Perfect Party Cake and Coconut-Roasted Pineapple Dacquoise (TWD)

This week's Tuesdays with Dorie (TWD) recipe was chosen by Carol of mix, mix... stir, stir: Perfect Party Cake. I actually made this cake last year as part of one of The Daring Bakers' challenges. The first time I made it, I frosted it with white chocolate whipped cream because I don't particularly care for buttercream frosting. I made it again at the end of last year for my mother-in-law's birthday party and used Dorie's buttercream recipe and loved it. It was not until I tried this buttercream recipe that I realized not all buttercreams are created equal. So if you make this cake, I urge you to try it with the buttercream because it is delicious. You can read more about my experiences with this cake and see more photos of it here. This would be a perfect cake for a Fourth of July celebration, topped with blueberries and raspberries!



I'm sorry Carol, but I did not have time to make this cake again. I barely got the June Daring Bakers' challenge posted at the last minute this weekend, and then had some catching up to do as well. Last week, Andrea of Andrea in the Kitchen chose the Coconut-Roasted Pineapple Dacquoise (pronounced da-kwaz). I did not have a chance to make it due to the passing of my grandmother, but promised I would get to it soon.

I have wanted to make Coconut-Roasted Pineapple Dacquoise from the moment I got the cookbook. There is a lovely picture of it in the book that just jumps out at you. I grew up in southern California, only thirty minutes from the beach. During the summer, we'd always stop at Thrifty's on the way home from the beach for some ice cream. One of my favorite ice cream flavors there was pineapple coconut. So I knew that with roasted pineapple, coconut, and white chocolate ganache, this was going to be one really great dessert.


The recipe was fairly straightforward, though extremely time consuming. First, there's the coconut almond meringue layer made with ground almonds, coconut and egg whites. Though it can be made one day in advance, it takes three hours to fully bake.



The white chocolate ganache is made with white chocolate and heavy cream. You boil the heavy cream, then pour it over the white chocolate, and mix until the chocolate is completely melted. Then the ganache needs to be refrigerated for three hours before it is whipped up for the final dessert.



The roasted pineapple is probably the quickest part of this recipe, though cutting and slicing the pineapple does take some time. Simply quarter your pineapple, slice it into 1/8-inch thick pieces, sprinkle with some confectioners' sugar and place it under the broiler. After a quick 8 minutes in the oven, you've got some delicious, roasted pineapple.


Aside from the three hour bake time required for the meringue and the three hour refrigeration time for the ganache, after the dessert is assembled, it needs to chill in the refrigerator for at least four hours! So needless to say, if you're going to make this, plan ahead.


I had already read about how many people loved this dessert last week so I was excited to take my first bite. It absolutely lived up to all the hype I had heard about it. There is just something so great about pineapple and coconut together. It was a bit sweet, so if you don't like overly sweet desserts I would recommend using slightly sweetened whipped cream between each layer of meringue instead of the ganache.

Thanks Andrea, for a great pick. Though a bit late, I am so glad that I finally got to make this. If you would like the recipe, you can find it here. If you visit the TWD Blogroll, you'll see how much everyone else enjoyed this tropical treat!

* Recipes notes:
- While the recipe calls for a 4.25 pound pineapple, I bought a 2 pound pineapple and had just enough.
- I ended up with quite a bit of leftover white chocolate ganache (about 3 cups), so next time I make this I will make 1/2 of the ganache recipe.
- While some complained the ganache was too sweet and recommended using regular whipped cream in between each layer instead, I found the ganache to be just fine. I actually thought the pineapple was a bit too sweet and would probably omit the dusting of confectioners' sugar next time - I'm sure the natural sugars in the pineapple would be sufficient.
- Don't want such a big dessert? Or prefer something easier to serve at a get together? Consider making cute little individual servings like Vibi did here.
- For more tips, click here.