6 INCH SOUTHERN COCONUT CAKE

Steps:

• 1. For Custard Filling: 1-Over medium heat melt butter and sugar together. 2- Add cream and stir until it reaches a boil. 3- In a small mixing bowl mix cornstarch, vanilla extract, and water. 4- Put coconut flakes in a food processor and process until fine. 5- Mix cornstarch mixture into hot cream mixture. 6- Pour hot cream mixture out into a large casserole dish or baking pan. 7- Mix in coconut flakes 8- Let set in fridge for 12 hours
• 2. For Coconut Cakes: 1- Preheat oven to 325'F grease two 6" round cake pans, line and grease bottoms of pans with parchment circles. 2- Cream together butter and sugar for 6 minutes until super fluffy! 3- Add eggs to butter/sugar one at a time until completely incorporated. 4- In another large mixing bowl sift together all your dry ingredients.(Flour, salt and baking powder.) Set aside. 5- In a measuring cup mix together cream and vanilla and coconut extracts. 6- Add flour and cream to butter mixture gradually, alternating between adding flour and cream. Start and end with flour mixture. 7- Do not over mix!!! 8- Pour batter out into pans and bake for about 30-40 minutes or until a tooth pick comes out clean.
• 3. For Frosting: 1- Beat butter and cream cheese together for 2 minutes until fluffy. 2- Beat in vanilla extract. 3- Beat confectioner's sugar in on medium speed one cup at a time until completely incorporated.
• 4. For Simpler syrup: 1- Heat water on stove top over medium heat in a small sauce pan. 2- Stir in sugar and dissolve it. 3- Bring water to a boil, then take off of heat and set aside to cool.
• 5. Assembly: 1- Once cakes are completely cooled, level off any doming in the cakes with a cake leveler or a serrated bread knife. 2- Divide each cake into two layers. You will have 4 cake layers total. 3- Place first layer of cake down on a cake dish and coat the cake layer liberally with simple syrup. 4- Spread about 1/2 cup of coconut custard on the layer evenly. 5- Place next layer of cake on top of that layer and repeat this process for the remaining layers, omitting a layer of custard on the very top of the cake. 6- Frost as desired with cream cheese frosting and garnish. I like to garnish the sides of the cake with toasted coconut and top it with the untoasted sweetened flakes.