knuckle, which hurts ridiculously for the size of the injury. Mike helped a lot or I may never have finished. But eventually coconut cream and coconut milks were made.
Once the butter softens, I'll start baking the cake. The part I'm most nervous about is making the frosting. Seven minute frosting is supposedly almost fool-proof, but frosting has never been my strong point. I'm excited though. This is definitely not an every day cake, given the amount of labor and prep work involved. But really, a well done, home made coconut cake is a thing of sublime beauty.
So, following the advice of Alton Brown, I bought two coconuts to get coconut water and make my own coconut milk and coconut cream. Using a cordless drill to open them up is a supremely good idea. Even after cracking them up with a hammer, it still took quite some time to grate and chop all that coconut. I grated my knuckle, which hurts ridiculously for the size of the injury. Mike helped a lot or I may never have finished. But eventually coconut cream and coconut milks were made.
Once the butter softens, I'll start baking the cake. The part I'm most nervous about is making the frosting. Seven minute frosting is supposedly almost fool-proof, but frosting has never been my strong point. I'm excited though. This is definitely not an every day cake, given the amount of labor and prep work involved. But really, a well done, home made coconut cake is a thing of sublime beauty.