Feijoa and White Chocolate Cake

As I mentioned on my last post. It's crazy feijoa season here. There's about 2 months of the year that NZ has an overflow of feijoa, and then we don't see them again till the next year. Which is good, because when they are in season, there are so many, and they are so good, that without fail you completely gorge yourself on them, and by the end of the season, are so over them that you're searching for new and interesting ways to use them up. 

Note: they also freeze really well, so you can scoop the pulp and stow it away in the freezer for a baking on a rainy day if you've already had your fill for now. 

After the feijoa oatcakes and crumbles I've been making of late I wanted to try something new, plus Mr 3 wanted to make a 'Mudders Day' chocolate cake for me... FYI - by him helping bake, he means he wants to lick the spoon and eat all the ingredients, minimal help actually attained. But, he's there and involved and we have fun making a mess, so that's all good. But, yes, I made my own Mother's Day cake essentially. 

Now, he wanted chocolate cake, but me being me, and hating seeing food go to waste, I knew I needed to include the feijoa. There's a few feijoa cakes out there with cocoa in them,  but the idea of milk or dark chocolate with feijoa just doesn't quite sound right to me. Plus I wanted to make something that could have cream cheese icing, no explanation necessary on that one, cream cheese icing is THE BEST. 

A few years back I made feijoa and white chocolate muffins, which were an amazing flavour combo, so I wanted to recreate that in cake form here. The result here is a deliciously moist, rich yet tart cake. The richness comes from the white chocolate which caramelised in some spots, and the tartness from the feijoa and cream cheese icing. I've left the icing quite soft, as that's how I like it, but if you prefer a firmer icing, simply add more icing sugar. 

Ingredients (makes 24cm round cake): 

• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 tbsp lemon juice 
• 1 3/4 flour
• 2 tsp baking powder 
• 120 grams butter, melted
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 3 tbsp boiling water (45ml)
•  1 cup of feijoa pulp
• 1/2 cup white chocolate chips, optional, but worthwhile

Icing:

• 100g butter, room temperature
• 100g cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 1/2 - 2 cups icing sugar
• 1 tsp lemon juice and lemon zest

Method:

Grease a 25cm diameter cake tin. Preheat oven to 175 degrees C. 

In a cake mixer, or using an electric hand beater beat sugar and eggs till light and fluffy. 

Add lemon juice, mix. Then add baking powder and flour, half a cup at a time, till all combined. 

Mix baking soda with boiling water, and along with feijoa pulp and melted butter, add to your cake mix, folding together till well combined. Finally fold in the chocolate chips. 

Pour cake mix into your greased cake tin and bake 40 - 50 minutes until a skewer comes out clean. 

Leave to cool in tin for 15 mins before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. 

Once cooled ice with cream cheese icing. 

To make icing, beat butter until light in colour and fluffy. Add softened cream cheese and beat until smooth and combined. Add sifted icing sugar half a cup at a time until it reaches the desired consistency. I like it quite soft. Stir in a teaspoon of lemon juice and lemon rind (optional). 

Louise Cake

I'm amazed at how many people have never heard of Louise Cake... if you have, you're clearly one of the lucky ones. Buttery moist cake like base (it's almost a pastry to be honest!), baked, then smothered in jam (traditionally raspberry), then topped with a coconut meringue, before being baked again. 

I recently purchased a slice of Louise Cake to take away from a cafe, and to my horror when I arrived home and sat down (with my cup of tea) to eat it, I realised they had given me the wrong one. Instead I had a caramel meringue slice - yuk. Okay, it was still pretty tasty, but I'm not the biggest caramel fan so it was a bit overwhelming for me. Needless to say, my Louise Cake crave was not fixed. 

You can find a classic Louise cake recipe in your Edmonds recipe book, it's one I've made dozens of times, but find you need about three pieces to feel satisfied. It's true with many of those old school recipes, the portions and ratios of base to topping were much smaller. So my version has a thicker more decadent base, and today I've chosen to smother it in homemade feijoa jam, but you could use any of your favourite jams, preserves, or even a lemon curd. The coconut topping is also thick, and I've tried not to add too much sugar. I find with the base and jam, the meringue doesn't need to be overly sweet, however it does require enough sugar to give it that wonderful thick glossy texture. 

Tips: 
Room temperature eggs are best for baking with. 
To separate eggs I just crack them in the middle and pour the egg yolk between the two halves over a bowl until the white drops out and the yolk is remaining in the shell. If you're not confident to do this then you can use a fancy egg separator contraption. 
The key is that you don't want any yolk in with the whites, but a bit of egg white with the yolks is A-Okay.    

Ingredients (makes 20-25 pieces):

Base

• 180 grams butter
• 1 cup sugar 
• 1 tsp coconut essence (use vanilla if you don't have coconut essence) 
• 3 egg yolks 
• 2 1/4 cups self raising flour 

Topping

• 1 cup of jam 
• 3 egg whites 
• 1/2 cup sugar - caster sugar is best
• 1 1/2 cups of desiccated or thread coconut 

Preheat your oven to 170 degrees Celsius, and line a 20 x 25cm baking tray with baking paper (allow the baking paper to come up higher than the tin if possible. 

Beat the butter and sugar in a large bowl until creamed. If you have a freestanding cake mixer it makes this job really really easy. Once creamed add your egg yolks and coconut essence, mix till well combined.

 

Now add the flour and stir, or mix well until you have a crumbly dough. Press the dough evenly into your lined pan. Bake for 18-20 minutes till risen and lightly golden on top. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for ten minutes before adding the toppings. Increase the oven temperature to 180 degrees Celsius. 

While the base bakes, prepare the topping. If you are using the same bowl on your mixer, make sure that the bowl is thoroughly cleaned. You don't want any of the butter residue in the bowl otherwise the whites will not whip properly. Beat the egg whites on high using a freestanding or hand electric mixer. 

Once thickened, gradually add the sugar. I add a few spoonfuls at a time while continuing beating. You eventually want the mixture to be thick white and glossy, like meringue. You may want to rub a little of the mix between your fingers to check that the sugar has dissolved. If it still feels quite grainy, beat for another couple of minutes. Finally fold in the coconut. 

On the slightly cooled base, spread your jam evenly, getting right to the edges. (Note: If your base has shrunk down during cooling, that's fine - remember it's a cross between a cake and a pastry). Use a spatula to dollop and spread the coconut meringue mixture evenly across the top of the jam. 

Once spread, I rough up the top a bit so that it's not too smooth. Pop back into the oven for 20-25 minutes until lightly golden on top. Allow to cool for 5-10 minutes before using a sharp knife to slice the still warm slice into 20-25 pieces. Then leave to cool completely before removing from the tin. 

This is ideal served with mugs of hot tea. Enjoy x

 

Pina Colada Trifle

I like Pina Colada's, and being caught in the rain... then this is the trifle recipe you've been dreaming of. Okay, maybe not the rain part, though there is something ridiculously refreshing about being caught in a summer rain pour on a hot sticky day.  

Needless to say, this trifle is also a refreshing summer (let's be honest - any time of year) dessert. What's not to like about trifle... cake, fruit, custard, booze... all mingled together to create a flavour explosion, and this cocktail inspired version really does take you to the tropics. 

Also, by using coconut cream and coconut milk to make the custard it becomes dairy free - so great for those people who aren't partial to milk and cream. It also means it's a little bit less rich on the stomach, which makes going back for seconds that little bit less guilty. 

NOTE: To make the coconut custard I chilled two cans of coconut cream (full fat = full flavour) and when opened poured the liquid in to make the custard and reserved the thick cream for whipping on the top of the trifle. If you're not a fan of the thick whipped coconut cream topping them don't bother chilling and separating the coconut cream. Just use the lot, and reduce the amount of additional coconut milk by 1 cup.  

Ingredients (Serves approx 12):

• 6 egg yolks
• 2 cans of coconut cream - full fat - chilled and separated (see NOTE above)
• 2 cups of coconut milk - This time I used the Vitasoy Unsweetened COCO-NUT milk, but I also highly recommend the Little Island Coconut Milk.   
• 1/2 cup caster sugar
• 1 whole pineapple, peeled, cored, and chopped into bite sized chunks - If not in season you could use 2 tins of pineapple pieces instead. 
• 2 cups of Golden Circle Pine Coconut Fruit Drink - alternatively pineapple juice can be used, but will be a little sweeter
• 3/4 cup of Malibu Coconut Rum
• 1 large pre-made sponge cake - I used one that was approx 30 x 18 x 8cm * Note: Store bought sponge may not be dairy free if this is a requirement. 

First prepare the coconut custard. This can be done a day or two in advance, and needs to be done early so that it has time to cool thoroughly before assembling the trifle. 

In a large saucepan whisk the egg yolks, sugar, coconut liquid from the canned coconut cream and additional coconut milk. Place on a medium-low heat and whisk constantly for about 10 minutes till custard begins to thicken. The time will vary depending on your stove top, but be sure to whisk or stir so that it does not stick to the bottom. Once it begins to thicken remove from the heat. You can aid the cooling by placing the whole saucepan into a sink filled with cold water so that the water comes midway up the side of the saucepan. Otherwise leave to cool to room temperature before transferring to the fridge to cool further. 

Prepare the pineapple by peeling, coring, and chopping into bite-sized chunks.

Prepare the remaining chilled coconut cream from the cans by whisking till smooth. I sweetened and thinned mine a little by adding a splash of the Pine Coconut juice till it was the desired consistency. 

Prepare the liquid by combining the Pine Coconut Fruit Drink and the Malibu Coconut Rum in a jug. 

To assemble the trifle place a layer of sponge cake into the base of a large glass trifle bowl. I broke the sponge into pieces to make it fit snugly into the bowl. Pour 1/3 of the liquid mixture over the sponge then top with half of the chopped pineapple chunks. Next pour over 1/3 of the custard. Repeat, layering sponge, juice, pineapple, custard, sponge, juice, custard and finally top with the coconut cream. 

I used two spoons to shape the coconut cream into quenelles to decorate the top, then finished it off with a scatter of finely chopped leftover pineapple and sprig of mint. Alternatively you can as I mentioned above thin your coconut cream with a little juice so it's more spreadable to cover the top completely.  

Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Icing

Carrot cake is my favourite cake, I think it's because of the bits, the texture, the little surprise bites of walnut that you get. Most people will tell you that it's the cream cheese icing (if that's you - be sure to double the icing quantity), but for me, it's the walnuts. 
I've adapted this recipe over the years to have more carrots, and less sugar, though it still has 1 cup of brown sugar, it's considerably less than what it was before! 
It's also so fast and easy to put together, and throw into the oven. 


Ingredients (Serves 8 - 12):

• 2 cups flour 
• 2 tbsp baking powder
• 2 tbsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1 cup of packed brown sugar
• 3 cups of grated carrot 
• 3/4 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/2 cup chopped dates 
• 1 cup of vegetable oil 
• 3 eggs lightly beaten 

Cream Cheese Icing** - double this icing quantity, if filling the middle of the cake also. 

• 250 grams of cream cheese 
• 1 cup of icing sugar
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• pumpkin seeds, toasted coconut, chopped nuts or dried fruit to decorate

Preheat the oven to 180•C and prepare a 22cm round baking tin. I grease with oil, and line the base with baking paper. 

Sift the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and ginger into a large bowl. 

Stir through the grated carrot, walnuts and dates, till well combined. 

Gently beat the eggs, and add to the dry ingredients along with the cup of oil. Mix well. 

Pour the batter into the baking tin and use a spatula to make sure it is spread evenly. 

Bake for 50 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean. Cool in tin for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. 

To make the icing, beat the cream cheese to soften and sift in the icing sugar. Add the lemon juice and continue beating until smooth. Spread over the cooled cake. 

Decorate with nuts, seeds, coconut or dried fruit. If not eating all at once, store in the fridge. 

** Optional If you want to make the cake even more spectacular, double the icing recipe and cut the cake through the middle horizontally. Fill the middle of the cake with 1/3 of the icing. 

Mum's "Meat Dish" Banana Cake

I call this "meat dish" banana cake because traditionally the recipe actually makes enough to bake it in a meat-dish, and usually we do. It's the perfect cake to whip up to feed a crowd and is always a pleaser with even the fussiest of eaters. I found the recipe in my mother-in-laws hand written recipe journal and this cake, along with the others in the journal have been feeding my husband and his brothers and cousins for decades. So rest assured, it has been rigorously quality assurance tested. 

If you don't fancy making one large tray cake, you could (as I did this time), bake two 22cm round cakes and either ice both, or layer them. I also had enough batter to make a dozen cupcakes, which I've popped in the freezer for another day. 

The chocolate chips were an optional extra that I tried this time, though my MIL wasn't too sure about me changing the recipe, it turned out just as luscious as always. 

You can ice it with cream cheese frosting, a chocolate buttercream, or as I did a simple lemon and/or chocolate icing sugar mixture. Mix 2 cups of sifted icing sugar with 2 tbsp melted butter, and enough liquid to form an icing of your desired consistency. For lemon icing, add lemon juice as the liquid, and for chocolate icing, sift 3-4 tbsp of cocoa powder in with the icing sugar, then add enough water or milk to form the paste. Spread onto the cooled cakes. 

Ingredients (to make one "meat dish" slab cake, or two 22cm round cakes and 12 cupcakes): 

• 4 eggs, room temperature
• 2 cups white sugar
• 7 overripe (practically black) bananas, lightly mashed
• 1 cup or 175 grams of chocolate chips (optional) 
• 3 cups of plain flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 2 tsp baking soda 
• 225 grams melted butter

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees celsius and grease or line your cake tins. I always grease the sides and line the bottom with greaseproof paper, this means you'll never have any trouble removing the cake from the pan. 

Using an electric mixer (I used a kenwood cake mixer, but a hand mixer would work), beat the eggs and sugar until light light and fluffy, almost foamy - this is the most important bit for a good cake. Meanwhile, sift the flour, baking soda and baking powder into another bowl. 

Add the bananas to the egg mix and beat well to combine, then add the chocolate chips, beat again. 

Pour the sifted dry ingredients on top and either on a low speed with your cake mixer, or with a wooden spoon fold the dry and wet ingredients until just combined (about 6 turns of your cake mixer), some flour may still be visible. Finally add the melted butter and mix again till everything is combined. 

Pour the batter into your prepared cake tins and put into a hot oven. 

Bake times vary depending on the size of your tin: for a large slab cake bake about 45 minutes, round cakes approximately 35 minutes, and cupcakes approximately 20 - 25 minutes. Just keep an eye on them and test with a skewer. When the skewer comes out clean the cakes are done, also, your nose will let you know when they are nearly done as the smell coming from the oven will be amazing. 

My assortment of cakes and mini-cakes...  

... which never last very long

White Chocolate Hot Cross Cakes

These Easter cakes are a real treat, and are best served with a lashing of butter in the middle. They're like a cross between a hot cross bun and a fruit loaf. Try them for morning or afternoon tea instead of your usual Good Friday hot cross buns. 

Ingredients (makes 10):

• 50grams butter
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup currants - or raisins 
• 1/4 cup of cranberries
• 50 grams of white chocolate chips 
• 3/4 cup wholemeal flour 
• 3/4 cup plain flour 
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp allspice 
• 1 tsp ginger
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 3/4 cup milk 
• 1/2 tsp baking soda 

Preheat oven to 200 degrees celsius. Grease 10 muffin holes of a muffin tray. 

Cream butter and sugar till fluffy. Beat in the egg. Stir in the dried fruit and white chocolate. 

In another bowl sift the flours, baking soda and spices. Tip the wholemeal husks into the bowl with the flour. 

Mix the baking soda and milk together. 

Stir the flour and milk into the creamed butter alternatively till all is well combined. 

Spoon mixture into 10 muffin tins. 

Bake for 12 - 15 minutes.

When cooled melt the remaining white chocolate. Spoon the melted chocolate into a clean plastic bag and snip 1mm off the corner. Pipe crosses onto the top of each muffin. 

Serve with a spread of softened butter in the middle of each. 

Chocolate Berry Truffles

You know when you make one of those fancy birthday cakes that requires you cutting the big cake into shapes to piece together to make something else... What do you do with all those off cuts of cake? Well this easy and decadent truffle recipe solves that problem. If you don't have 'offcuts' don't worry, any piece of leftover cake would work just as well. 

I'll be making these again for our Easter celebration. 

Ingredients (makes 30 truffles):

• 350 grams (approx) of leftover cake
• 1/4 c coconut cream, or milk
• 1/2 cup desiccated coconut 
• 1/4 cup of defrosted raspberries, or dried cranberries, or both
• 160 grams melted dark chocolate - try Whittaker's 72% Dark Ghana 
• 1 cup of desiccated coconut, to coat 

Crumble cake into a bowl and pour over the coconut cream. Add desiccated coconut, berries and melted chocolate. Mix well to combine. 

Put the 1 cup of coconut into a bowl. 

Use wet hands to roll into small balls. Drop each ball into the coconut and use two spoons to toss it to coat completely. 

Chill in the fridge for 1 hour before serving.Will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for one week.

Top: Chocolate Berry Truffles
Bottom Ginger Crunch and Afghans with Chocolate Fudge Icing

Fill the tins with Simon and Alison Holst

Last year I gave up junk food. Yes. Truely. 
However, I should really define what I mean by 'junk food'. 
To me junk food is all that processed packaged, often individual serving size wrapped junk. The stuff where you read the ingredients and don't know what half of it is or what the numbers mean, yes, that JUNK. Emulsifiers, acidity regulators, 'natural' flavour (what does that even mean?!?), humectant, stabiliser 223, colour 110... yes, it's in some of our favourite supermarket aisle treats. Don't get me wrong I'm no saint, the convenience of muesli bars and packeted treats are pretty neat... 
... However home baked treats are hard to beat. Home baked goodness, where you know exactly what went into them. Where they are full of actual whole ingredients, sugar, butter, flour. Where you don't add numbers, chemicals, stabilisers, or anything from the world of food-science flavouring. Where you can eat real, home-made food, that all have that secret ingredient of love and effort. Yes, you can taste it, and yes, it is good. 

Sunday baking has become a bit of a ritual lately, and Simon and Alison Holst's The Complete Home Baking Collection is a great resource for keeping those tins full. 

It has all the classic treats that Grandma used to make, plus some awesome twists, plus there are whole chapters dedicated to baking fresh bread, festive treats, and gluten free baking. 

Gingernuts were the first thing I saw when I first opened this book, late one weeknight eve. The drive to make them was overwhelming, so I whipped up a batch right there and then (that's how easy they were) and took them in for staff morning tea the next day. Check the recipe below. 

Another time saver recipe I whipped up this weekend was the Mix-in-a-minute Dark Chocolate Cake, which I filled with raspberries, whipped cream, and smothered in a dark chocolate ganache. Literally mixed in a minute, thanks to the food processor method. 

This is also great way to get kids into the kitchen, building their awareness of how food is produced and helping fill their own lunch boxes. 

But what about the sugar, the fat, the healthiness you ask? What about it?? My grandmother had a great saying, "everything in moderation, including moderation itself" so go on, make that cake, and eat it too. 

Mix-in-a-minute Dark Chocolate Cake (pp.48)
Ingredients (makes a 30 x 20cm cake):

• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 3/4 cup cocoa
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp canola or other oil
• 1 1/2 cups water 
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla essence 
• 2 cups of plain flour

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180 (170 fanbake), with the baking rack just below the middle. Line a 30 x 20cm baking pan or small roasting pan with baking paper and coat with non-stick spray. I used a 22cm round cake pan, so it took 50 minutes to bake in total. 
2. Put sugar, cocoa, salt and baking soda in a food processor, and pulse to mix. Add oil, water, eggs and vanilla essence to the dry mixture and process for about 20 seconds to combine well. Add flour and pulse briefly about 5 times again until smooth. Pour the fairly thin mixture into the prepared baking pan. 
3. Bake for about 25 minutes, until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. Cook cake in pan on a rack, then turn out or cut straight from the pan. 
4. Ice as desired (there's a dozen icing recipes to choose from in the book) or top pieces with whipped cream and fruit or berries. 

Gingernuts 
Ingredients (for 80 small biscuits):

• 100g butter
• 1 rounded household tbsp golden syrup
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 - 2 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 1 large egg
• 1 3/4 cups plain flour
• 1 tsp baking soda

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180 (170 fanbake). Line baking trays with baking paper. 
2. Melt the butter in a medium-sized pot, or microwave safe bowl. Remove from heat when melted. Dip an ordinary tablespoon into hot water, then measure the syrup with it. Add the syrup, sugar, ginger (use more for a stronger flavour) and vanilla essence. Add the egg, then mix well with a stirrer or wooden spoon. 
3. Sift in the flour and baking soda. then mix everything together again. 
4. Stand pot or bowl in cold water to cool the biscuit mixture so it is firmer. With wet hands, roll teaspoonfuls of biscuit mixture into small balls. Put these on the prepared baking trays, leaving room to spread. Bake one tray at a time, for about 10 minutes, until golden brown. While biscuits are still warm, lift them onto a cooling rack. When cold, store in an airtight container. 

Note: if biscuits don't spread, you have used too much flour. If they spread too far, you have not used enough. 

Chocolate Coconut Layer Cake with Pineapple Curd

Birthdays are always worth celebrating, and always need cake. Always. No exceptions. 

My husband couldn't be phased when it comes to cakes, but with his birthday approaching I was determined to make something impressive, and something he would be phased about. However, when it comes to icing, decorating and any of the other delicate and fiddly jobs like that I am not very skilled, or let's be honest, not very patient. So I decided to make a layered cake. Combining a few of his favourite flavours together to make a spectacular cake. Well, actually two cakes: chocolate and coconut, which were split, layered and pieced together with pineapple curd buttercream frosting. 

The cakes can be made and chilled a day or two in advance and the pineapple curd can be made up to a week in advance. 

Pineapple curd is the same as lemon curd, but just uses pineapple juice instead. All you need is a little time and a double boiler. If you don't have a double boiler you can put a few inches of water into a small saucepan to simmer, then place a metal or glass bowl over the top so that no steam can escape. Just make sure that the water is not touching the bottom of the bowl. Keep stirring throughout the cooking process so that you don't end up with scrambled eggs. 

What's great about this cake is when you cut it open you get  a kind of bumble bee effect with the different coloured cakes, which you don't really realise from the darkened edges. Serve with lashings of whipped cream and extra pineapple curd and maybe a handful of pineapple lumps. 


Pineapple curd (makes approx 1 1/2 cups) 

• 1/3 cup sugar
• 3 egg yolks 
• 100 grams butter, cubed
• 1/2 cup pineapple juice

Whisk the sugar and egg yolks in a metal or glass bowl till thickened a little. Place bowl over small saucepan of simmering water. Whisk in pineapple juice, and put butter cubes in. Continue whisking till all butter is melted, and then every minute or so for another ten minutes till the mixture has thickened. Pour into a sterilised jar and set aside to cool. Refrigerate until needed. 

Chocolate Cake 

• 200 grams butter, room temperature
• 1 cup sugar 
• 2 tsp vanilla essernce 
• 3 eggs 
• 3/4 cup milk 
• 2 cups self raising flour 
• 1/2 tsp baking soda 
• 1/2 cup cocoa 

Preheat oven to 180 celsius. Grease and line the base of a 22cm cake tin. Using an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar till light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time. 
In a separate bowl sift flour, cocoa, and baking soda. 
Alternatively add parts of flour and milk into the creamed butter and eggs, beating well as you go. Spoon batter into the cake tin and gently bang the tin down on a flat surface a few times - this removes any air bubbles and lets the top settle. Place in the centre of your hot oven and bake for 40 - 50 minutes, till a skewer comes out clean. 
Leave in tin for 10 minutes before removing to a cake rack to cool. Once cooled completely, store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. 

Coconut Cake 

• 1/2 cup desiccated coconut 
• 1 1/3 cups of coconut milk 
• 1 tsp coconut essence, optional
• 180 grams butter, room temperature
• 1 cup caster sugar 
• 2 large eggs 
• 1 3/4 cups of self raising flour 

Preheat oven to 160 celsius. Grease and line the base of a 22cm cake tin. Put coconut, coconut milk and essence in a bowl and set aside for an hour. Using an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar till light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time. 
In a separate bowl sift flour.
Alternatively add parts of flour and coconut mix into the creamed butter and eggs, beating well as you go. Spoon batter into the cake tin and gently bang the tin down a few times again. Place in the centre of your hot oven and bake for 60 - 70 minutes, till a skewer comes out clean. 
Leave in tin for 10 minutes before removing to a cake rack to cool. Once cooled completely, store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. 

Buttercream frosting 

• 250 grams softened butter
• 2 cups icing sugar
• 2 tbsp hot water 
• Pineapple curd

Beat butter and sugar till softened light and fluffy. Add about 1/2 cup to 3/4 cup of pineapple curd. If you want to fluff up the frosting a little more, you can add a tablespoon or two of hot water to the icing as the beater is going. 


To assemble 

• Whipped Cream 
• Remaining pineapple curd
• Pineapple lump lollies 

Take the chilled cakes from the fridge and using a bread knife level the top of each if the centre has raised up. Cutting the cakes when they are cold makes it much easier to get a clean cut. Once the are levelled, cut each cake in half through the centre. 
On a serving plate place the bottom half of the chocolate cake, cut side up, top with 1/4 of the frosting, and spread outwards towards the edges. Place the top layer of the coconut cake next, repeat with the next quarter of icing. Repeat with next chocolate cake, and icing. Finally place the bottom half of the coconut cake on top, cut side down. Spread the last amount of frosting. Scatter pineapple lumps around the outside. 
Whip cream to serve with the cake, and spoon any remaining pineapple curd through the cream.