Cake
INGREDIENTS
1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks)
1 and 3/4 cups granulated sugar
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup canned or bottled, sweetened cream of coconut (such as you'd use for pina coladas - can be found near cocktail mixers in the alcohol section of the store ... Coco Lopez or Coco Real both work well)
1 cup buttermilk (or milk with 1 teaspoon cider vinegar added)
2 and 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 10x15 jelly roll tin with cooking spray or line bottom of pan with parchment paper.
Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt and set aside.
In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy with an electric mixer. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each. Stir in vanilla and coconut cream.
On slow speed, beat in sifted dries alternately with buttermilk, beginning and ending with dries.
Pour batter into prepared 10x15 jelly roll tin.
Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 25 minutes, or until cake tester comes out clean. Cool cake, then wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to frost.
Cream Cheese Frosting
INGREDIENTS
1 8-ounce package cream cheese at room temp
1/2 stick (4 tablespoons) butter, softened to room temp
1/4 cup sweetened cream of coconut
1/4 cup milk (may not need all of this)
4 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
DIRECTIONS
In a large bowl, beat butter and cream cheese together with electric mixer until well blended. Add cream of coconut and vanilla. Add powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, and beat until well mixed and fluffy. Add milk as needed to obtain good spreading consistency. If you go overboard on the milk, just add a little more powdered sugar! Spread over cooled cake and allow to sit for 5-10 minutes before decorating with berries.
Garnish
2 pints raspberries
1 pint blueberries
Rinse berries and thoroughly dry on paper towels.
Once frosting on cake is set, arrange blueberries in the upper left corner of the cake to make the stars. Make 7 rows of raspberries for the stripes, with the frosting in between the rows for the white stripes.
Refrigerate until ready to serve.
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