Brett Jr. headed off to a YMCA sleep-away camp this morning, so I figured this was the perfect time to make the pina colada cake I spotted when the book first arrived. What I failed to realize was I didn't have enough flour to make the cake. I didn't feel like driving four blocks to the grocery store, so I moved on to plan B - finding a recipe that used a cake mix as the base.
I searched the internet and found a few recipes that looked promising, and then I pulled out a stack of my baking cookbooks to see if there were any other worthy candidates. Lo and behold, I discovered The America's Test Kitchen Family Baking Book had a section of recipes that start with mixes...and one of those recipes was for pina colada cake. Huzzah!
Toasted coconut fresh from the oven
Problem: I bought too much cream of coconut. Solution: make pina coladas
After downing a pina colada, I frosted the cake and covered it with crushed pineapple & coconut
I declare this cake yum
1. I usually follow baking recipes exactly the first time I make them. But recipes made with cake mixes tend to be pretty forgiving. So I made a few modifications: I substituted coconut rum for the dark rum, and a white cake mix for yellow (only because I discovered I was also out of yellow cake mix...seriously, what's going on with my baking pantry?!). And since I was too lazy to drive to the store for flour, it probably comes as no surprise that I was also too lazy to drive to the store for fresh pineapple or sliced canned pineapple. I had cans of crushed pineapple, and figured those would work just as well.
2. I didn't feel like making a layer cake, so I used a 9x13 pan and increased the baking time to 40 minutes. I also toasted an extra 1/2 cup of coconut so I'd have enough to cover it. This cake batter was very thick, which resulted in a rather dense cake. I think it would have come out a little lighter had I baked it in the 9 inch pans the recipe called for. Regardless, it was good. :)
Pina Colada Layer Cake
7 oz sweetened shredded coconut (toast for 6-8 minutes, stirring regularly)
1 (18.25 oz) box yellow cake mix
1 (15 oz) can cream of coconut (like Coco Lopez; NOT coconut milk)
1/4 cup dark rum
3 large eggs
8 oz cream cheese, softened
6 tbls (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup powdered sugar
1/2 pound peeled and cored fresh pineapple, sliced into 1/4 inch rings (can substitute one 20 oz can of sliced pineapples, drained and patted dry)
1. Preheat oven to 350. Toast coconut in a rimmed cookie sheet for 6-8 minutes, stirring regularly, until golden brown. Grease and flour two 9 inch cake pans, then line the bottoms with parchment paper. Measure and reserve 1/2 cup of the toasted coconut for garnishing.
2. Process the remaining coconut in a food processor until very finely ground, about 15 seconds. Transfer the processed coconut to a large bowl and sift the cake mix over the top (note: I just placed the cake mix in the bowl first and whisked it a bit to break up lumps). Whisk in 1 1/4 cups of the cream of coconut, rum, and eggs until incorporated. Give the batter a final stir with a rubber spatula to make sure it is thoroughly combined.
3. Scrape the batter into the prepared pans and smooth the tops. Bake the cakes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few crumbs attached, about 20 minutes, rotating pans halfway through baking.
4. Let the cakes cool in the pans for 10 minutes. Run a small knife around the edge of the cakes then flip them out onto a wire rack. Peel off the parchment paper, flip the cakes upright, and let cool completely, 1-2 hours.
5. Meanwhile, mix the remaining cream of coconut, cream cheese, butter, and powdered sugar in a medium bowl until smooth. Refrigerate until reach to use.
6. Place one cake layer on a platter, spread half the cream cheese frosting over the cake, leaving 1/4 inch border at the edge.
7. Place the second cake layer on top and press lightly to adhere. Spread the remaining frosting over the top (leaving the sides of the cake bare). Arrange the pineapple rings attractively over the top of the cake, then sprinkle with the reserved toasted coconut.
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