Coconut Italian Crème Cupcakes

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Whether you’re serving an elegant evening meal for the Easter holiday or a more casual brunch, the arrival of spring begs for desserts with a seasonal flair.

“I love that Easter and spring arrive together because it means that I can start baking with fresh fruit,” says Gina Garcia, of Cake.

Garcia’s new bakery, an expansion to Chaps in the Latah Creek Shopping Center on South Cheney Spokane Road, is scheduled to open soon.

She shared a trifle recipe that comes together quickly with layers of lemon pound cake and lemon custard with fresh berries.

“My family is Italian and we typically celebrate Easter with a fruit trifle made with zabaglione, a frothy custard flavored with marsala,” Garcia says. “I have adapted this dessert for folks who may not like the sharp flavor of Marsala.

“In the recipe, I have made a lemon custard which is just tart enough to contrast nicely with the sweet berries.”

For those who are up for more of a challenge, Europa pastry chef Christie Sutton shared a recipe for a classic French dessert called pithiviers (pronounced pee-tee-vyay).

“I was just trying to come up with something a little different,” she says. “The light and flaky pastry just makes me think of Easter.”

The layers of puff pastry surround a rich almond filling and raspberry preserves. Sutton tops the dessert with fresh fruit and powdered sugar and serves it slightly warm or at room temperature.

Davenport Hotel executive chef Bryan Franz shared a recipe for individual mascarpone cheesecakes topped with huckleberry compote. (Substitute blueberries if your freezer stash of the wild berries is gone.)

He tops the cheesecakes with the compote and mint leaves for garnish, along with a pistachio tuile – a crunchy French cookie.

Decorated sugar cookies are a popular item for Easter at Carolyn’s Cake, Candy and Cookie Supplies, says new owner Michele Clemons.

Clemons purchased the store, 1705 N. Hamilton St., from original owner Carolyn Largent last April. She shared the recipe instructors give to students in classes.

She recommends decorating the cookies with candy melts rather than royal icing. The candy comes in an array of colors that can be melted and poured into squeeze bottles for easy decorating.

The store offers decorating classes for cookie bouquets, as well as cake decorating instruction. A new series of classes will be announced soon.

I couldn’t resist throwing in a few more recipes for good measure. White chocolate dipped strawberries with citrus sugar are finished quickly and have a nice seasonal flavor.

Coconut cupcakes drew raves all around when a friend made them recently. (They’re the grown-up version of the coconut-topped bunny cake my grandmother sometimes made for the holiday.)

And I’m using up the end of last year’s rhubarb in the Rhubarb Custard Bars from Cooking Light’s newest cookbook, to make room in the freezer for this year’s crop.

Lorie Hutson

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  • 24

Ingredients

  • For the cupcakes:
  • 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 cup butter
  • 1 3/4 cups sugar
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 teaspoon coconut extract
  • 1 teaspoon almond extract
  • 3/4 cup buttermilk
  • 2 cups coconut
  • 1 cup chopped pecans
  • For the frosting:
  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 4 cups powdered sugar
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 teaspoon coconut extract
  • 1 1/2 cups coconut

Preparation

Step 1

Line 24 cupcake tins with paper liners.

Combine flour, baking powder and soda. Set aside.

Beat butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, vanilla and extracts, beating until combined. Add flour mixture and buttermilk, alternately, beating on low just until combined. Fold in coconut and chopped pecans.

Pour batter into prepared tins. Bake in a 350 F oven for 15 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool thoroughly.

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