Coconut Cake

I got this from the December Family Circle magazine. It was on the front cover and looked so wintery with the white frosting and coconut! It is a delicious, dense, moist cake. I was a little nervous about the strawberry in the middle, but it is great!

Cake:
3 c cake flour (not self-rising)
2 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
1 c (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 c sugar
3 eggs
1/2 t vanilla extract
1/2 t coconut extract
1 can (13.5 oz) coconut milk
1 c sweetened flake coconut, finely chopped

Frosting and Filling:
1 pkg (8 oz) reduced-fat cream cheese, softened
4 T unsalted butter, softened
1 t vanilla extract
1 box (16 oz) confectioners' sugar
1/2 c strawberry preserve
1 1/2 c sweetened flake coconut

1. Heat oven to 350. Coat two 8-inch round cake pan with nonstick spray. Line bottoms of pans with waxed paper, and spray paper.

2. Cake: In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

3. In another large bowl, beat butter and sugar on medium speed til light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla and coconut extracts; beat until combined.

4. On low speed, beat in flour mixture in three addition, alternating with coconut milk. Beat well after each addition. Fold in chopped coconut. Divide batter equally between prepared pans.

5. Bake at 350 for 40 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool in pan on wire rack for 15 minutes. Remove cake layer from pans and cool completely.

6. Frosting: In large, bowl, beat cream cheese and butter until smooth. Beat in vanilla. On low speed, beat in confectioners' sugar until smooth.

7. Trim cake layers level if crowned. Place one cake layer on a plate. Spread top with preserves. Add remaining layer. Secure with skewers. Spread top and sides of cake with frosting. Remove skewers. Gently press shredded coconut onto sides of cake. Refrigerate 1 hour before slicing.

(Note from Nikki: I used regular flour and sifted it and used about 1/4 c less. I used homemade jam for the preserves. And lastly, why do all of my recipes contain 3 or more sticks of butter???!!!)