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Samoa Layer Cake

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If you like the popular cookies, you will LOVE this Samoa Layer Cake!! Buttery cake layers filled with toasted coconut and caramel and frosted with dark chocolate buttercream — what’s not to love?

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Rate this recipe 4.4/5 (19 Votes)
Samoa Layer Cake 1 Picture

Ingredients

  • CAKE:
  • 2 3/4 cups cake flour
  • 2 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) salted butter, slightly softened
  • 1 3/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 4 large eggs, room temperature (I often place them in a bowl of warm tap water if I forget to get them out)
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla
  • 1 1/2 cups whole milk
  • FILLING:
  • 3 cups toasted coconut, divided
  • 2 bags (11 ounce) caramel bits (or 2 bags wrapped caramels, 11 ounces each)
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • FROSTING:
  • 1 stick salted butter, slightly softened
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
  • 1/4 cup dark cocoa powder (I used Hershey Special Dark)
  • 3 tablespoons warm water

Details

Servings 12
Adapted from confessionsofacookbookqueen.com

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit.

Spray two 8 or 9 inch pans with nonstick spray and line the bottom with parchment paper. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together flour and baking powder and set aside.

In the bowl of your mixer, beat butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, stopping to scrape the sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in the vanilla.

Reduce mixer speed to low and mix in about a third of the flour mixture. Add half the milk. Repeat process with half the flour and remaining milk, ending with remaining flour mixture. Give the batter a good stir with a rubber spatula to be sure it's all combined, then spread batter evenly in prepared pans.

Bake for about 25 minutes or until tops spring back when lightly touched in the center. Remove pans to cooling rack for 10 minutes, then loosen carefully with a small sharp knife and flip onto racks to cool completely.

Once cakes are cooled completely, wrap and chill for several hours or overnight for ease in handling.

Level cakes carefully with a serrated knife. Split one cake horizontally so you'll have 3 layers.

PREPARE FILLING:

In a large bowl, combine caramel and cream and microwave for 3-4 minutes, stopping every 30 seconds to stir until smooth. Fold in 2 1/2 cups of toasted coconut, reserving 1/2 cup. Spread half of filling on one cake layer (if the caramel is too runny to spread neatly on cake, let it cool for just a bit to thicken), top with another cake, and spread next layer with more filling. Top with last layer and place cake in the refrigerator for about 10 minutes to allow caramel to firm up so it doesn't ooze out when you frost with chocolate frosting.

While cake is chilling, prepare frosting: In the bowl of your mixer, beat butter and vanilla on medium speed until smooth and combined. With the mixer on low, slowly add powdered sugar and cocoa powder, beating until just combined. Add water and increase speed to medium high. Beat for about a minute, until smooth, light and fluffy. If frosting is too thick, add more water a teaspoon at a time until desired consistency is reached.

Frost cake and sprinkle top with remaining toasted coconut.

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