Crunk for the Holidays: A Crunk Christmas Cake!

I'm back with my weekly Cookin' Crunk pimpin' session. With the holiday season well underway, I figure it's a good time to push my Southern vegan cookbook for anyone who doesn't have it yet or for anyone looking for a crunk-ass holiday gift. So until Christmas, I'll do one Cookin' Crunk-themed post per week. And should you feel the impulse to buy a copy, you can get it on Amazon. Or you can score a signed copy by clicking on the PayPal link on the right side of this page.

Last week, I held a Cookin' Crunk giveaway! And the lucky winner was Amber Sproul! Congrats Amber!

Now let's talk Christmas/Solstice/Hanukkah/Kwanzaa/Festivus/Whatever You Celebrate. This is the time for dessert, y'all. The Universe gave us December so that we could over-eat and make up for it in January, right?

Well, my very favorite Christmas cake (I celebrate Xmas and Solstice!) looks like a bed of coconut snow atop a moist sugar mountain. This is my Granny's Coconut Icebox Cake, and the recipe is in Cookin' Crunk. When I make it during the holidays, I love to decorate it with fun vintage cake toppers!

In case you don't have the book and need the recipe for your next holiday party, here ya go!

Coconut Icebox Cake
Yields one two-layer cake (about 16 servings)
Believe it or not, this coconut-covered yellow cake tastes better and becomes moister after a night of refrigeration. Of course, you don’t have to wait to dig in, but if you can tame your coconut cravings for a few hours, it’s certainly worth the wait.

Cake
Non-stick cooking spray
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup soy margarine
1/2 cup plain soy yogurt
1 cup soymilk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Frosting
1 12-ounce container vegan sour cream
3/4 cup sugar
3 cups unsweetened, shredded coconut


Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray two 9-inch round cake pans with non-stick cooking spray.

Stir together the flour, baking powder, salt, and turmeric in a large mixing bowl. Set aside. Beat together the sugar and the margarine using a stand mixer or a handheld mixer. Add the yogurt, soymilk, and vanilla and continue to beat until combined.

Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture in two alternating batches, beating each time until just combined. Do not overmix. A few little lumps are okay.

Spread the half the batter into one cake pan and the other half into the other cake pan. Place into the oven and bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Allow the cake pans to cool for about 15 minutes. Then carefully turn each pan upside down on top of a wire cooling rack. Gently the pat the bottom of the pan to loosen the cake. If necessary, you may need to run a butter knife around the edges of the cake to loosen the sides from the pan. Once the cakes are removed, allow them to cool completely on the wire racks.

To make the frosting, stir together vegan sour cream, sugar, and coconut in a medium mixing bowl.

When the cakes have cooled, place one cake right-side-up on a serving plate. If the top is rounded, you may need to scrape part of the cake off with a knife to make a flat surface. Spread about 1/4th of the frosting on the top of that cake.

Place the other cake right-side-up on top of the bottom layer. Spread the rest of the frosting on top of the cake and around the sides. Refrigerate until ready to serve.