15/52 Coconut & White Chocolate Cake

Coconut and white chocolate. What a combination.
Up until not too long ago, I would not have liked it much. But this is a great example of how taste can suddenly and unexpectedly change.

I am not sure when I started liking coconut. I never hated coconut but I would never eat a Bounty chocolate bar, for example. Or coconut macaroons, which my grandma always made for Christmas - I would eat 2 in December and that was it for the year.
Maybe it was just those things that were very coconutty. Like Bounty or coconut macaroons. But now I'm okay with that.

My grandpa loved white chocolate. I never really understood why. Sure, I would eat it if I craved something sweet and white chocolate was the only thing that was around (which never really happened).
But a couple of weeks ago, the hubby brought me some Lindt white chocolate Easter eggs that had a smooth white chocolate filling (exactly like the white Lindor balls) and I haven't been interested in any other chocolate ever since! (Okay, that might not be completely true, but you know...)

So when I visited Chocolate & Zucchini in search of a nice cake recipe that I could make this week, the Coconut & White Chocolate Cake practically sprang into my face.

It would be the perfect flavor to banish that cold, wet, uncomfortable April weather.

And to satisfy my white chocolate cravings (I hope).

The coconut also fits our next vacation which we just booked two days ago: Puerto Rico. Coincidence? Probably not. Even though I wouldn't go as far as to say that the cake recipe influenced our vacation planning. No, definitely not...

Coconut & White Chocolate Cake

Adapted from Chocolate & Zucchini

225 g (3 cups) coconut flakes

200 g (1.6 cups) flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

115 g (1 stick) butter, room temperature

200 g (1 cup) sugar

3 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

250 ml (1 cup) plain yogurt

140 g (5 oz) white chocolate

• Preheat oven to 180°C (360°F). 
• Put coconut flakes on a baking sheet and let it roast in the oven for about 5 minutes. Take out and let cool. 
• In a bowl, mix together flour, baking powder and baking soda. 
• Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. 
• Add the eggs one at a time. Then add the vanilla extract and yogurt. Add flour mix. Fold in 2/3 of the roasted coconut flakes. 
• Bake in prepared round pan (25 cm/10 in) for 30-50 minutes. Let cool. 
• Melt the chocolate and spread evenly on top of the cake. Sprinkle with the remaining coconut flakes.

My modifications:

The original recipe suggests an optional tablespoon of rum to be put into the batter. Since I don't like rum, I added a teaspoon of white chocolate sirup which I happened to have at hand. 

My cake was done after 30 minutes of baking, even though the original recipe calls for 50-60 minutes baking time. 

The taste:

Very coconutty and moist. Tropical. Delicious.

The hubby's question to me after the first bites: 'Since when do you like coconut?'     Ha...

Is there something you never really liked eating but all of a sudden did?