Coconut Easter Bunny Cake
Serve up the cutest coconut bunny cake for Easter! It’s a nostalgic favorite made from a single yellow 9-inch cake layer and decorated with flaked coconut. Growing up I remember my mom making a version of this coconut cake around Easter, and she’d use a pink jellybean for a rabbit nose. I thought the whole thing was so clever, and it was truly a special holiday with a bunny cake on our table. I just had to make one this year. I’ve been missing my family and our big holiday meals, and the tradition of making this cake makes me feel closer to them. It’s fashioned from a single yellow cake layer, and with some easy carving it is transformed into a cute, furry-looking bunny.This cut-out cake design has been around for decades. I’ve seen so many home-baked versions over the years from friends and neighbors. I didn’t deviate much from the original design. I did opt for edible candy ears instead of the usual construction paper ears, but you should use whatever best suits your time constraints. The candy ears do take a little more effort. The cake layer is so delicious with a big dose of sour cream added to the batter. Slice it in half, frost with yummy coconut buttercream, and stick it together so that it looks like a big taco. Cut a notch out of the top of the cake and be sure to save the scraps. It looks fairly bunny body-shaped at this point. Stick a couple of scrap pieces on top of the head area with frosting and trim it to a roundish shape. The video at the end of this blog post will be helpful to follow for the carving technique – definitely check it out!Another smaller scrap piece will make the tail on the opposite end of the head. Cover the entire thing with frosting. You don’t have to be too precious with this step, just get it all covered. Shredded coconut will cover up most imperfections.As I mentioned earlier, mom always made the bunny ears using construction paper. It’s easiest, really. But I decided to make candy ears. I cut out two rabbit ear shapes out of heavy card stock and coated them with a thick layer of candy. While they’re still wet, lift one end using a toothpick and transfer them to a parchment-lined baking sheet. After a chill in the freezer peel the card stock from the backs of the candy. Again – the video will be helpful here. Melted pink candy and sanding sugar will give the bunny’s ears more detail. I also brushed the white areas with corn syrup and added coconut for a fuzzy appearance. A little buttercream dotted on the back of a real satin bow holds it in place and makes the cake look cuddly like a toy. (Aw!)Two black Sixlets eyes and a heart-shaped candy nose gives this bunny a cute face. If you don’t have those candies on hand then black and pink jellybeans will work.How could I NOT make some green coconut ‘grass’? It’s so classic with this cake. I layered it with grassy green sprinkles and a few gorgeous Sconza Jordan almonds. I could go on and on about how perfect this candy is. Each candy almond is so polished and unblemished. They look like little bird eggs! This is such a good recipe for a single cake layer. It’s tender and the sour cream helps it retain its softness. It is the perfect blank canvas for nearly any small baking project, but especially this one. Have a sweet Easter!