If you love Coconut Cake, you will adore this light, deliciously moist, and full-of-flavor cake recipe. We made this cake for our son's 2nd birthday – He loves Coconut and Spider-man,😊 so we decided to make a Spider-Man-themed coconut cake!
This Coconut Cake is a real showstopper and incredibly easy to make. It consists of two layers of soft, moist, and tender coconut white cake covered in a thick coconut cream cheese frosting.
There's unsweetened shredded coconut in the cake and plenty all over it, making it a coconut lover's dream dessert. If you can't get enough coconut, this cake is for you!
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How to Make Coconut Cake
Note: The full instructions are provided in the recipe card below.
Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350 °F. Spray two 9-inch cake pans with nonstick cooking spray and line with parchment. Set aside. In a medium bowl, sift the flour and baking powder 2x; whisk in the shredded coconut, and set aside.
Place the avocado oil, unsalted butter, salt, sugar, coconut extract, and clear vanilla in the bowl of a heavy-duty mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat on medium speed until creamy and fluffy, about 5 minutes—beat in the coconut extract.
Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl as needed. Beat in the egg whites until well combined, about 1 minute. Reduce the mixer speed to low.
Scrape the bowl and beater, add the dry ingredients and coconut milk, and beat until combined, for about 20 seconds (do not overmix the batter!). Using a rubber spatula, fold it all by hand to ensure no lumps at the bottom of the bowl.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan(s) and smooth the top with a metal spatula. Tap the full cake pans on the counter once or twice to release air bubbles.
The batter should look even in the pans. Bake the coconut cake(s) for about 20 to 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center emerges clean. Cool in a pan on a rack for 5 minutes, turn out onto a rack, remove the paper, and cool completely.
How to Make Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting
In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter, cream cheese, and coconut milk until creamy and well combined. Gradually add the confectioners' sugar, then beat in the coconut extract. If the frosting is too thick, add 1 tablespoon of coconut milk.
How to Assemble and Decorate
Place 4 strips of parchment paper around the edge of the coconut cake stand or plate. Flip the bottom layer of 1 cake so the domed side faces down and touches the cake stand. Evenly spread the top with cream cheese and coconut frosting.
Then, top with the second cake layer and spread the remaining frosting over the top and sides. (We recommend an icing spatula to apply the frosting and a bench scraper to smooth the sides)
Sprinkle shredded coconut on the cake and apply it to the sides. The coconut cake is best enjoyed the day it is made, but it can be stored in a cake dome container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Related Recipes:
- Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
- Pineapple Upside-down Cake
- Red Velvet Cake with Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting
- Chocolate Sheet Cake with Mocha Frosting
- Marble Bundt Cake
📖 Recipe
Easy Coconut Cake
Tools
Ingredients
- 250 g (2 cups) all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon non-aluminum baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 120 ml (½ cup) avocado oil or grapeseed oil
- 56.5 g (½ stick/ 4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
- 315 g (1-½ cups) granulated sugar
- 6 large egg whites , at room temperature
- 200 ml (¾ cup) full-fat unsweetened coconut milk, such as Goya Brand, at room temperature
- ½ tablespoon coconut extract
- ½ tablespoon clear vanilla or vanilla extract
- 60 g (1 cup) unsweetened or sweetened full-fat shredded coconut
For the Cream Cheese Coconut Frosting:
- 113 g (1 stick) unsalted butter Softened but still cool to the touch, it should not be soft and mushy.
- 1 (8oz) cream cheese, at room temperature (full-fat)
- 250 g (2 cups) confectioners' sugar
- 15 ml (1 tablespoon) pure coconut extract or clear vanilla
- 15 ml (1 tablespoon) full-fat coconut milk
- 60 g (1 cup) unsweetened shredded coconut (full-fat)
Instructions
- Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350 °F. Spray two 9-inch cake pans with nonstick cooking spray and line with parchment. Set aside. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour and baking powder 2x; whisk in the shredded coconut, and set aside.
- Place the avocado oil, unsalted butter, salt, sugar, coconut extract, and clear vanilla in the bowl of a heavy-duty mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat on medium speed until creamy and fluffy, about 5 minutes—beat in the coconut extract.
- Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl as needed. Beat in the egg whites until well combined, about 1 minute. Reduce the mixer speed to low. Scrape bowl and beater and add the dry ingredients, and add coconut milk and beat until just combined, about 20 seconds (do not overmix the batter!). Using a rubber spatula, fold it all by hand to ensure no lumps at the bottom of the bowl.
- Pour batter into prepared pan(s) and smooth top with a metal spatula.Tap full cake pans on the counter once or twice to release air bubbles. The batter should look even in the pans.
- Bake the coconut cake(s) for about 20 to 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center emerges clean. Cool in pan on a rack for 5 minutes, turn out onto a rack, remove the paper, and cool completely.
How to Make Cream Cheese Coconut Frosting:
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter and cream cheese, coconut milk until creamy and well combined. Gradually add the confectioners' sugar, then beat in the coconut extract. If the frosting is too thick, add 1 tablespoon of coconut milk.
How to Assemble and Decorate
- Place 4 strips of parchment paper around the edge of the coconut cake stand or plate. Flip the bottom layer of 1 cake so that the domed side faces down and touches the cake stand.
- Evenly spread the top with cream cheese coconut frosting. Then, top with the second cake layer and spread the remaining frosting all over the top and sides. (We recommend an icing spatula to apply the frosting and bench scraper to smooth the sides) Sprinkle shredded coconut on top of the cakeand apply it to the sides.The cake is best enjoyed the day it is made, but it can be stored in a cake dome container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Notes
- Spoon flour into a dry measuring cup and level off the excess with the back of a knife. (Scooping directly from the bag compacts the flour, resulting in a dry cake.) This coconut cake gets its flavor from pure vanilla extract and clear vanilla.
- The coconut cake layers can be made a day ahead; wrap the cooled layers in plastic and aluminum foil and store them at room temperature overnight. You can also assemble and frost the coconut cake the day before serving, cover it with a cake dome, and refrigerate it overnight.
- Let it stand at room temperature for at least 1 hour before serving.
- Insert a wooden skewer or a toothpick into the center of a cake and see if it comes out clean; if it does, the cake is done. You may also notice the cake pulling away from the pan's sides. When you get more practice, you can tell if the cake is done when you lightly press on the top and feel a slight spring back.
- Place the coconut cake in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour after frosting it. This step is optional but helps the frosting and cake layers hold their shape, yielding clean slices.
- Make sure you're using cream cheese blocks rather than cream cheese spread.
3 successful tips to remember: Cream the butter and sugar, incorporate the eggs one at a time, and alternate adding the flour and liquid.
All nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and is only an estimate. Each recipe and nutritional value will vary depending on the brands you use, measuring methods, and portion sizes per household.
