I recently invested in a copy of Rose Reisman’s “The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Light Desserts” after some long email chats with Renee about light baking. It’s packed with loads of really delicious sounding recipes and I’m enjoying cooking my way through it, despite having to substitute ingredients here and there (the USA seems to have a huge range of light dairy products, I’m so jealous).

The first recipe that really leapt out when I flicked through the book was the Coconut Layer Cake which looked really, really good. I’ve been waiting for an excuse to make it since I spotted the recipe and I finally caved in a couple of days ago as I have a huge thing about coconut at the moment.

Making the cake layers was very easy. I actually baked the batter in 8″ cake tins as I like the look of two thick layers. This extended the baking time by 10 minutes and I’m convinced that baking in a smaller tin ensured that the cake layers remained nice and moist.

I was quite nervous about making the icing as I had no cream of tartar, but after some research into boiled and meringue icings I decided to be brave and go for it. Using cream of tartar seems to be a throwback to the days of making these types of icings without an electric mixer to whip the eggs quickly and thoroughly. It turned out to be really easy and much quicker than the time given in the recipe. The texture was like marshmallow fluff, not quite what I was expecting but very good. You must use the icing immediately as it becomes hard to spread the longer it sits. Oh, the recipe makes lots of icing, so you could split the two layers and use plenty of icing to sandwich them together for a really spectacular look!

I have to admit that the flavour of the cake was pretty average immediately after baking. It was good, but not awesome. However, after 24 hours in the fridge Dave and I found that the coconut flavour in the cake layers was much more pronounced, and the icing had melded slightly with them. The toasted coconut on top was a nice crunchy contrast to the very soft and fluffy icing. Utterly gorgeous. I’ll definitely be making this again, perhaps even with some lime curd in between the layers to give it a really tropical feel….

Light Coconut Layer Cake, from The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Light Desserts

Makes 14 servings

1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cup light coconut milk
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 Tbsp toasted coconut (I used dessicated but shredded would have been much nicer)
2 large egg whites
1/4 tsp cream of tartar

Icing
3 large egg whites
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup water
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
3 Tbsp toasted coconut

Preheat oven to Gas Mark 4 (180�C). Spray two 9-inch (23 cm) round cake tins with cooking spray.

In a large bowl, using a whisk or an electric mixer, beat 1 cup of the sugar, the coconut milk, oil, eggs and vanilla.

In another bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, salt, and coconut. With a wooden spoon, stir dry ingredients into coconut milk mixture, just until combined.

In a separate bowl, beat egg whites with cream of tartar until foamy. Gradually add the remaining � cup sugar, beating until stiff peaks form. Stir one-quarter of egg whites into the cake batter. Gently fold in the remaining egg whites. Divide mixture between the prepared tins.

Bake in the center of the oven for approximately 15 minutes, or until a tester inserted into the center come out dry. Let the pans cool on a wire rack.

To make icing:
In the top of a double boiler, or in a glass or metal bowl overtop of a saucepan of simmering water, combine egg whites, sugar, water and cream of tartar. Place over medium-low heat. With an electric mixer, beat for 6 to 8 minutes, or until thickened and soft peaks form. Remove from heat; beat for 1 minute or until stiff peaks form. Stir in 2 Tbsp of the toasted coconut.

Place one cake layer on a cake platter. Spread some icing over top. Place the second cake layer on top for the first and ice the top and sides. Sprinkle with remaining 1 Tbsp of toasted coconut.