I don’t care if its wet and frigid at night. I saw a daffodil, so spring has officially sprung! That said, spring brings one of my favorite holidays- Easter. Now I am not a religious person, so to me Easter is more of a celebration of the cold and dark winter passing and celebrating a new warm season with my family! We love cooking and being able to hang out outside again (weather permitting) its just such a bright and fun day. It’s also usually the official day I switch from drinking red wine to Rose-all-day. If you are looking for Rosé suggestions, be sure to check out my list of my favorite bottles. and be sure to let me know if you have any additions to this list!

That said, I love trying to be creative with my spring decor. I crafted the girls some bunny headbands and also made a coconut cream cake. It’s covered in shredded coconut and I couldn’t help but also put ears on it for some easter fun! Since I made it in square pans, I was thinking next time I might divide it into 4 mini cakes and decorate two with toasted coconut. Then I will have a colorful rabbit cake army!

Bunny ears or not, this cake is delicious. It isn’t too moist or too dry, so it could hold some fruit compote with it. The whites only keep it fluffy and light! Rounded out nicely with a cream cheese frosting, it was a hit here! I think I will definitely keep it in rotation this summer for any gatherings we have and pair it with whatever fruit is in season! Until then, it will be hopping its way to my easter table. Let me know if you try it and what you’d want to pair it with!

Coconut Cream Cake

For the cake:

• 5 egg whites
• 3/4 cup buttermilk*
• 3/4 cup softened, un-salted butter
• 1 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp almond extract (or coconut if you have it)
• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup shredded sweetened coconut

For the frosting:

• 1/2 cup softened, unsalted butter
• 8oz (1 box) of softened cream cheese (room temperature)
• 5 cups powdered sugar
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1-2 cups shredded coconut for decorating.

Prep two 9″ square cake pans with baking spray (or butter and a flour dusting) and set aside. Preheat over to 350 degrees.

Whisk together egg whites and buttermilk in a bowl until combined well. In a mixing bowl, beat together butter, sugar and extracts for about 3 minutes (I used the paddle attachment). Mix together flour, baking powder and salt then slowly add to butter mixture. Once combined slowly add in your egg white and milk mixture. Lastly, add coconut.

Pour batter evenly into 2 cake pans and bake for 25-30 minutes. Let cool completely on a wire rack before frosting.

To make the frosting, Beat the butter and cream cheese together in a mixture with the whisk attachment. Once combined, mix in sugar and heavy cream and whisk for another 4-5 minutes.

Assemble by evenly spreading frosting on 1 layer of cake, topping with the second cake, and then frosting all around. Gather remaining 1-2 cups coconut and press gently into the frosting with you hands. I did the sides first and then used anything that fell off to sprinkle and cover the top!

* Don’t have buttermilk? No problem. I make my own substitute by combining 1 cup of whole milk with 1 Tbsp, mix and let sit out for 10-15 minutes.