No, this hasn’t become a baking blog…
I posted a photo of the birthday cake I made last week on Instagram and a few people wanted the recipe(s), so I’m posting it here. And yes, I made my own b-day cake. This is the first time I’ve done this and it won’t be the last, as I make better cakes than anywhere in the vicinity. I’m very picky about cakes and I really don’t care about how a cake looks as I prefer one that tastes good. Most bakery cakes are dry and have too much sweet frosting. I don’t want a dry cake nor do I want one that tastes like I’m eating a bunch of sugar. Therefore, I guess I’d rather bake my own cake than eat one someone else made…. Yes, I’m a cake snob.
As these recipes aren’t mine, I’m just going to post the links here and let you know how I tweaked them and combined them for my cake.
Coconut Rum Cake with Coconut Custard Filling and Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting
Both my cake and frosting recipes are by Anne Thornton. The recipe is: Coconut Cream Cake
I followed her recipe for the cake, although I did not separate the eggs and I added about a teaspoon of Malibu (coconut rum). I didn’t toast half the coconut as I was lazy… It would have tasted even better with toasted coconut.
As far as the frosting, it’s not too sweet, so it paired fine with my coconut custard filling. My frosting was a little too “melted” — probably due to the temperature of my butter. I would suggest putting that in the fridge for a little bit to harden it up before frosting the cake. Also, if you were to fill the cake with custard rather than frosting the center layer, half this frosting recipe as it’s more than you need. I also added about a teaspoon of Malibu to the frosting.
While the cakes were still in their pans, I drizzle some Malibu on them. This cake is dense and takes the drizzle well. I have a coconut bundt cake recipe that has a drizzle of a sweet syrup with coconut flavoring which is where I got the idea. If you don’t want to use Malibu for any of this, coconut flavoring works, too.
The custard filling recipe that I used is by Bobby Flay. The recipe is: Coconut Custard.
I followed Bobby Flay’s recipe, although I added a little more Malibu. I didn’t have any vanilla beans though, so I used vanilla extract. It still turned out to taste really good, although I’m sure that the vanilla bean would bring it up a notch.
After my cake had cooled and my custard had been set in the fridge, I spooned it over my first cake layer. If I were to do it again, I would spoon the custard and set that cake layer in the fridge to stiffen it up a little bit more before putting the top layer on. I forgot to add some shredded coconut to the filling, but that would also help to keep that layer sturdy. I then put the top layer over the bottom and frosted it and then spread shredded coconut over the whole thing before putting it in the fridge.
It does taste REALLY good but REALLY coconut-y. So if you don’t like coconut A TON, I wouldn’t recommend this cake. I’m also not a baker, just someone who likes to back occasionally and eat things that taste good.
That custard, btw, is awesome. I’m thinking about using it to make a coconut custard pie!
Happy Baking!
Oh lordie. Yum.
Happy Birthday! This looks and sounds delicious! Come summer or the depths of winter, my favorite cake is lemon-coconut with coconut frosting. There’s a cupcake bakery here that does them and I love it, tastes like sunshine. It would be fun to do a coconut cake with a lemon curd filling…. Yum!
Lemon curd! That sounds like it would be fantastic!
In the not so far away past I was a caterer and professional cake baker. People were always so surprised that my cakes were both beautiful and tasty. People would tell me after their weddings that mine was the first yummy wedding cake they had ever had. I blame this on lazy bakers, but I won’t get in to that!
The main reason I went in to that dissertation was to say that when you use a custard filling, if you put a ring of frosting around the edge of the cake layer (just put some frosting in a zip top bag and cut off the tip to use as a piping bag), it adds structure to the cake and keeps the custard from oozing out and the cakes edges from breaking down. Does that make sense?
You picked some great recipes to combine here!!! Looks delish!
Thank you, Alicia! I’m used to filling cupcakes, which is quite different, so it’s good to know how to keep the filling in a cake!
I totally agree with you! If I want a proper and tasty cake, I bake it myself:-)
Exactly!!! 🙂
Happy Birthday!!! Oh dear…that cake looks amazing…did I mention that I have a whole pinterest board dedicated to cakes? Or that I get sudden urges to bake cupcakes 22:00 at night?
Thanks, Marike!! Man, I have the urge to eat them, but can’t bake that late as my husband is a light sleeper. Cake!!! 🙂
Sewing AND baking!! Such Domestic Goddessness going on :o) I might just about be inclined to give this cake a whirl as coconut is my all-time favourite flavour too (add some chocolate and I’m in heaven!) And Happy Birthday!!
Thanks, Melissa! 🙂 Baking and sewing go well together, don’t they? Yes — Chocolate! Yum!
Happy Birthday! Hope that you had a fabulous time.
OMG, this cake looks amazing. Coconut is one of my favourite flavours and Malibu is fabulous. I could drink a bucket of that with pineapple. Thanks for sharing this recipe. I am so going to make it, especially as the folks at home are not daft on coconut. All the more for me! 🙂 xx
Thank you! 🙂 I used the leftover Malibu and cream of coconut with some pineapple juice and made some pina coladas!