Instructions

Coconut Cake Layers:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two 8 inch pans, and two 7 inch pans with parchment rounds, and grease with a light spray of non-stick cooking spray.
2. Mix together all dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt) in a stand mixer with a paddle with a few gentle pulses.
3. Mix chunks of room-temperature butter slowly into the dry mix, on a low speed. Continue to mix until no large chunks of butter remain, and the mixture becomes crumbly.
4. Pour in egg whites, and mix on low until just incorporated. Mix in the buttermilk in two installments, on a low speed.
5. Add in coconut extract and oil, and mix at a low speed until fully incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula, then beat on low speed for about 15 seconds. 
6. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared cake pans.
7. Bake for 32-35 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow the pans to cool for 10 minutes, then run an offset spatula around perimeter of the pan to separate the cake from the pan.
8. Place cake layers into the freezer for 45 minutes, to accelerate the cooling process. Once the layers are fully cooled, carefully flip the pans and remove the layers from the pans.
9. Use a serrated knife to level the tops of the layers.

Coconut Buttercream Frosting:

1. While the cake layers bake and cool, make the vanilla buttercream frosting.
2. Beat the butter on a medium speed for 30 seconds with a paddle attachment, until smooth. Slowly add in the powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time. Alternate with small splashes of cream.
3. Once fully mixed, add in the coconut extract and salt, and beat on low until the ingredients are fully incorporated, and the desired consistency is reached. 
4. If the frosting is too thick, add in additional cream (1 teaspoon at a time). If the frosting is too thin, add in more powdered sugar (quarter of a cup at a time).
5. To create the colorful the buttercream used to fill the cake, place 3/4 cup of frosting into three separate bowls. Color them pink, yellow, and purple with a couple drops of gel food coloring.
6. Leave the rest of the buttercream white, and place 2 cups of frosting into a large piping bag fitted with a wilton 47 frosting tip.

To Assemble This Peeps Cake:

1. Stack and frost the cake layers on a greaseproof cake board, using a dab of frosting to help stick the first cake layer to the board.
2. Place one of the 8 inch cake layers on the board, and spread a thick layer of purple buttercream.
3. Repeat with the second cake layer, adding a layer of pink buttercream.
4. Top this with one of the seven inch cake layers with the yellow buttercream.
5. Place the remaining seven inch cake layer on top, and then use a serrated knife to trim the cake into a tapered shape.
6. Apply a thin coat of frosting around the the cake, to fully cover the cake layers. Smooth using a bench scraper, then chill the cake in the fridge (10 minutes) or freezer (5 minutes) until the frosting is firm to the touch.
7. Pipe a basket weave pattern around the cake using a Wilton 47 piping tip.
8. Place a cake board on top of the cake, and flip over, so that the smaller part of the cake is now the base of the cake.
9. Pipe a line around the top edge of the cake to look like the edge of the basket, and fill top of the cake with your favorite Easter candies, some colored shredded coconut, and a chocolate rabbit.
10. If you have any remaining colored buttercream, you pipe small buttercream flowers and place them on top of the cake as well.
11. The optional finishing touch is to wrap a thin cord of white fondant around a metal wire. Leave at least 1.5 inches of wire on each end, to give the handle some stability once pressed into the cake.
12. Dip the exposed ends of the wire into white chocolate, to prevent the wire from coming in direct contact with the cake.
13. Press the handle into place, and your Easter basket cake is complete!!