A Birthday Cake

I think birthdays are times, when those culinary scientists decide to smother their loved ones with the results of their experiments.:)....
It was Papa's birthday....(and he has a sweet tooth..)..so this time, I decided to try out a new cake recipe. I wanted something white..but not plain..and finally got one from Allrecipes.com, which I thought would be nice. It was a white chocolate cake with nuts and coconut.
The cake, by itself was firm and I have a small feeling I baked it a little longer than necessary. It was supposed to be done in a 9" round pan and I made it in a bundt pan. So I just baked it a little more. Anyway no harm done... :) The frosting was plain whipped cream... not too sweet as the cake was sugary enough. (because of the white chocolate in it, maybe). I didn't know how it would turn out to be.. :) and was finally glad when the thumbs up sign came. The firm nutty cake with the soft whipped cream was a good combo and if you like coconut, you are going to love this dessert.
Here is how I made it..

White chocolate cake with nuts and coconut

(The original recipe made 3, 9" cakes, so I made only one-third of the mix as I didn't need such a big cake. The recipe given below is the original one.)

 Ingredients:

• 4 (1 ounce) squares/ 112gm white chocolate, chopped
• 2 1/2 cups sifted cake flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup butter
• 2 cups white sugar
• 4 egg yolks
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 cup chopped pecans or almonds (I used almonds and cashew)
• 1 cup flaked coconut
• 4 egg whites

I dry roasted both the nuts and coconut separately for about 5 minutes before adding them to the mix. It will improve the flavour of the nuts.

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and line 3 (9 inch) pans with wax paper. Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
2. Put the white chocolate in a heat proof bowl and melt it over a pan of simmering water. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the yolks one at a time, then stir in the melted chocolate and vanilla. Fold in the flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk. Stir in the nuts and coconut.
3. In a large glass or metal mixing bowl, beat egg whites until stiff peaks form. Fold 1/3 of the whites into the batter, then quickly fold in remaining whites until no streaks remain. Divide batter into prepared pans.

  Bake in the preheated oven for 40 to 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.( I baked for 50-55 mins, as I used a bundt pan. The time varies, depending on your oven.) Allow to cool.

           The cake was frosted with sweetened whipped cream. You can also give a layer of whipped cream or custard sauce in the middle after halving it horizontally.