A brief tale that proves that is the very best coconut cake. It’s so easiest, it’s almost miraculous. (No longer that I see the face of Jesus within the frosting, however rattling close to as sudden.)
The One has been a lifelong coconut hater. Every time I recommend whipping up a batch of coconut blondies, a coconut cream pie, or some coconut pops, he rolls his eyes and says one phrase. “Chocolate.”
All this month, our pal Nora has been visiting us from Uruguay. She is, as she places it, “cuckoo for coconut cake.” Because of this, I’ve made this attractiveness 3 times.
The primary time, The One nibbled just a little on his slice after which reached for the blueberry slab pie.
The second one time, he muttered, “No longer too dangerous,” and had a couple of extra mouth fulls. The 0.33 time, he demanded I divvy the cake into thirds so he may just stake his declare. Now he needs it in legislation summer season rotation.
I drew inspiration from the Magnolia Bakery’s coconut cake recipe. Up to I like their cake, I sought after extra coconut taste and a moister texture, and I didn’t wish to mess around with two kinds of flour (self-rising and all-purpose). I sought after what the identify recommend: an previous style coconut cake.
After trying out and tweaking and retesting, I settled on coconut milk and coconut cream for sweetness and moisture. I added coconut to the batter, and actual coconut extract gave it that additional punch of taste. I settled on simply simple ole all-purpose flour.
Dare I say it restored my religion in, um, the ability of dessert?
Why Our Testers Liked This
Tester Ayanna Fews struggled to seek out the fitting phrases to explain how a lot she and her goddaughter adored this antique coconut cake. She liked that it used to be “wet, candy, wealthy, and simply natural decadence.”
What You’ll Want to Make This
- Sweetened shredded coconut–This provides texture to the cake batter and filling in addition to a fantastic garnish to the completed cake.
- Coconut milk and sweetened coconut cream–To create a wealthy cake batter with plenty of coconut taste, I take advantage of a mixture of coconut milk and coconut cream. Use the canned variations, now not the boxed selection.
- Coconut extract–This delivers an additional spice up of coconut taste. Keep away from the faux stuff; use actual coconut extract for the most efficient effects.
- Cream of tartar–That is crucial for stabilizing your meringue frosting. Don’t skip it.
Methods to Make This Recipe
- Warmth the oven to 350°F. Butter and flour 3 8-inch cake pans.
- Beat the butter in a stand mixer till easy.
- Unload within the coconut and steadily beat within the sugar.
- Plop within the eggs, separately, beating smartly after each and every addition.
- Mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk the coconut cream, coconut milk, vanilla, and coconut extract. Upload one-quarter of the dry elements to the mixer whilst it’s working.
- Pour in one-third of the coconut milk aggregate and mix smartly. Exchange including the remainder dry and rainy combinations.
- Divvy the batter between the cake pans. Bake till a tester comes out blank. Cool within the pans for quarter-hour, then take away and funky utterly on a cord rack.
- To make the filling, whisk the coconut milk, sugar, and flour in a saucepan till easy. Prepare dinner till thickened and bubbly.
- Stir in coconut and vanilla, then cool.
- Unfold part of the cooled filling between the primary two layers of the cake, then unfold the remainder part between the second one and 0.33 layers.
- Get ready the Italian meringue and beat till it’s silky with stiff peaks.
- Frost the cake straight away, then sprinkle with coconut.
Not unusual Questions
This cake is perfect served the day it’s crammed and frosted. But when I’m fair, The One and I’ve had sliced 48 hours, and it used to be completely fantastic. To stay the cake in combating form, it’s perfect to retailer it underneath a cake dome. It assists in keeping the meringue frosting brisker.
Worry now not. If you happen to don’t have 3 8-inch pans, you’ll be able to bake the cake in batches. Simply make sure that to not let the batter sit down too lengthy as a result of it would have an effect on the cake’s upward thrust. That you must additionally use two 9-inch pans and scale back the baking time to twenty-five to half-hour.
Sure, however with caveats. You’ll freeze the unfrosted cake layers for as much as 4 months. Merely wrap them tightly in plastic wrap, then, for additonal protection, in aluminum foil or in hermetic freezer baggage.
Whilst you’re in a position to make use of them, allow them to thaw utterly at room temperature sooner than filling and frosting. Right here’s the caveat: The filling and frosting don’t freeze smartly, so that you’ll need to lead them to because the cake defrosts. No biggie.
Useful Pointers
- You’ll make the cake layers an afternoon forward of time and the filling and frosting the day it’s to be served.
- Every time I bake desserts, I take advantage of cake strips (the ones grey spirals in step #1). You rainy them and wrap them across the outdoor of the cake pan. It prevents the cake from doming.
- For a extra complicated taste, you toast the adorning coconut in a dry skillet over low warmth. Stir repeatedly till the coconut is frivolously coloured. Right away spoon it right into a bowl to forestall the cooking. It provides dramatic colour to the highest of the cake.
Extra Very good Cake Recipes
Write a Assessment
If you’re making this recipe, or any dish on LC, believe leaving a evaluation, a celebrity score, and your perfect picture within the feedback underneath. I like listening to from you.–David
That is the most efficient cake ever! I actually loved getting ready it. I’ve been baking for years and am slightly excellent at it. However it is a very other cake combine and a excitement to create.
diana s.
Save you your display from going darkish
Make the coconut layer cake
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Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Butter and evenly flour 3 8-by-2-inch spherical cake pans, then line the bottoms with parchment paper.
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Beat the butter within the bowl of a stand mixer till easy. Unload within the coconut.
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Upload the sugar steadily and beat till fluffy, 3 to five mins. Upload the eggs, 1 at a time, beating smartly after each and every addition.
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Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt In a medium bowl. In every other bowl, whisk in combination the coconut milk, coconut cream, and extracts.
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Spoon the flour aggregate into the creamed butter in 4 additions, alternating with the coconut milk aggregate, beating smartly after each and every addition. Divide the batter some of the cake pans.
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Bake for 30 to 35 mins or till a cake tester inserted within the heart of a cake comes out blank.
☞ TESTER TIP:
Withstand overbaking the cake. it’ll be unpleasantly dry and crumbly.
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Let the desserts cool within the pans for quarter-hour. Take away from the pans and funky utterly on a cord rack.
Make the coconut filling
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Whisk the coconut milk, sugar, and flour in a medium saucepan till easy.
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Prepare dinner, stirring repeatedly, over medium-high warmth till thickened and bubbly, about 5 mins. Take away from the warmth, then stir within the coconut flakes and vanilla extract. Cool to room temperature.
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Unfold part of the cooled filling between the primary two layers of cake, then the opposite part between the second one and 0.33 layers.
Make the Italian meringue
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Upload the egg whites and coconut extract to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat on medium-high till foamy, about 1 minute.
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Mix the water, sugar, cream of tartar In a medium saucepan over excessive warmth.
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As the combination starts to bubble across the edges, stir as soon as to ensure the sugar is dissolved utterly. Let it come to a rolling boil, 2 to three mins. Right away take away from the warmth.
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Flip the mixer to medium-high, and pour the sugar syrup CAREFULLY into the crushed egg whites in a skinny, secure circulate. Proceed beating for roughly 7 mins or till stiff peaks shape, however the frosting remains to be silky.
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Frost the highest and aspects of the cake straight away, being beneficiant together with your swoops, swirls, and prospers. Generously sprinkle the highest of the cake with shredded coconut.
- Make forward–The cake layers may also be made an afternoon forward of time, and the filling and frosting the day it’s to be served.
- Use cake strips–Cake strips save you doming. They’re indispensable.
- Toast the coconut–For a extra complicated taste, toast the adorning coconut in a dry skillet over low warmth. Stir repeatedly till the coconut is frivolously coloured. Right away spoon it right into a bowl to forestall the cooking.
Serving: 1 portionEnergy: 632 kcalCarbohydrates: 100 gProtein: 8 gFats: 24 gSaturated Fats: 16 gMonounsaturated Fats: 5 gTrans Fats: 1 gLdl cholesterol: 104 mgSodium: 232 mgFiber: 2 gSugar: 76 g
Vitamin knowledge is mechanically calculated, so must handiest be used as an approximation.
Recipe © 2023 David Leite. Footage © 2023 David Leite. All rights reserved.
Recipe Testers’ Opinions
It’s a marvelous cake! Smooth and wet. Simply beautiful.
The coconut cream I purchased used to be unsweetened and the cake became out so completely. I in truth do not need preferred the cake any sweeter. The marshmallow-y coconut frosting used to be sugary sufficient for me and my circle of relatives, who agreed that the cake used to be good.
Studying throughout the recipe, one would suppose this vintage cake must be a multi-day undertaking. I guess it may well be, but it surely got here in combination a lot more briefly than I assumed it might.
The Italian meringue is FABULOUS, and the instructions are spot on. My icing reached the stiff top level in about 4 mins the use of my 30+-year-old bowl carry Kitchenaid. Some of these icings were moderately of a nemesis to me through the years, now and again turning out completely, different occasions taking a look like soup (or worse, hardening like divinity sweet).
I’m nonetheless now not all in at the coconut IN the cake. It sort of feels to make for a messy reduce. The hubs is excited, although. It’s a forged cake. And an enormous one.
It’s arduous to position into phrases simply how implausible this outdated coconut cake is. It’s wet, candy, wealthy, and simply natural decadence. I shared a slice with my goddaughter, and he or she mentioned, “It’s so excellent that it doesn’t make sense!” It actually is!
The filling used to be superb, and the frosting tasted SO excellent. (And I will be able to admit that I sampled slightly just a little of the frosting sooner than it made it onto the cake!)
You’re making the frosting like you possibly can an Italian meringue, excluding you don’t upload any butter. It tastes like the most efficient marshmallow you’ve got ever tasted! The recipe used to be spot on as written; the one deviation I made used to be to toast the coconut sooner than placing it at the cake, giving it a moderately nutty style that used to be smartly won.
I all the time use a bit of the batter to make a unmarried cupcake in order that I will be able to style the cake with no need to chop into it, and I will be able to inform you this recipe makes an cute cupcake, too. I added a small layer of the filling to the highest of the cupcake, then I added the frosting and the toasted coconut, which became out actually lovable!
I will be able to’t look forward to one more reason to make this old-timey cake once more, as that is the type of cake you wish to have to make with the intent to percentage. Differently, it’s worthwhile to certainly consume this whole cake on your own.
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