Birthday Cake!

Poor Mr. Lawyer's birthday was a bit overlooked this year with our holiday weekend in NYC, me starting school again, and our engagement party so I made him a birthday cake! Technically it's still his birthday month so it's okay. He requested a coconut cream cake...that's right, cake not pie. I had to go to three different stores before I found coconut cream! Actually I ended up with cream de coconut which is sweeter so I just added less condensed milk. I also decided to use two round cake pans and layer them in order to make it more festive. I also toasted the coconut for some color. It was a hit! And the reviews said it gets better the next day. Mmmmm....cake for breakfast.

He was surprised when he walked in and saw a cake with candles!

A work in progress....thank god for frosting!

 mmmmmm cake!

Coconut Cream Cake

(adapted from allrecipes.com)

Ingredients:
1 (18.25 ounce) package white cake mix
3 eggs
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 cup water
1/2 teaspoon coconut extract
1 (14 ounce) can coconut cream
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 cup flaked coconut
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 9x13 inch pan.
2. In a large bowl, mix together cake mix, eggs, oil, water and coconut flavoring. Beat for 2 minutes and pour into 9x13 inch pan. Bake for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean.
3. In a medium bowl, combine coconut cream with sweetened condensed milk and stir until smooth. 

4. When cake comes out of the oven, poke holes into it in even rows using a large fork or chopsticks. Pour milk mixture over, allowing it to soak into the cake. Refrigerate for several hours or overnight.
5. In a large bowl, whisk cream until soft peaks form. Add sugar and continue whipping until stiff. Spread over cooled cake. Sprinkle top with flaked coconut.