Raspberry and coconut layer cake

SERVES 12-14 // PREP TIME 1 HR // COOK 45 MINS (PLUS COOLING)

Love Iced VoVos? Our maxed-out cake, layered with raspberry jam, covered in fluffy buttercream and topped with raspberry and coconut has a whack of nostalgia, and bells and whistles for good measure. Now this is a party.

50 gm (2⁄3 cup) desiccated coconut, toasted, plus extra untoasted to serve

350 ml milk

200 gm eggwhite (about

7 large eggs)

Scraped seeds of

½ vanilla bean

400 gm (2⅔ cups) self-raising

flour

330 gm (11⁄2 cups) caster sugar 230 gm butter, softened

85 gm raspberry jam

250 gm raspberries

RASPBERRY BUTTERCREAM 150 gm white chocolate, coarsely chopped 100 gm eggwhite (about 4 eggs) 220 gm (2 cups) caster sugar 175 gm butter, softened

Finely grated zest of 1 lime 2 tsp raspberry baking paste (optional; see note) 6-8 drops red food colouring

1 Preheat oven to 180°C.

Grease two 3cm-deep 20cm x 28cm cake tins with baking paper. Place desiccated coconut in a large heatproof bowl.

Bring milk to a simmer over high heat, then pour it over the coconut. Stir to combine, then cool to room temperature. Pass through a fine sieve, discarding solids. You should have 330ml infused milk. If not, top up with regular milk.

2 Whisk eggwhite with vanilla and 110ml infused milk until just combined. Combine flour, sugar and 1 tsp salt in an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, then add butter and remaining coconut milk and beat until smooth

(1-2 minutes). Scrape down bowl, then add eggwhite mixture in 3 batches, beating after each addition, until incorporated. Divide batter evenly among tins, reduce oven temperature to 170°C, and bake until golden, risen and centre of cakes spring back when lightly pressed

(30 minutes). Cool in tins.

3 Spread 1 cake with two-thirds jam, then sandwich with second cake, pressing down firmly. Cut stack in half lengthways with a serrated knife, then spread the top of one half with remaining jam and top with remaining half. Trim cake to an even rectangle and press down firmly to ensure layers stick together.

4 For raspberry buttercream, melt chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water (don’t let bowl touch water). Set aside. Combine eggwhite and sugar in a heatproof bowl, place over simmering water and whisk until hot to touch (or 55°C on a thermometer). Transfer to an electric mixer and whisk on high speed until thick, glossy and cooled to room temperature. Gradually beat in melted chocolate and butter until smooth, then add lime zest, raspberry paste and food colouring and beat to combine. Transfer to a piping bag fitted with a 1.5cm star nozzle.

5 Pipe peaks of buttercream over the whole cake, sprinkle with extra coconut and top with raspberries to serve.

Note Raspberry baking paste is available from the baking section of supermarkets.