Easter Cake

Ingredients

• 1 Vanilla Cake, 3 layers (or other 20cm/8" cake of choice, Note 1)
• 340g/ 3 sticks unsalted butter, 1.25cm / ½" cubes, softened to 18°C/64°F (Note 3)
• 750g/ 1.5 lb (6 cups) soft icing sugar / powdered sugar, sifted
• 3 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 – 2 drops blue gel food colouring (or 1 – 2 tsp blue food colouring, Note 4)
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp cocoa powder (unsweetened or sweetened, doesn’t matter)
• 3 tbsp boiling water
• Toothbrush (or basting brush)
• 2 cups coconut flakes (or shaved)
• 200g/ 7oz small Easter eggs (I use pastel coloured speckled ones, Note 5)

Steps

1. Level: Trim the top of cakes if required/desired to make the layers level (for aesthetic purposes).
2. Chill: Place cake layers in fridge until thoroughly chilled (this makes it easier to frost so crumbs don't go everywhere).
3. Toast coconut: Preheat oven to 160°C/325°F (140°C fan). Spread coconut on a tray. Bake 6 – 10 minutes, stirring every couple of minutes, until golden. (Bake time depends on sugar level, so keep an eye on it). Cool.
4. Cream butter: Beat butter in a stand mixer on Speed 8 for 3 minutes until it changes from yellow to almost white.
5. Add icing sugar in 3 batches: Add icing sugar in 3 batches, starting the mixer on speed 1 until partially incorporated, then increasing until it's mostly mixed in.
6. Vanilla, salt, and beat 2 mins: Add vanilla and salt, then beat on Speed 8 for 2 minutes until almost white, and it's beautifully fluffy.
7. Colour (Note 4): Remove 1 tbsp frosting into a small bowl. Add 1 drop of blue gel, mix in. Add 1 teaspoon of coloured frosting back into main frosting, beat until incorporated (scrape down sides as needed). Add more coloured frosting 1 teaspoon at a time until desired tone is achieved.
8. Mix cocoa and boiling water.
9. Frosting: Spread 3/4 cup frosting between each cake layer, then using remaining frosting for side and surface (I usually have ~1/2 cup frosting leftover, but better safe than sorry!).
10. Speckles: Place something behind cake as a backboard for the speckling mess! Dip toothbrush in cocoa mixture, then use fingers to flick speckles onto cake surface – sides and top. (Hint: Practice in sink first). TIP: When doing top of cake, angle toothbrush 45 degrees down NOT over cake, to avoid accidental big drips.
11. Coconut Nest: Pile coconut in the middle to form a "nest" then pile a mound of eggs in it.
12. Coconut Rim: Place a mound of coconut all along the base of the cake, then dot with Easter Eggs.
13. Bask in praise: Take proudly to table and bask in the compliments!