Birthday bundt cake

Last December I was temping for a small company where the Christmas card was king. Everyone distributed a twee little holiday greeting to everyone else, except for the people who preferred to donate to charity in lieu of doing Christmas cards, and instead sent a jolly Christmas email appraising everyone of this fact. It was an office suffering from the tyranny of the greeting card.

Despite being brand new in this place, I didn’t entirely manage to escape the card craziness. Everyone felt obliged to buy me one too, except for my closest associate, whom I had confided to about my total lack of enthusiasm for the office card exchange. The morning she brought in her stash she said to me, "I didn’t get you one because I know you don’t believe in them." Erm, last time I checked I didn’t have a fundamental belief in not sending cards – I mean it’s not like I’ve founded an anti-card cult – I just don’t see the point of sending pointless little folded pieces of paper to people I see every day (and may not even particularly like.) Call me a killjoy (I probably am one), but I’m just not that into cards.

Heck, I don’t even buy cards for people I know and like. I am the girl who perpetually shows up to the birthday party sans card, because it doesn’t even cross my mind to go and buy one. Edward certainly never gets a birthday card. Until this year, that is. About ten months ago I spotted a cute science- and Nobel Prize-themed card at the Design Museum, which I thought would be perfect for him, given that he's a science geek. I was so proud of myself for buying the perfect card! Nearly a year in advance! The trouble is, I’m so unused to giving cards and therefore crap at it, that after all the effort of purchasing the perfect card, I forgot to give it to him. So I presented it a day late, after we had done the presents and the dinner and the cake.

Ah, the cake. I might be lax on the card giving front, but I do like to make a lovely cake for people’s birthdays. After last year’s hedgehog, which was adorable but nearly inedible, I wanted to go for something a bit more sophisticated this time around. Edward had requested coconut cake, but I didn’t want to make the same one I’d made for his thirtieth.

Luckily I found this absolutely delicious coconut bundt cake recipe in my Dorie Greenspan book. She calls it a ‘tea cake’, and it would certainly be perfect with an afternoon cup, but I’ve always been partial to bundts for birthdays too. After a big celebratory meal who really wants to chow down on layers of gooey sponge and sickly sweet icing? This is a delicious alternative.

Coconut Tea Cake
Adapted from Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan

2 cups all purpose (plain) flour
1 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
1 cup canned coconut milk
4 Tbsp unsalted butter
4 large eggs, preferably at room temperature
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 tsp dark rum (optional)
3/4 cup shredded unsweetened coconut (toasted if you wish)

Icing:
1 cup icing sugar, sifted
2 to 3 Tbsp milk or coconut milk
2 or 3 drops almond essence (optional)
shredded coconut, for sprinkling on top

Preheat oven to 350 F / 180 C. Grease and flour a standard-sized bundt tin. Make sure to do this well and get into all the cracks and grooves.  

In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

Pour the coconut milk into a small saucepan, add the butter and heat until the butter is melted. Remove from the heat.

In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, or in a large bowl using a hand mixer, beat the eggs and sugar at medium high speed until pale, thick and almost doubled in volume, about 3 minutes. Beat in the vanilla and the rum, if using. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed and stopping just when the flour disappears.

Keeping the mixer on low, add the coconut, mixing only until it is blended, then steadily add the hot milk and butter. When the mixture is smooth, stop mixing and give the batter a couple of turns with a spatula, just to make certain that any dry ingredients that might have fallen to the bottom of the bowl are incorporated.

Pour the batter into the tin and bake in the centre of the oven 6. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, or until the cake is golden brown and a thin knife inserted in the centre comes out clean. Transfer the cake
to a wire rack and cool for 10 minutes before unmoulding onto the rack to completely cool.

Once the cake is completely cool, make the icing. Place the sifted icing sugar in a small bowl and add the milk a tablespoon at a time, mixing in until it is fully incorporated. When the icing is thick but pourable, add the almond essence. Pour the icing slowly over the cake, allowing it to drip down the sides. Top with a generous sprinkling of coconut.