Coconut Cupcakes

This recipe was sent over by my sister's mother in law, who is an amazing baker. I'd call her the master of cookie decorating, because during the holidays she often sends down beautifully decorated sugar cookies, using colored sprinkles and even other candies to make them really special.

I'm quite the opposite. I bake for flavor and often bomb the decorating part of things. It's just not my forte, and I can live with that. As a matter of fact, I rather dislike fondant, and so I'd much rather see a less perfect looking cake that tastes like a lil' piece of heaven than a gorgeous but cardboard-flavored piece of bread.

She shared this recipe around Easter, as she made her own Easter cake and decorated it with a cute little bunny. Because due to the ongoing pandemic, she has not been able to visit, I thought it would be nice to bake her recipe to share with my brother-in-law. And of course, once I saw that cake, I had to have it.

I recently got some lavender in the mail and have been anxious to use it, so I decided to test it out in the frosting. Lavender is a flavor that should be subtle; it's used so much in body washes, candles, and soaps, that you don't want people to feel like they are eating wax. I can't say I've cooked with it much, but I can say that I had a lavender ice cream once that changed my dang life. I also have a recipe in a special dessert cookbook a friend gave me for lavender flan that I've had on my to do list for years. I even bought a lavender plant in the hopes of using it to make it, but within a few days of my bringing it home it wilted away. Looks like I can finally make it happen.

The cake uses whole eggs as well as yolks, with the whites being set aside for use on the frosting. I absolutely LOVE the idea of using all of the egg. Sometimes that's not possible, depending on what you're making, but when it works out it is awesome. The start was pretty basic. Beat together sugar, eggs, and egg yolks while gently heating up some milk and butter in a saucepan. Add the flour and baking powder gradually, then add in the vanilla extract (and almond if you use it as religiously as I do). Lastly, mix in the warm milk mixture and beat it for about 2 minutes to get everything combined.

I decided to make cupcakes instead of a large cake just because it looks pretty when split up between folks and well, cupcakes are generally perfect. While the cupcakes baked, I got started on the frosting.

I traditionally use a buttercream frosting, because buttercream travels well, decorates pretty easily, and can sit out at room temperature. Though I love a good cream cheese recipe, I am also big on keeping it refrigerated, which makes sharing cakes a bit tougher sometimes. In this recipe, you make a meringue-like frosting, and from what I read it's considered an Italian meringue frosting. I was definitely game for the experimentation.

To make it, you make a sugar syrup on the stove then mix it into whipped egg whites. I heated water and sugar to a boil, then added the lavender in and let it cook for about 3 minutes. Though the original recipe called for hitting a certain temperature on the candy thermometer, I do not have one and therefore just let the sugar dissolve. In the meantime, you beat the egg whites with some cream of tartar until they begin to get foamy, then slowly pour the syrup down the inside of the mixing bowl while the beater is running to mix it in. You keep beating the egg whites until they have firm peaks, just as you would a meringue.

The frosting was a beautiful, fluffy cloud.

Finally, you top the cooled cupcakes off with the frosting and sprinkle with some coconut to create these pretty little things.

So it's interesting to me that the cake came out very rich. I can only suppose the extra egg yolk adds this depth of flavor, and whatever it is I like it. With our without the frosting, the cake was stupendous. As far as how I'd qualify it when compared to my favorite cake (the super easy, mix all of it in a bowl type), I'd say this one does earn the "Richer Flavor" award because of those egg yolks. You just have to decide if you want to be lazy and throw everything in a bowl, or if you feel like doing a few extra steps. Also, if you're making the whipped egg white frosting, I'd definitely proceed with this cake because of making use of all the eggs.

The frosting was really good! Light and fluffy, I found it sweet and satisfying. The lavender was a ncie, subtle touch - I used only a small amount and it complemented the coconut well. I'm sold on the idea of a lavender cake next, and someone even sent over a lavender cake with honey frosting recipe to get me started. Commence the love of purple.

I will say that these stored best in the fridge - kept the egg whites fluffy. I had a few I left out and the egg whites began to sink after a day. The alternative is just making sure they don't sit around for more than a day or two, which shouldn't be too hard with these bad boys.


Coconut Cupcakes Recipe
Makes 24

Ingredients:

For the cake:

1 1/3 cups white sugar

2 eggs

4 egg yolks

1 cup milk (I used coconut milk)

1/2 cup butter

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon almond extract (optional)

For the frosting:

1 1/3 cups white sugar

1/2 cup water

1 teaspoon dried lavender (optional for plain frosting)

4 egg whites, room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

1 cup coconut flakes

Instructions:

For the cake:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Beat sugar, eggs, and egg yolks together in a mixing bowl for 4-5 minutes, until light and fluffy. In a small saucepan, heat milk and butter on low heat until butter melts. Remove from heat and let cool slightly. Slowly add the flour and baking powder to the egg mixture, then mix in vanilla and almond extracts. Stir in the milk mixture and beat for 1-2 minutes. Pour batter into lined cupcake pans. Bake for 15-18 minutes, until a toothpick poked into the center of the cupcakes comes out clean.

For the frosting:

In a large mixing bowl, beat egg whites and cream of tartar with an electric mixer until foamy. In a small saucepan, add the sugar and water and heat to a boil, stirring frequently Add lavender if desired. Cook for about 3 minutes, until sugar is fully dissolved. Begin beating the egg whites on high, then slowly pour the syrup into the mixture, doing so by pouring it down the side of the mixing bowl. Continue beating until the egg whites are light and fluffy. Stir in vanilla extract.

Frost cupcakes once cooled, then sprinkle tops with coconut.

adapted from old fashioned coconut cake