Here is a complete, expanded guide to Coconut Cake with Seven-Minute Frosting—transformed from a simple scrap of ingredients into a rich narrative worthy of a heirloom recipe box.
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Coconut Cake with Seven-Minute Frosting
“Don’t Lose This Recipe” — A Baker’s Manifesto
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Introduction
Some recipes are more than instructions; they are memories written in sugar and butter. This Coconut Cake with Seven-Minute Frosting is one such recipe. It is the taste of golden anniversaries, Easter Sundays, and church potlucks where the ladies nod in approval after the first bite. The cake itself is impossibly tender, thanks to coconut milk and sour cream, while the frosting is a billowy cloud—stiff, glossy, and whipped over steam until it holds its peaks like meringue. This is not just a dessert. It is an event.
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History
The seven-minute frosting, also known as boiled icing or Italian meringue, rose to fame in the early 20th century. Before refrigeration was widespread, buttery American buttercreams were unstable; home bakers needed a frosting that could withstand warm temperatures. Enter seven-minute frosting—cooked egg whites and sugar, fluffy, white, and remarkably stable.
Coconut cake itself has Southern roots, often associated with Florida and the Gulf Coast, where fresh coconuts were plentiful. The addition of sour cream and coconut milk in this version is a mid-century innovation—possibly a Pillsbury Bake-Off derivative—designed to add moisture without weighing down the crumb. This recipe distills that golden era into a single sheet of paper.
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Ingredients
For the Cake:
· 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
· 2 tsp baking powder
· ½ tsp baking soda
· ½ tsp salt
· ¾ cup unsalted butter, softened
· 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
· 3 large eggs, room temperature
· 1 tsp vanilla extract
· 1 tsp coconut extract
· 1 cup coconut milk (full-fat, well-shaken)
· 1 cup sour cream
For the Seven-Minute Frosting:
· 2 large egg whites
· 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
· ⅓ cup cold water
· 2 tsp light corn syrup (optional, but helps stability)
· ¼ tsp cream of tartar
· 1 tsp vanilla extract
· Pinch of salt
· 2 cups sweetened shredded coconut, for sprinkling
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Methods (The Step-by-Step Formation)
Formation of the Cake Layers
1. Prepare the pans. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 9-inch round cake pans, line bottoms with parchment.
2. Whisk dry ingredients. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
3. Cream butter and sugar. In a stand mixer, beat butter and sugar on medium-high until pale and fluffy (about 3 minutes).
4. Add eggs and extracts. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each. Add vanilla and coconut extracts.
5. Alternate wet and dry. With mixer on low, add dry ingredients in three additions, alternating with the coconut milk. Begin and end with flour. Do not overmix.
6. Fold in sour cream. Gently fold the sour cream into the batter with a rubber spatula until just combined.
7. Bake. Divide batter evenly between pans. Bake 28–32 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool in pans 15 minutes, then turn out onto racks to cool completely.
The Seven-Minute Method (The Frosting)
1. Prepare a double boiler. Fill a saucepan with 2 inches of simmering water. Place a heatproof bowl on top, ensuring the bottom does not touch the water.
2. Combine ingredients. In the bowl, combine egg whites, sugar, water, corn syrup, cream of tartar, and salt.
3. Whip over heat. Beat with a hand mixer on low, then gradually increase to high. Beat for 7 minutes—set a timer—until the frosting is glossy, thick, and holds stiff peaks.
4. Remove and flavor. Remove from heat, add vanilla, beat 1 minute more.
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Assembly
1. Place one cake layer on a serving plate. Spread a generous ½ cup of frosting on top.
2. Add second layer. Frost the top and sides with the remaining icing. Work quickly; this frosting sets fast.
3. Press shredded coconut into the sides and sprinkle over the top. Use your hands for a rustic look or a spatula for precision.
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Nutrition (Per Slice, Approximate)
· Calories: 485
· Fat: 21g
· Carbohydrates: 68g
· Protein: 6g
· Sugar: 48g
· Fiber: 2g
Note: This is a celebration cake. It is not designed for daily consumption, but for days worth celebrating.
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Benefits
· Mood elevation. The combination of sugar, coconut aroma, and soft texture provides genuine psychological comfort.
· Tradition preservation. Baking this cake connects you to generations of home bakers.
· Skill building. Seven-minute frosting teaches patience, timing, and the magic of egg-white transformation.
· Coconut milk. Contains medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs) and electrolytes like potassium.
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Lovers of This Cake
This cake is loved by:
· Southern grandmothers who keep their mixing bowls in the same cabinet their mothers did.
· Bride-and-groom parties at vintage-themed weddings.
· Food historians who appreciate the transition from farmhouse cooking to mid-century modern convenience.
· Anyone who has ever scraped a bowl of seven-minute frosting clean with their finger.
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Conclusion
Don’t lose this recipe. Write it on an index card in your best cursive. Tuck it into a cookbook, or better yet, stain it with vanilla and pass it down. This Coconut Cake with Seven-Minute Frosting is not just flour, sugar, and eggs—it is love, laminated. Every time you whip those egg whites over steam, you are summoning patience. Every time you press coconut into the sides, you are cupping tenderness in your palms. Make it for someone you want to remember you.