On medium heat toast 1 cup of coconut flakes until just golden. Set aside to cool

Set aside a bowl to cool the pastry cream with a fine-mesh sieve/strainer on top

In another bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, egg flour and sugar until smooth. Set aside the mixture

In a saucepan, pour in the milk and vanilla bean paste. Add the salt and mix. Place the mixture on medium-high heat until just under a boil. Be sure to stir the mixture occasionally to ensure the milk solids do not stick to the bottom of the pan

When the milk is warmed, add 1/3 of the hot milk into the egg mixture, whisking constantly to ensure the eggs do not cook. After it is combined, pour the egg-milk mixture back into the remaining ⅔ of the hot milk. Whisk over medium heat until the mixture is as thick as lightly whipped cream. It should just come just barely to a boil – be sure not to let it get beyond this as the cream will curdle. Remove from the heat and immediately pour through the sieve/strainer into the bowl. Do not leave the pastry cream in the pan as it will continue to cook.

Let the cream cool for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. After 10 minutes, mix in the cooled coconut flakes

Cover the bowl of pastry cream with plastic wrap. The plastic should press onto the pastry cream to keep it from developing a skin. After wrapping, place in the refrigerator to chill for about 30 minutes – 1 hour while making the other components

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Sift together the flour, ⅓ cup of the sugar, salt, and baking powder into a medium bowl.

Add in the egg, water, and oil and mix until no lumps remain.

In a second bowl with a hand mixture or in the base of a stand mixer, mix the egg whites with the cream of tartar

With the mixer on low speed, slowly pour in the remaining ¼ cup of sugar. Whip the egg whites and sugar together until a meringue forms.

Fold the batter together with the meringue and pour into an ungreased 9 inch cake pan. Do not line or grease the cake pan or it will fall out when it cools. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. It will be golden brown on top

After baking, invert the cake onto a cooling rack to cool

Prepare the whipped cream by whipping together the whipped cream and sugar until medium peaks form

Take 1 cup of the whipped cream and fold it into the cooled pastry cream. The rest will be used to frost the cake

Cut the cooled cake in 4 even layers. We like to do this by cutting it in half and then each in half again. They will be thin

Place ⅓ of the coconut cream on the first layer and spread into an even layer. Repeat 3 times, ending by placing the last layer on top

Frost the cake with the remaining whipped cream and coat the entire cake in coconut flakes