Community Tavern’s Four-Layer Coconut Cake

s a kid, I’d eat coconut cake around Easter (yes, shaped like a bunny), so I always think of it as a spring treat. In the deep winter, when there’s nothing I want more than a hint of warmth, I turn to Community Tavern’s fresh take. “My grandma wasn’t a great baker, but she made a rad coconut cake that has always stuck with me,” says director of operations Brenna Beato, who owns the restaurant with her husband, Joey. “I did my version in memory of her.” She spreads bright passion fruit curd between each layer of fluffy cake, slathers on coconut Swiss buttercream, and encrusts it with shredded coconut. The concoction sits atop togarashi-infused caramel, aligning it with the pan-Asian influences Joey incorporates into his savory dishes. With a little spice and some tartness to balance the sweetness, this coconut cake is my antidote to the seemingly never-ending winter.