Neo’s coconut cake

ble Neo’s Co RECIPES conut Cake By Jan Kohler

My Greek friend Neo is an incredible cook. He has a passion for food and he cooks with the same amount of pleasure as he eats! He takes great delight in inviting friends to explore new restaurants and he shares his gastronomic talents by cooking for us and imparting his knowledge, teaching us a thing or two along the way.

This cake has been made in Cypress by Neo's family for many generations and he was kind enough to share the recipe with us. My sister and I love the simplicity of this cake and we make it for almost any occasion. You could literally put everything into the mixer all at once if you wanted to, and it wouldn't flop. The syrup saves you the hassle of icing and makes it moist and delicious.

This is best made in a cake mixer if you have one, but you can just as easily do it by hand.

WHAT YOU NEED

6 large eggs 1 cup of cooking oil 1 cup of sugar, for the sponge 1 teaspoon vanilla essence 1½ cups of flour 2 cups of desiccated coconut 2 teaspoons of baking powder 1⅓ cup of milk

WHAT YOU NEED TO DO

Pre-heat your oven to 180C and select your cake tin, to be lined and greased. My suggestion is that you choose a cake tin, like a Bundt tin or an Angel Food cake tin, to give the cake a beautiful form. This is not a cake that you're going to ice, so you can't cover it's blemishes and bumps with icing. So the naked, baked form counts.

Beat the eggs and sugar until thick and pale yellow, then add the oil. Mix in all the remaining ingredients, adding the coconut in last. Bake for approximately one hour or until golden brown and the skewer comes out clean.

To make the syrup, heat the sugar and water together in a saucepan and mix until the sugar is dissolved. Allow the syrup to cool, and then pour it over the warm cake, leaving it until the syrup is absorbed. When the cake has cooled completely, turn it out onto a cake plate and sprinkle a little desiccated coconut over the cake as a finishing touch.

FOR THE SYRUP 1 cup of sugar 2 cups of water