Preheat your oven to 180°C (350°F). While it heats, grease a 9x13 inch baking dish or similar size cake pan and line it with parchment paper for easy removal. This gives you time to prepare your ingredients while the oven reaches temperature.

Pat the sliced apricots dry with a clean kitchen towel—this prevents excess moisture from making the cake soggy. While you're doing this, measure out the flour and salt into a small bowl and set aside. I like to whisk the salt into the flour at this stage to ensure it's evenly distributed throughout the cake.

In a large mixing bowl, beat the room-temperature butter and sugar together for 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy. This creates air pockets that help the cake rise and gives it a tender crumb. Add the vanilla extract and beat for another 30 seconds to combine.

Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition until fully incorporated—this prevents the batter from looking curdled. After both eggs are in, gently fold in the dry ingredient mixture from Step 2 until just combined. Then fold in the apricot yogurt until no streaks of white remain. I find that folding by hand with a spatula rather than using an electric mixer keeps the batter tender and prevents overdeveloping the gluten.

Spread half of the batter from Step 4 evenly into the prepared pan. Arrange the dried apricot wedges from Step 2 in a single layer over the batter, then carefully spread the remaining batter over the top. Sprinkle the slivered almonds and shredded coconut evenly across the surface for texture and flavor.

Bake for 40-50 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs. The cake should be golden brown on top. Let it cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then turn it out onto a wire cooling rack to cool completely. This prevents the bottom from steaming and becoming soggy.

Once cooled, slice the cake and serve with the remaining apricot yogurt on the side or dolloped on top for extra creaminess and tang.