Coconut and Raspberry Cake

Ingredients:

For the cake:

Buttercream:

To assemble:

Method:

Preheat the oven to 170C and grease and line your cake tins.
Cream together the butter and sugar, it should be really light and fluffy at this stage.
Add the eggs one at a time, incorporating each one before adding the next.
Sift in the flour and then add in the coconut milk, desiccated coconut, vanilla and baking powder.
Mix until it is all incorporated, but no more than you need to.
I used 3x 6 inch cake tins, but it would work with 2x 8 inch cake tins.
Divide the mixture between the tins, and bake for 25-30 minutes until a knife comes out clean.
Allow to cool fully before decorating.
I like to level my cakes so they stack nicely. If your cakes have domed in the oven, when the cakes are fully cool, slice the tops off.

Buttercream:

Mix together the icing sugar, butter, desiccated coconut and coconut milk. Add more or less icing sugar depending on the consistency you want. I went for a piping consistency.
Transfer to a piping bag

To assemble:

To create the coconut effect on the outside of the cake, mix the desiccated coconut with a few drops of water and a little food colouring. Add in small quantities so you can check how dark the colour is. You may need to allow the coconut to dry out a little here if it seems to be clumping up too much. I spread mine out on a baking tray and popped it in the oven on a low heat for a few minutes.
Use a pastry brush to coat the outside edge of the cakes with a thin layer of jam.
With the coconut spread out on a baking tray, carefully roll the cake along like a wheel to coat the outer edge in coloured coconut.
To assemble the cake, layer up the sponges with the buttercream and jam, and top with buttercream and fresh fruit. You can be creative here with whatever you have!
Enjoy!

Chessboard Cake