Strawberry Coconut Cake Squares a.k.a Strawberry Lamingtons

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Strawberry Coconut Cake Squares a.k.a Strawberry Lamingtons

After the success of our Chocolate Lamingtons last week, many local fans mentioned this variation of the poplar treat from back in the 70's. Almost every birthday party I attended as a kid would have had some version of this square served among the other treats.

A bit of nostalgia is always welcome at the Holidays, so why not add these to your baking list and have them in the freezer for when you need to pull a few out fast; they freeze well and defrost quickly too. Try them in Raspberry too if you prefer.

Strawberry Coconut Cake Squares a.k.a Strawberry Lamingtons

Recipe by Barry C. Parsons

Strawberry Coconut Cake Squares a.k.a Strawberry Lamingtons - moist cubes of homemade vanilla cake get soaked in a combination of strawberry jello and jam and then rolled in coconut. An easy, pretty and very tasty treat that kids will love.

Prep time: Approximately 20 minutes
Cook time: 35 minutes
Total time: Several hours including cooling and freezing time for the cake.
Yield: 24 dessert squares

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cups sifted all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups sifted cake flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 2/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1/3 cup vegetable shortening at room temperature
• 3 tablespoons good quality vanilla extract
• 3 large eggs
• 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
• Aproximately 4 cups dried shreded coconut
• FOR THE STRAWBERRY SYRUP
• 2 small packages Strawberry Jello
• 1 1/2 cups water (3/4 cup boiling plus 3/4 cup cold)
• 1 cup strawberry jam

Directions

1. Grease a 9x13 inch baking pan and line with parchment paper.
2. Sift together both flours, baking soda. baking powder, salt and sugar, Set aside.
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer beat together the vegetable oil, shortening and vanilla. Beat well at high speed with whisk attachment until light and fluffy
4. Beat the eggs in one at a time.
5. Fold in the dry ingredients alternately with the buttermilk.
6. I always add dry ingredients in three divisions and liquid ingredients in 2 divisions. It is very important to begin and end the additions with the dry ingredients. Do not over mix the batter. As soon as it has no lumps in the batter, pour into the prepared 9x13 inch pan.
7. Bake at 325 degrees F for 30-35 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool completely in the pan.
8. Wrap the pan in plastic wrap and place in the freezer until the cake is completely frozen.
9. When frozen, lift the cake out of the pan using the parchment paper as an aid and cut it into 24 squares. Return to the freezer until ready to dip in the strawberry syrup and coconut.
10. TO PREPARE THE STRAWBERRY SYRUP dissolve the 2 packages of Jello in the boiling water.
11. Whisk in the jam and cold water. Chill this to the point that it thickens slightly but not beginning to set.
12. Working quickly, dip the frozen cake cubes into the syrup one at a time. Let them soak for a few seconds.
13. Quickly roll the soaked cake into the coconut and place on a parchment lined baking sheet to dry.
14. Store in airtight plastic containers in the fridge. If you are freezing the dessert squares put them back into the freezer right away. 

Chocolate Coconut Cake Squares a.k.a. Lamingtons!

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Chocolate Coconut Cake Squares a.k.a. Lamingtons!

This is a recipe that I have not made in a very, very long time. It was almost a lost recipe to me and when I saw it in my sister's Facebook timeline from a blog called Sweet Little Bluebird, the memories came flooding back. My sister Brenda tells me that our Nan Morgan made them which makes sense since she loved anything coconut but I remember them as a very common treat even at kid birthday parties. I went digging through some local old church cookbooks and sure enough, there was the recipe. The original recipe calls for a cake mix but I haven't used one of those in decades; the vanilla scratch cake recipe included here was perfect to use with these dessert squares.

Baby and wedding showers seemed to be more common back in those days and inevitably in rural Newfoundland where I grew up, there was far more food than the ladies present could ever consume. Every lady was certain to leave with the same Tupperware container she brought along but return with it filled with a selection of the treats that the other women had contributed. Besides the ham and cheese and egg salad sandwiches that were always mainstays, as well as a great selection of sweet treats, I remember these little cake squares as being a very common contribution to the celebrations too.

As small children we must have eaten hundreds of these but somehow the popularity of this dessert faded over the years. I have no idea why; they are so moist, soft, chocolatey and scrumptiously coconut covered. My kids had never had them until I made them this past weekend and quickly went through several of them in the first two days. I've frozen the rest of the batch into to enjoy later but I suspect the kids will sneak a few from the basement freezer before long. I'll have to guard them closely.

UPDATE: The first day I posted this recipe I heard from literally  dozens of Australians informing me that these were an Aussie favorite called Lamingtons, reportedly named for Lord Lamington, Governor of Queensland at the turn of the 20th century. How this recipe became popular in Newfoundland in the 1960's or possibly earlier is a mystery to me but I received so many responses from Australia, New Zealand and even as far east as Hong Kong, I've updated the recipe title to reflect its heritage.

Chocolate Coconut Cake Squares a.k.a. Lamingtons!

Recipe by Barry C. Parsons

Chocolate Coconut Cake Squares a.k.a. Lamingtons! - a decades old, nostalgic recipe that deserves a resurgence in popularity. Easy, moist, soft vanilla cake, dipped in chocolate syrup and rolled in dried coconut.

Prep time: Approximately 20 minutes
Cook time: 35 minutes
Total time: Several hours including cooling and freezing time for the cake.
Yield: 24 dessert squares

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cups sifted all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups sifted cake flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 2/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1/3 cup vegetable shortening at room temperature
• 3 tablespoons good quality vanilla extract
• 3 large eggs
• 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
• Aproximately 4 cups dried shreded coconut
• FOR THE CHOCOLATE SYRUP
• 1 cup cocoa
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cups white sugar

Directions

1. Grease a 9x13 inch baking pan and line with parchment paper.
2. Sift together both flours, baking soda. baking powder, salt and sugar, Set aside.
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer beat together the vegetable oil, shortening and vanilla. Beat well at high speed with whisk attachment until light and fluffy
4. Beat the eggs in one at a time.
5. Fold in the dry ingredients alternately with the buttermilk.
6. I always add dry ingredients in three divisions and liquid ingredients in 2 divisions. It is very important to begin and end the additions with the dry ingredients. Do not over mix the batter. As soon as it has no lumps in the batter, pour into the prepared 9x13 inch pan.
7. Bake at 325 degrees F for 30-35 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool completely in the pan.
8. Wrap the pan in plastic wrap and place in the freezer until the cake is completely frozen.
9. When frozen, lift the cake out of the pan using the parchment paper as an aid and cut it into 24 squares. Return to the freezer until ready to dip in the chocolate syrup and coconut.
10. TO PREPARE THE CHOCOLATE SYRUP whisk together the sugar and cocoa. This helps to remove any small lumps from the cocoa.
11. Add the vanilla and water.
12. Bring to a slow rolling boil and cook for 5-6 minutes. The syrup should thicken slightly but will still be quite thin.
13. Cool completely to room temperature.
14. Working quickly, dip the frozen cake cubes into the syrup. You don't want to soak too much syrup into the cake.
15. Quickly roll the soaked cake into the coconut and place on a parchment lined baking sheet to dry.
16. Store in airtight plastic containers. If you are freezing the dessert squares put them back into the freezer right away. 

Raspberry Swirl Cheesecake Shortcake

We were celebrating the birthday of a friend recently and I wanted to include two favorite things in an idea for a new cake recipe; raspberries and cheesecake. I've made cakes with a cheesecake filling before but this time I wanted to keep it a little simpler and decided on a shortcake version of the same idea with an uncomplicated finish of vanilla whipped cream. The result was very delicious indeed and a big hit at the birthday celebration.

Vanilla Cake Base

Sift together and set aside:

2 1/2 cups cake flour
3 tsp baking powder

In the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment in place, whisk together on high speed until foamy and slightly stiffened.

3 eggs
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract

Mix together in a measuring cup with a spout:

1/4 cup melted butter
1/4 cup vegetable oil

Slowly add the oil and butter mixture to the egg mixture in a slow stream as the mixer continues to whisk.

Mix together

1/2 cup whipping cream

1/2 cup milk

2 tbsp lemon juice

Add slowly to the mixing bowl continuing to mix but at a reduced speed.

Fold in the dry ingredients by hand with a rubber spatula until smooth.

Pour into a 10 inch pan and bake for 30 – 40 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Rest the cake in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Raspberry Swirl Cheesecake Layer

1 cup raspberries
1/4 cup sugar
4 tbsp water

Bring to a gentle boil and thicken with a slurry made by mixing together

1 rounded tablespoon corn starch
2-3 tbsp water

Boil only for an additional half minute or so, stirring constantly until the mixture completely thickens. Set aside to cool.

Beat together until smooth:

1 ½ pounds cream cheese
1 cup sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract

Add, one at a time:

3 eggs

Beat well after each added egg. Blend in

½ cup whipping cream

Stir in

½ cup raspberry puree (I press raspberries through a sieve to remove the seeds)

Pour into a 10 inch ungreased springform pan that has the bottom lined with parchment paper.

Drop tablespoonfuls of the raspberry compote, evenly spaced apart, onto the cheesecake batter. Using the handle of a wooden spoon, swirl the raspberry compote through the cheesecake batter. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes at 300 degrees F until the center sets. Cool to room temperature and then for a couple of hours in the fridge until completely cool, leaving it in the springform pan while it cools.

To construct the cake, place the cooled vanilla cake on top of the cheesecake in the springform pan. Invert the cake and cheesecake layers onto the serving plate, remove the springform pan and peel off the parchment paper, which is now on top of the cake. Frost the entire cake with Vanilla Whipped Cream and garnish with additional raspberries before serving.

Vanilla Whipped Cream

2 cups whipping cream
6 tbsp icing sugar (powdered sugar)
2tsp vanilla extract

Beat together until firm peaks form.