Greek Coconut cake

We all have those people that enter our lives, becoming firm friends then through no fault on any part drift apart. There is nothing better than rekindling those friendships years later. I have one such friend, Angela. This blog is dedicated to her.

Last Saturday, Angela hosted a Greek themed dinner party. Whilst Angela provided the main course, I provided the dessert, Baklava and Ravani or Greek Coconut cake. The meal was accompanied by several bottles of prosecco and lots of laughter. To round the evening off we put on the Sing-a-long version of Mama Mia and belted out some classics! Gimme, gimme a man after midnight will never be the same again. Not to mention Angie busting out her clubbersize moves to Voulez Vous! We might be over 40 but we know how to party!

You know it is a good night when you find yourself confronted by your son and grounded for being late home!

This cake is a light, refreshing dessert and an absolute doddle to make.

Cake Ingredients

4 eggs, separated

2 cups of margarine

2 cups of caster sugar

1 cup of plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

2 cups of desiccated coconut

2 tsp orange oil

 Syrup Ingredients

1.5 cups of icing sugar

Juice of 2 lemons

0.5 cup of water

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180 C  / 160C fan
2. Grease and base line a 10 inch round deep cake tin.
3. Cream the marge and sugar together until light and fluffy
4. Beat in the egg yolks and orange oil
5. In a separate bowl whisk the egg whites with a pinch of sugar until you have stiff peaks.
6. Fold a third of the egg whites and dry ingredients into the batter
7. Continue until all the whites and dry ingredients are incorporated.
8. Bake in the prepared tin for 1 -1 hour 15min or until cooked through when tested with a skewer.
9. Allow to cool slightly in the tin.
10. Boil all the syrup ingredients together for 5 -10 minutes or until the syrup is slightly thickened.
11. Spoon the syrup over cake, allowing each spoonful to be absorbed into the cake. I find spreading the syrup over the cake with a pastry brush stops the syrup pooling at the edges.

This cake is gorgeous with vanilla ice cream but would work just as well with Greek yogurt.