Adorned with chocolate candy eggs, shredded coconut, and chocolate chips to represent tiny bunny toes, this delightful recipe is truly worth the effort. Not only is it scrumptious and irresistibly adorable, but it also serves as a fantastic dessert option following a festive Easter feast.
Yield: 10-12 servings
Nonstick cooking spray
2 eggs, plus 4 egg whites, brought to room temperature
3/4 cup cream of coconut
1/2 cup drained crushed pineapple
2 teaspoons coconut extract
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
Buttercream Frosting:
3 cups powdered sugar
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
3 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon coconut extract
4 thin pretzel sticks
1 (10-ounce) bag of sweetened shredded coconut
8 drops of green food coloring
2 large round chocolate candy melts
6 chocolate chips
Mini candy-coated chocolate eggs, for decoration
Preheat the oven to 325°F.
Prepare a muffin pan with four paper liners. Lightly coat an oven-safe glass bowl with nonstick cooking spray.
In a sizeable mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, egg whites, cream of coconut, pineapple, coconut extract, and vanilla extract until well combined.
Using a food processor, pulse together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Incorporate 6 tablespoons of butter and pulse until the mixture is blended. Add the remaining butter and pulse until it resembles a coarse meal.
Transfer the coarse flour mixture into a large bowl. Mix in half of the egg mixture and beat for 1-2 minutes. Combine with the remaining egg mixture and beat until fully blended.
Pour the batter into the muffin cups, filling each about two-thirds full, and bake for 18-20 minutes, or until fully cooked. Allow them to cool completely.
Pour any remaining batter into the prepared glass bowl and bake for 1 hour and 40 minutes, or until set. Let cool entirely.
To prepare the buttercream frosting, beat together the powdered sugar and softened butter until fluffy. Mix in the milk, vanilla extract, and coconut extract until creamy.
To remove the cake from the bowl, flip it upside down on a cake stand. If necessary, level the cake by trimming the top. Frost the entire cake.
Peel the wrappers off the cupcakes. Use two pretzel sticks, inserting them into the base of each cupcake and anchoring them to the bottom rim of the bowl cake to create the appearance of bunny feet. Frost these feet.
Take a third cupcake and slice off the top. Halve this muffin top. Secure one half at the base of the full cupcake using a pretzel stick to create toes, and repeat for the second half for the other foot. Frost these toes.
Attach the remaining cupcake to the back of the cake with an additional pretzel stick to form the tail. Frost the tail as well.
Coat the cake with 1 1/2 cups of shredded coconut. Gently press the chocolate candy melts onto the bottoms of the bunny feet to simulate foot pads, and use chocolate chips for the toe pads.
Place the leftover coconut in a plastic bag with the green food coloring. Shake the bag until the coconut is evenly colored. Spread it around the base of the cake to represent grass, and adorn it with chocolate eggs.
Notes: Use a spoon to fill the measuring cup with flour and level off the top. Directly scooping from the bag can lead to packed flour, resulting in dry baked goods. If the frosting is too thick, add a tablespoon of milk at a time until the desired consistency is achieved.
Explore more inventive and delicious holiday recipes at Culinary.net.
