Sno-Ball Cake

For the chocolate cake:
Preheat oven to 350 F. Line two 9-inch round cake pans with non-stick spray and line the bottoms with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Whisk in eggs, milk, vegetable oil, vanilla and simmering water. The batter will be very thin but don’t worry.

Divide batter evenly into the two cake pans. Place pans on the middle rack of the oven and bake for 15 minutes. Then rotate the pans and bake an additional 10-15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.

Remove cakes from the oven and let them rest in the pans on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Then turn them out onto a wire rack to finish cooling.

For the marshmallow filling:
In a heat safe small bowl, sprinkle gelatin over the cold water and allow the mixture to sit for five minutes so the gelatin activates and “blooms”. Then microwave it for 30 seconds until the gelatin dissolves.

In a large bowl, mix together gelatin mixture, butter, vanilla and salt. Let the mixture rest until just warm. Whisk in the Marshmallow Fluff until the mixture is smooth. Place it in the fridge to set for about 30 minutes.

To assemble:
Cut one of the two rounds of cake into 8 even wedges. Line a medium-sized round mixing bowl with plastic wrap, allowing the edges of the plastic to meet in the middle. Put the wedges of the cake into the bowl. Press the edges all together so the cake is secure in the bowl. Fill with 1 to 1 ¼ cups of marshmallow mixture. Place the other round of cake on top and press down to secure the cakes together. Cover with a sheet of plastic and place in the fridge for one hour to set.

Invert the set cake onto a cake plate or dish and remove the bowl and plastic wrap. Cover cake with the remaining marshmallow frosting. Sprinkle with coconut, and gently press coconut into the marshmallow to ensure it sticks.

Slice immediately and serve or lightly cover and chill until ready.

Cupcakes adapted from Manic Mother’s Chocolate Cupcakes; filling recipe adapted from Cook’s Country Magazine.