One of the most pleasant things about doing this column is hearing from readers as I did on a recent day when someone wrote asking for a white cake frosting recipe.
I could have helped her with that and answered her letter, then I considered that perhaps you may need a recipe for the coconut cake you want to make during Christmas. If you have been cooking for a long time, you probably have several similar recipes, but there may be new cooks who don’t.
Because of careers, etc., many women rarely bake cakes from the beginning, instead relying on those from bakeries or boxes. I don’t know if it’s in the King James or the Constitution, but it should be that every woman can bake a cake from “scratch.”
I am including recipes for a yellow and a white cake, and three recipes for white frosting. The frosting recipes here are for the coconut cake but can be used on almost any cake; just don’t sprinkle on the coconut.
Over the Christmas season when you are having family, neighbors, the preacher, etc., for a holiday meal, you’ll get a lot of compliments if you serve one of these homemade, right-from-your-kitchen Coconut Cakes for … Sunday Dinner.
Before you get too involved in the baking, prepare the coconut:
Using an ice pick, punch a hole in one of the “eyes” of the coconut. Shake and drain the juice (or “coconut milk”) into a cup and save. Heat coconut in a 350-degree oven about 10 minutes until the shell begins to crack. Remove and pry the coconut pieces from the shell (you may have to use a hammer to break open the shell). Pry out the coconut pieces, peel off the brown part, and cut the white coconut into small pieces. Using a hand grater, blender or food chopper, grate the coconut. Cover and refrigerate until needed. When frosting the cake, spread each layer with two or three spoonfuls of the saved coconut milk. Work slowly, giving the milk time to soak into the layer before spreading on the frosting and coconut. Whether you make the yellow or white layers listed below, the cake will be better if allowed to sit for a day before serving.
This Seven-Minute Frosting recipe has been around for generations because it is a good one. It almost always takes more than seven minutes to make, but the results are pleasing.
Seven-Minute Frosting
2 egg whites
1/2 cup water
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups white granulated sugar
1 tablespoon white corn syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Put water in the bottom part of a double boiler and set it on high heat; bring it to a rapid boil. In the top of the double boiler, combine all the ingredients except the vanilla. Using an electric mixer at high speed, beat about one minute until well-blended. Set the top boiler over the bottom part on the rapidly boiling water (and that is important), then continue beating with the electric mixer until the frosting forms peaks when the beater is raised. Although the recipe is called “seven minute,” it will probably take longer than that for the peaks to form. Remove the top part from the boiling water. Some cooks like to empty the frosting into a large bowl, or you may leave it in the cooking pot. Add the vanilla and continue beating until the frosting is thick enough to spread. For a three-layer coconut cake, roughly divide the frosting into four parts. Spread each layer with the frosting, then sprinkle on the coconut. Spread the fourth part of the frosting around the sides; then, using your hands, pat on the last part of the coconut.
My friend, neighbor and fellow church member Marianne Roberts and I were talking about this, and she gave me the following white frosting recipe, saying she has more success with it than with the one above. Marianne says this one will do well even in damp weather, which seems to affect some similar frostings. Try it.
Seven-Minute Marshmallow Frosting
1 1/2 cups sugar
5 tablespoons water
6 large or 60 small marshmallows
2 egg whites
A pinch of cream of tartar
1 teaspoon vanilla
Put all the ingredients except the vanilla into the top of a double boiler. Place over the bottom part of the boiler containing simmering water. Cook, beating constantly with an electric mixer on high speed for seven minutes, or until the mixture is stiff and glossy. Remove from heat, add vanilla, mix. Frosts two layers.
Easy Coconut Frosting
1 cup heavy cream, whipped
Grated fresh coconut
Spread each cooled cake layer with whipped cream and sprinkle on the coconut. Spread whipped cream around sides and pat on the coconut. Refrigerate cake.
One-Two-Three-Four Cake (yellow layers)
1 cup butter, room temperature
3 cups flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup milk
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
Grease three 9-inch cake pans and line bottoms with waxed paper. Set aside. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sift flour, measure, sift again with baking powder and salt. Set aside. In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter until light and fluffy, then begin adding the sugar very slowly. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each. With mixer at low speed, gradually add the flour and milk alternately, scraping the bowl as needed. Add vanilla and mix well. Divide batter among the three prepared pans and bake about 20-25 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center of each layer comes out clean. Remove pans from oven and let cool about 10 minutes; then run a knife blade around the inside edge of each pan. Invert cake layers onto a cake rack and cool completely before frosting. If the dark crust on the layers bothers you, when the cake is cool use your hands and gently rub away the crust. If time is a concern, make the cake layers one day, cool, wrap in waxed paper and refrigerate. Next day, prepare the coconut, putting the shredded coconut into a plastic bag. On the third day, make the frosting and finish the cake.
White Cake
3/4 cup shortening
1/2 cup milk
3 cups sifted cake flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon lemon extract
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon vanilla flavoring
6 egg whites, room temperature
Grease and line bottoms of two 9-inch round cake pans with waxed paper. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine sifted cake flour with the baking powder and salt. Set aside. Cream shortening, gradually adding the sugar and beating until light and fluffy. Combine the milk and water. Add to the shortening-sugar alternately with the flour mixture. Stir in the flavorings. Beat egg whites until stiff peaks form, then fold into the batter. Divide batter between the two prepared cake pans and bake for 30 minutes. Cool in pans for 10 minutes. Invert pans onto a wire rack and gently tear away the waxed paper. Cool completely before frosting. Yields two layers.